Big Mister Sunshine

Here’s a question:

Given two consecutive days (say a Saturday and a Sunday) is it better to:

A)   Run 7 miles on both days, or

B)    Run 14 miles on either of the days and rest the other?

The prompting for this question comes from a recent study published in the journal Preventive Medicine.  Researchers found that those who exercise 2.5 to 7.5 hours per week have better mental health than average.  However, more exercise than that is associated with poorer mental health. 

For the study, researchers analyzed data reported by over 7,600 adults who took part in a U.S. national survey and compared the participants’ mental health to quantity of exercise.  The researchers say that it is the first study to show an association between too much exercise and poor mental health.  This could explain why marathoners in the middle of their peak mileage training are such bears. 

The researchers were surprised to discover that when 7.5 hours of exercise were exceeded each week, symptoms of depression and anxiety rose significantly.  This was the case in both men and women, and in people of all ages and different levels of health.  That may be, but your depression and anxiety would rise considerably more if you got beat by (insert name of your nemesis here) because they’d trained more than you. 

Further research is needed to determine whether people who are more prone toward depression or anxiety are simply more likely to engage in extensive physical activity as a way to keep their mental symptoms under control, or whether larger amounts of exercise may actually cause symptoms of depression and anxiety.

“If physical activity can prevent mental health disorders or improve overall mental health, the public health impact of promoting physical activity could be enormous,” the researchers said in the study.

Although the study found an association between large amounts of exercise and worse mental health, it did not prove a cause-and-effect relationship.  It appears these researchers found correlation not causation, a rookie misinterpretation of the data. 

I spend about 8 hours a week exercising which would explain, if you side with the researcher’s thesis, my moderate crankiness.  That would be because I only slightly exceed the 7.5 hour level.  Imagine what a treat I’d be if I didn’t take a rest day each week. 

Getting back to the initial question, if you had time to run on both days and could run 14 miles on either of the days, the correct answer is:

C)    You would run 14 miles on both days.  (It was a trick question.)

One of the benefits I enjoy from running is the weekly group run.  During this week’s long run we overtook a woman.  After pleasantries were exchanged, she asked “Are you training for anything specific?”

Steve Pye responded “Training for life!”

Indeed.