I am curious to hear how prevalent clinical depression is in endurance sports? Many of the top notch athletes I have read about seem to have struggled with clinical depression.
Some part of me thinks that to go that far to the edge, one has to be a bit depressed or at least not “normal” psyhologically speaking. By no means am I passing judgement as I struggle with depression. I am just curious as to the mentaql framework of fellow triathletes and some professional endurance athletes.
I think depression is something to be mindful of in most sports these days at the elite levels. My opinion is that the elite athlete is at risk of post-traumatic stress disorder (manifesting itself as depression) and/or being disappointed in outcomes after putting in a TON of work.
Just my opinion on the reasons:
The human mind & body needs a varied & balanced diet of activities in the social, creative, logical, sensory, …etc. in addition to the athletic component.
The problem with elite levels in sports is that it pushes the athlete to abnormal almost obsessive levels in the athletic component at the expense of “normal” social & other activity. there is just not enough time in the day. It’s like going to “sports war”.
My experience from doing intense industrial projects (work 29 days/mo, 12 hours) is that PTSD can happen in as little as a month of doing a compressed activity pallette. The greater the “compression” the more the depression.
Tri is tough, IM WTC is insane. You have elites that rise up and legends fall away. I think it’s only possible to make a run for the championship over a certain window of time, then you have to pull back. Didn’t Chrisse say just that this year on the webcast?
I have no idea as to the answer to your question. I do know that I experience the exact opposite. When I don’t exercise for a while, I seem to slip into a state of unease/ unhappiness. When I’m steadily hitting the pavement, life seems to be much better. It’s as if sport is my cure for depression and not the cause.
I’m with you. Depression, OCD, lexapro prescription. The med has helped substantially. Triathlon is a much healthier drug than alcohol or umm… others.
Do you know anyone that is “normal”. What is normal? I think slightly “crazy” is the new normal (seriously). Depression sucks. I’ve been battling it since I was a child. Giving up heavy smoking and daily drinking (not heavy) was a big step for me (like Tri/exersize they are just another way of dealing with stress). Tri kept me from that hole that I so easily fell in in the past. The three disaplines keep my OCD in check (sort of). And now a few years into this sport I’m in the best shape of my life, and by all but ST standards, I’m a beast to race against! (at least in my dream world 
Lots of people use endurance exercise to self medicate.
I do not think it is a case of exreme exercise causing depression but one of people with depression issues finding that exercise alleviates the symptoms.
I have no idea as to the answer to your question. I do know that I experience the exact opposite. When I don’t exercise for a while, I seem to slip into a state of unease/ unhappiness. When I’m steadily hitting the pavement, life seems to be much better. It’s as if sport is my cure for depression and not the cause.
X2
i think I can deal with things more efficiantly when training. When I do not get my workout in I am edgey
Speaking from experience, I find exercise training to be very helpful in dealing with depression.
However, it is not a cure all. Training does not take the place of a balanced life with strong social support and coping skills. In fact, overtraining can make a depressed person much, much worse.
I used to have long bouts of depression, but after getting serious into endurance sports my depression weeks have become almost non-existant. I had a recent knee injury that kept me out for three months, and I become incredibly depressed again, but I think that was mostly to not being able to ride. I feel like it a natural SRI, if I ever had to quit I would probably go on SRI’s, because I have come to realize how much sertonin has an effect on my body.
Anybody who runs more than 10 miles without stopping probably has some level of self loathing.
Yes, I’ve also found that endurance sports have greatly helped me to overcome any periods of depression that I used to have. Endorphins are a powerful chemical when released.
I too use training as a tool to keep my moods in check. Even my wife will tell me to go ride or run or whatever when she notices my mood going down.
General question to this thread. Do you guys feel better after endurance training or anaerobic training (weights, hockey, sprints etc). I find I feel good after endurance training that goes as follows:
Run 60 min or less
Bike 90 min or less
Swim 45 min or less
Once I get a lot longer than these durations in any sport, I find that I CAN lack energy and I actually feel more “down than up” later in the day.
On the other hand if I do anaerobic training I feel “up” all day. Of course, the duration of the anaerobic training is low, and it is rare that I exhaust my energy resources to nothing. If I run around 80+ minutes, bike > 2 hours, or swim around 70-80 min, I can feel dragged out (and sometimes down) later in the day.
Maybe it has more to do with everything going on in life. We need energy to do other things and if I use up too much in training, it is easier to feel more down later in the day. Not depression for sure, but not “up and sharp” either. Sometimes I will do a 30 min ride to work…10 min warmup, then 10x30-60 seconds hard with 30-60 seconds easy in between. The sprints are in the anaerobic zone and when I get to work, everything is firing and ready to roll.
When I do really really long training one day or some long racing like a half Ironman, I expect to feel down the next day (not depressed, but can be on the verge).
My thought is that when we do the really long training and get depleted it hammers a variety of hormones. Do it all the time multiple days per week and also hammer the immune systems in the process, and maybe it is easier for high volume athletes to teeter on the verge of depression. Nothing worse than a group of endurance athletes after the third day in a row of high volume training during a training camp. Between the fatigue, lack of sleep, type A personalities and a variety of hormones out of whack, it’s bad news all around (I’m just as bad, but I recognize this as a byproduct of guys doing high volume training).
I really do thing the high volume, especially chronic high volume can push people to the brink of depression. Then you just need a few other events at work or family and everything is nicely lined up.
Dev
I have battled anxiety and PTSD. When your in the gutter it makes IM look like kids play to climb out. I found triathlon as a healthy coping mechanism that has been better than any medication. There are many stigmas associated with mental illness and many people don’t relieze that even Elites have personal demons. By the grace of god, my family, and my sport I’m a success story. When you remove any of the 3 I can feel the uneasy demons try to creep back in.
I have no idea as to the answer to your question. I do know that I experience the exact opposite. When I don’t exercise for a while, I seem to slip into a state of unease/ unhappiness. When I’m steadily hitting the pavement, life seems to be much better. It’s as if sport is my cure for depression and not the cause.
Couldn’t have said better myself
I have no idea as to the answer to your question. I do know that I experience the exact opposite. When I don’t exercise for a while, I seem to slip into a state of unease/ unhappiness. When I’m steadily hitting the pavement, life seems to be much better. It’s as if sport is my cure for depression and not the cause.
Likewise.
If I go 2+ days w/o exercise I get very moody and edgy.
I have no idea as to the answer to your question. I do know that I experience the exact opposite. When I don’t exercise for a while, I seem to slip into a state of unease/ unhappiness. When I’m steadily hitting the pavement, life seems to be much better. It’s as if sport is my cure for depression and not the cause.
X2
i think I can deal with things more efficiantly when training. When I do not get my workout in I am edgey
I’m the same way. If i don’t get a good workout in i get very aggravated and probably unpleasant to be around. Also before I got into tris i had anxiety relatively bad. now i only get anxious about tri stuff. much better than before
According to a research paper written a few years ago by Scott Tinley, many retired pro athletes find themselves struggling with depression. It’s probably more prevalant than one would think. Some are able to adjust to the change and move on to a new chapter in their life, while others struggle. A lot seemed to depend on the maturity of the athlete when they were at their peak, and how sheltered they were during their formative years, and whether or not they had a plan for their life after they retired.
He expanded on his paper by writing a book on it:
http://www.amazon.ca/Racing-Sunset-Athletes-Quest-After/dp/1592280951
Mental illness is more common than one may realise. What manifests it, or what helps ward it off is probably as varied as the people who suffer from it.
I agree, when I don’t train, I get cranky and depressed, but it’s important to recognize that there is a different mechanism in play as well: Depression from strenuous exercise (either repeated in training or specific events/races) occurs and is caused by a depletion of neurotansmitters like choline that are regulating blood glucose levels (study on marathon runners in early 1990s by Hassmen & blomstrand called “Mood change and marathon running: A pilot study using a Swedish version of the POMS test”)
More recent studies, like Armstrong (not THAT one) & VanHeest’s 2002 “The Unknown Mechanism of the Overtraining Syndrome: Clues from Depression and Psychoneuroimmunology” show that overtraining and clinical depression “involve remarkably similar signs and symptoms, brain structures, neurotransmitters, endocrine pathways and immune responses.”
So, yes, please don’t lynch me, but depression can be a byproduct of strenuous endurance training.
To clarify the subject of the post was “top notch” or elite athletes. I presumed that to be top in the world rankings pro/elite.
I deal with top world athletes on a weekly basis (in season) and I’ve followed careers from inception to retirement. Pro sports is a tough gig, it really is.
Most of the replies here are amatuer level and you know that’s the best way to enjoy the sport for spirit, mind and body!
Another great way to be involved in a sport without the pressure cooker of performance is to be a supplier, builder etc. You are a professional in that sport but not with the intensity of a pro-competitor.
I haven’t this in the public, but I dealt with severe depression about 2.5 years ago. I was in the military and when I found out about a medical condition that changed my entire future I was crushed. I did turn for help to friends and family, and was put on meds at one point. It was a huge transition for me, but endurance sports really helped change who I was before to who I am now.