"Today was my first session," he says after a recent session with his personal trainer. "I have not been working out for quite some time"
Zaher has just started working with a fitness coach, figuring out where to focus his regimen to build strength and endurance. His plan: exercise at least 45 minutes a day.
Even after one day, he says he already feels like he has more energy.
"I feel my blood is pumping, I'm warmer, and ready to go."
Zaher feels his body react to working out, and that translates to feeling better overall. These feelings are similar to what some call a runner's high, when your brain lets out feel-good chemicals called endorphins during physical activity.
"Exercise does release endorphins and you are fired up and ready to go and you do leave here feeling better," says Amanda Perry, the owner of Total Fitness Columbus, the gym Zaher attends.
Perry sees athletes like Zaher come to her gym a lot, especially now that the new year is under way and people work towards their resolutions to get in shape and feel better.
But feeling better from exercise may not be directly related to endorphins. Indiana University kinesiology professor John Raglin says the release of those feel-good chemicals only comes after extreme exercise, such as running a marathon, not the kind of everyday gym sessions most people are used to.
Fortunately, Raglin says they've seen that it doesn't take a marathon--or the endorphins it produces--to feel good.
People who exercise moderately – 20 to 45 minutes a day – likely aren't experiencing the effects of endorphins. However, Raglin says even low-impact exercise can give them a mood boost.
"We found in our own studies that low doses of exercise which are insufficient to produce endorphin make you feel just as good as high doses," he says.
Raglin says a few things are at play when it comes to experiencing a "gym high."
"Very likely, it's a cascade of hormones that are involved in mood changes that contribute to this feeling-better sensation," says Raglin. "That's most likely dopamine and serotonin."
At the gym, Perry often greets people as they walk in to exercise. She says she can see people's moods lift as soon as they walk through the door.
"I think from the very first time somebody sets foot in the weight room, even if they do 10 minutes on the treadmill, their mental health is increased, they're better off," she explains.
Zahar feels the change already, but he doesn't work out just to feel the chemicals in his brain.
"It gives me a lot of energy, after I work out, I still feel like I have a lot of energy," Zahar says. "It gets me pumped up. I'm planning on sticking with it all the way 'til the end"
