I've recently taken up running to increase my cardio and I have noticed that after I work out I feel very depressed. I have cut most carbs(sodas, bread, rice, ect...) to get my diet in better order. I do have chronic depression, but I am not sure how much that would factor because I have noticed that the workout sessions specifically trigger how I am feeling. I am a little worried because I don't sabotage myself when I am feeling down.
I used to get the same thing. Someone told me (I do not know if it is true), that it is because we release endorphins when we exercise and that you have to produce more to replace them. In the meantime you are in deficit. I've taken to eating citrus fruit before sessions. I do not get the depression any more. I can't say that that is the exact reason, but it worked for me. Also, fatty foods might be a cause.
I can't help but wonder if the running is taking more out of you than you might be aware of (mentally at least)? When you run, what sort of running do you do? Continuous gentle pace/fast pace/intervals/different lengths and routes/etc?
It's worth doing a Google search, as this is more common place than you might think. Just search, depression after exercise. http://exercise.about.com/b/2006/01/30/in-the-forum-can-exercise-cause-depression.htm http://www.livestrong.com/article/526025-getting-depressed-after-working-out/ http://www.boxingscene.com/exercise/46595.php
If you have chronic depression I would consult the person who made that diagnosis and talk to them. Further than that I would talk to a person who can examine the physical and holistic aspect of your daily life. Someone like a Chek practitioner would be ale to examine your diet, sleep, hydration, lifestyle, sexual, toilet habits, in addition to examining your bone and muscular structure, eyes, skin, medical history and so on. It isn't cheap, but it is a massive investment and in my opinion, well worth it.
I agree with Simon. Other than that, I certainly can't give expert advice on this subject, but try drinking something like emergen-c or a similar product after your workout.
You realize that you cut out all the things you need for increased endurance activities, specifically running, right? Carbs are a staple in high endurance activity, or even just a very physically active lifestyle. It's worth mentioning that during sleep your body stores the carbs into the muscles (turning it into glycogen) for use during the day. When you workout, you deplete those stores and your body begins to either use the carbs you've eaten through the day. If you have cut carbs out of your diet, or minimalized them (but have increased your activity level) your body starts turning other macro nutrients (protein/fat) into glycogen. Carbs to glycogen is the easiest, most natural chemical change for your body to do. Having to use protein/fat to turn into glycogen puts a lot of extra strain on your body, which is one of the reasons a low carb diet is great for assisting weight loss (although not always healthy). Having all your immediate energy stores burned up, with nothing to replace them after the workout (due to you cutting carbs), would certainly lead to feeling depressed. When I was experimenting with no carbs in boxing, I never felt good after a workout. In fact I felt totally miserable. This was because I had little immediate energy for my workout, and nothing to replace the energy I used up afterwards. It's possible this could be happening to you. I would try eating a source of carbs an hour or so before you run, and drinking some sort of liquid, sugary substances immediately after you run and see if that helps you out. If cutting carbs was part of a fat loss goal, you'll burn the carbs you eat prior during the run and the carbs you drink(or eat) after you workout will just go right back into the muscles energy store. This means that if you have a fat loss goal, these carbs won't be stored as fat but it might help you feel energetic and not so down after you run. It might not be a help, but it's worth a shot in trying at least? Disclaimer: When I say "carbs" I'm thinking healthy carbs, not soda and candy carbs.
Possibly unrelated to your situation but worth mentioning... there is growing research linking exposure to sunlight, particularly in the morning hours, as critical for properly balanced serotonin levels, efficient energy use, and proper sleep at night. Getting enough MORNING sunlight (not just any old sunlight..afternoon/evening exposure may be "too little, too late") may be strongly associated with leaner body weight (based on the new study), more efficient metabolism, higher serotonin levels throughout the day, better quality sleep, and increased productivity especially exercise. The study was small but indicated that without at least 30 minutes of exposure to sunlight specifically between the hours of 8am and noon every day, you might disrupt your circadian rhythm to the point where your entire metabolism begins to disrupt. Previous studies have also linked sunlight to serotonin production, and lack of it can mirror many of the physical symptoms of depression (aches, fatigue, exhaustion, insomnia, etc). For someone ALREADY suffering clinical depression, the end result can become a vicious cycle, resulting in substantially worse depression. Once for a long time I worked under ground with no exposure to sunlight until lunch, and I began to experience the symptoms of "chronic fatigue syndrome" (CFS) that persisted for months, until I began making a habit of getting a daily dose of morning sun. After about 3 months I felt normal again. In fact, you might also want to check out CFS, because I know for sure it has been linked SPECIFICALLY with post-exercise symptoms like severe exhaustion and depression. Study article: http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/201...unshine-could-morning-light-help-keep-us-lean Actual study: http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0092251 Sunlight and stress/serotonin levels: http://www.healthline.com/health/depression/benefits-sunlight Wiki Page on CFS http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chronic_fatigue_syndrome
On the other spectrum, it was thought that exercise helps minimize depression. Perhaps you are over-training
One thing to look into is what I recently found out that I have which is hypoglycemia. You MUST eat regularly (5-6) times a day which, IMO most people should do anyway. When your blood sugar drops your body cannot do what it's supposed to, sometimes it will lead to having anxiety, and once you have that, your body releases adrenaline which in turn causes more anxiety. All the while your body has to get this energy from somewhere to keep up the adrenal response, then your blood sugar can drop even lower. Cutting carbs is not really always the best idea. Eating the correct carbs is much better. Staying away from simple sugars is the right thing to do. You need to eat oats, baked potatoes, sweet potatoes, brown rice, etc. Also, good fats such as olive oil and fat from fish, you also need plenty of protein. Make sure you take a good multivitamin as well.
Doctor didn't recommend. I get regular blood work done every 6 months or so anyway though, nothing has ever signaled diabetes
Hi, I have experience in this area of subject matter. I was a pretty big weight lifter in my early 20s, but then due to a few life implications I gave up. I was clinically depressed for some years, everything the doctors threw at me didn't work. Then one day I found thai boxing, and since then my general mood is so much better (not to say I don't still have my bad days). However having said that I find myself often having to battle with the draw of these negative feelings after training. I go and I enjoy every second of what I do in class but then my mind will start to make me feel rubbish about it and think I'm wasting my time (this is more of a deep routed problem) but I also found that the dieting and training left me deficient in any energy or strength to feel positive enough up reject these negative feelings. I felt rubbish so I thought rubbish. You really do have to balance out the where you want to be versus the sacrifices you make to get there, as anyone more prone to depression may find it a harder struggle to cut everything at once and get results now, rather than gradually work things seeing results over a longer period but possibly not exhausting yourself to a point where you end up in that negative zone. Sorry if that's rambling but I get uncomfortable talking about all this stuff.
Short article about low carb diets and depression (should be enough to give you some leads to studies): http://m.psychologytoday.com/articles/200404/low-carb-state-mind
