The Dark Side of Daily Running: Escaping Stress Can Harm Your Health.

Running as a means of escapism can lead to exercise dependence, which can have adverse effects on health. A new study explored the connection between running, well-being, and exercise dependence through the lens of escapism. The study found that self-suppression, or using running to avoid negative experiences, was much more strongly linked to exercise dependence than self-expansion, or using running to seek out positive experiences. Self-suppression was also negatively related to well-being, while self-expansion was positively related to it. The study suggests that understanding one's own motivation for running can be used for therapeutic reasons for individuals struggling with a maladaptive engagement in their activity.