Looking for answers from EEGs
The lab tech says, “Now we’re going to attach the electrodes.”
I am in the Applied Cognition Lab, at the University of Utah, seeing what science says about the effects of trail running on my brain. Rachel Hopman, a graduate student, smiles and laughs easily as she brandishes what appears to be a hypodermic needle.
“I saw this in a movie,” I say. “You’re taking me to a black site, aren’t you?”
“It’s just saline,” Rachel says nonchalantly. “Sometimes it’s hard to get a good signal.”
My friend Yitka Winn, also a Trail Runner writer, is along for the ride. We exchange uncertain glances, and I shrug. We asked to come here. We should trust her, right?
As she casually squirts the saline onto our scalps, Rachel explains that it improves conductivity. And that’s the point, after all—to capture and record our brains’ electrical signals. In this case, we’ll do it before and after trail running. Within minutes, our heads are in tight black electroencephalogram (EEG) caps, wires exploding outward.
Does trail running rejuvenate our minds? I wanted to know. I do know that trail running is my Valium, and I self-medicate recklessly. One hour for maintenance, two when my job sucks, three when the world makes no sense and I’m banging my fists into the dashboard.
Denne historien er fra December 2017, #124-utgaven av Trail Runner.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Denne historien er fra December 2017, #124-utgaven av Trail Runner.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
You Cannot Erase us
Over the years and through thousands of miles of running, I have thought about the words that marked the beginning of colonialism on the land and the end of Indigenous sovereignty.
Inside The Adaptable Mind
How Courtney Dauwalter uses adaptability to stay cool, calm and collected when the going gets tough.
Take it Easy
How to stay at aerobic pace when you live in the hills
Here Comes the Sun
Where pessimism meets its match
Connecting the Dots
How Laura Cortez uses her passion for trails to build community.
Carbohydrate Confusion
When it comes to food and nutrition, we tend to overcomplicate things. Eat this, not that. Run fasted, restrict sugar. Unfortunately, much of the controversy stems from observations and sensationalized media headlines vs. actual data, leaving the consumer more confused from their Google search than they were before.
This Wild Life
ONE MAN’S 92-MILE RUN OF GRIEF AND SELF-DISCOVERY.
Our Town
Trail running is all about the community it fosters and the beauty and diversity within the community. Here’s a look at seven places, and the faces that call them home.
Fueling for Females
Here’s how female runners can use recent research findings for performance breakthroughs
Lose Weight with a Shake
Being a health and nutrition correspondent means that companies frequently send me their products, and ask for my stamp of approval.
