Why Spitzer Should Have Gone for a Run

by Peter Shankman
Thu, 13 Mar 2008 at 7:19 PM

Had Governor Spitzer gone for another run, this whole thing never would have happened.

With apologies to Woody Woodpecker's favorite quote (If Woody had gone straight to the police…): I'm willing to bet that if the Governor of New York State had exercised more, or spent time on the elliptical trainer, or even just walked around the block every time he allegedly met with his "friend," the number one subject in New Yok wouldn't be the Governor and his designation as "Client #9," but rather, Billy Crystal signing a contract with the Yankees.

Think about it — ever gone for a run, or walked around the block, or dropped for 20 push-ups when you were angry, or craving excitement, or thinking about doing something that could have landed you in hot water?

I've said it before: Any kind of workout — any kind of exercise — shoots those wonderful endorphins right into the pleasure center of your brain, right through the Mesolimbic Pathway (or the Dopamine Pathway, I forget which one…), and floods you with "feel good" chemicals. The rush you get from these chemicals, which are naturally produced when you exercise, have been proven by scientists to be the same rush you get when you have sex, when you do something scary (or illegal), or when you do certain types of drugs.

So why risk doing something illegal? Why take drugs? What fun is that? Rather, do something good for you! Everyone thinks of working out in the "Yeah, it's good for me, I'll get healthy and lose weight" kind of way. But the fact is, a good run, a good workout — heck, any kind of exercise or activity that you're not used to (say, skydiving, a 5k, or 20 minutes of walking the dog at a brisk pace) — actually gets you high!

No one ever uses "getting high" in the same sentence with "exercise" or "working out," but the fact is, it's true! You get a chemical rush into your brain that makes you all happy and giddy. Ever see a marathon runner cross the finish line and look sad? Or a weight lifter finish his workout and be all "Sigh, maybe I'll go take a nap, I'm so depressed?" No! Of course not! Exercise, doing something that scares you, a simple walk around your building, changes the way you think — at least in the short term.

Do it long enough (like, for instance, every time you have the need to meet up with a woman named "Kristen"), and you'll be at the top of your game, all the time.

Yet again, a simple workout, or a walk around the block could potentially save you serious "Oh, this is SO not going to be fun" time.

I'm just sayin'.