Exercise Shows Remarkable Potential In Boosting Pain Tolerance

Sensory neurons transmit the unpleasant sensation of pain to the brain. The discomfort is an indication of actual or probable bodily harm. But pain is more than just a physical experience; it also refers to the perception or how an individual interprets their agony. 

But researchers have added something else to the extensive list of advantages of exercise: a better capacity for handling pain. Regular exercise is a proven approach to treating or preventing chronic pain without medication, according to a recent study in the journal PLOS One. 

Anders Pedersen Arnes, the lead author from the University Hospital of North Norway, said in an email to Fox News Digital, “The main takeaway is that habitual physical activity in your spare time appears to be associated with your level of discomfort tolerance — the more physically fit you are, the higher your pain tolerance is likely to be.” 

Fox News Reported that One of Norway’s most significant population studies, the Tromso study, which had 10,732 individuals, was examined by researchers. Participants answered questions about their degree of physical activity (sedentary, light, moderate, or vigorous), recorded on the questionnaires. 

The cold pressor test (CPT), which involves submerging participants’ hands in ice water between 32- and 41 degrees Fahrenheit to gauge their pain tolerance, was used to calculate each participant’s threshold for pain.  

The study was conducted a second time, seven to eight years apart. The researchers concluded that, for both rounds, any level of exercise was preferable to inactivity in terms of pain tolerance. 

Second, there are hints that the degree of pain tolerance is influenced by the overall quantity of physical activity over time and the pattern that changes in activity level over time, according to Arnes. 

The person’s tolerance for pain increases with increased overall activity levels. “We found large effects for the most active participants compared to the least active participants — roughly 60 seconds endurance per participant for the sedentary category versus over 80 seconds endurance for the most active participants,” said Arnes. 

The researchers were startled to find that the results held for people already dealing with chronic pain. Another unexpected finding was that there was no distinction between men and women. The researcher stated, “We expected fewer effects for women, yet this was not the case.

Arnes emphasized that this was a case study in which averages for several population subgroups were examined. Additionally, there was a chance for bias or inaccuracy because the activity levels were self-reported. 

“We would not use these results to predict pain tolerance for small, clinical subpopulations,” the author noted. This study wasn’t the first to examine the connection between physical activity and pain tolerance. 

Twenty-four college-age students participated in a pair of strength training and circuit training sessions as part of a 2017 study by South-eastern Louisiana University that was published in the Journal of Sports Science and Medicine. The results showed that the participants had a higher threshold for pain.