For most forms of exercise (cardio, weightlifting, HIIT etc.) there’s a a spectrum of default experiences people can have from feeling a drug-like high to grindingly unpleasant. “Runner’s high” is not a metaphor, and muscle pump while weightlifting can feel similarly good. I recommend experimenting to find what’s pleasant for you, though I’d guess valence of exercise is, unfortunately, quite correlated across forms.
Another axis of variation is the felt experience of music. “Music is emotional” is something almost everyone can agree to, but, for some, emotional songs can be frequently tear-jerking and for others that never happens.
Weight lifters feeling “pumped” is similarly literal. I get this from rock climbing more often than lifting, but after a particularly strenuous climb, your arm muscles feel inflated—they’re engorged with blood. It can take a minute for it to subside.
For most forms of exercise (cardio, weightlifting, HIIT etc.) there’s a a spectrum of default experiences people can have from feeling a drug-like high to grindingly unpleasant. “Runner’s high” is not a metaphor, and muscle pump while weightlifting can feel similarly good. I recommend experimenting to find what’s pleasant for you, though I’d guess valence of exercise is, unfortunately, quite correlated across forms.
Another axis of variation is the felt experience of music. “Music is emotional” is something almost everyone can agree to, but, for some, emotional songs can be frequently tear-jerking and for others that never happens.
Weight lifters feeling “pumped” is similarly literal. I get this from rock climbing more often than lifting, but after a particularly strenuous climb, your arm muscles feel inflated—they’re engorged with blood. It can take a minute for it to subside.
Wow I hadn’t even considered people not taking this literally