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I'm by no means an expert, but from my reading of body hacking and dieting etc, it seems that higher intensity workouts lead to increased cortisol release, a hormone released in response to stress. I'm not sure if this is the hormone they're referencing though, because IIRC extended periods of elevated cortisol levels are associated with Parksinson's/Alzheimers...



But the rats got the benefits even though the forced exercise was lower than the intensity they would choose themselves.


The abstract says the rats ran the same distance, so the voluntary exercisers spent less time. That could be the important variable.


From what I understand, high-intensity workouts do raise cortisol but only temporarily. Long-term, exercise-induced adaptations counteract those raised cortisol levels, and actually lower them.




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