The list of extreme sports is long and there are significant differences amongst them, but they all have something in common: practicing them will make you feel full of energy, powerful and almost invincible. They´ll help you push your limits, get rid of fear, improve ourselves and reach new goals. They are, without a doubt, a different way to get to know oneself better and to find a deep well-being.  

It´s not surprising that practicing extreme sports can get you hooked, as this addiction to strong emotions has a scientific and biological basis. The reason is adrenaline, a hormone that prepares the body to face external stimuli. It acts as a vasodilator and improves our respiratory capacity so that more oxygen reaches the muscles. In consequence you´ll feel strong, agile, fast ... increasing the euphoria and reducing fear. Adrenaline helps you giving the best of yourself.

After experiencing this change in your body, another reaction occurs: endorphins, another hormone related to happiness, appear. This has a powerful analgesic effect and generates a feeling of well-being and joy.  

All this makes people to feel "hooked" to experience these sensations that risky sports produce and to increasingly feel the need of more and new stimuli. This is also because the body gets accustomed to these feelings and it becomes necessary to rise the level of "risk" to reach certain states of excitement.

In addition to the mentioned ones, extreme sports generate another series of benefits:

• They push you to overcome fears and explore your own limits.
• They work as a motivation to set new goals and to overcome them.
• They help burn calories and tone our muscles
• You learn to have fun with sports.
• They invite you to get out of the routine.

Practicing extreme sports can be scary, especially at the beginning. However, there´s nothing like losing fear and daring yourself to try. These are some of the activities that you can start with:

Psicobloc

If you already have experience climbing, psicobloc is the next step for you: it consists of climbing walls of rock that rise directly from the sea and then dive on to it. It requires strength, technique and knowing how to swim very well to return to the shore. The best part about this sport is that you don´t need a lot of material: you just have to bring your climbing shoes and a sealed bag for magnesium well isolated from the water. It´s become a very famous practice in the Balearic Islands.

Surfing  

Glide on the waves of the sea on your board and enjoy the feeling of adrenaline. Surfing is one of the most exciting and fun sports to practice, especially during summer. Anyone can try it although it is recommended to take some classes at the beginning to learn how to stand up on the board and learn how the currents work. In the north of Spain you will find the best waves in the country, although almost any beach will be good for beginners.

Canyoning  

If you prefer mountain to beach, you can also try canyoning: one of the most complete extreme sports as it combines different activities such as rappelling, hiking or jumping on a river. Anyone can try this sport accompanied by an expert guide who describes the route and how to proceed in each case. It´s mandatory to carry the basic safety equipment consisting of a helmet, wetsuit, ropes and harnesses. The most fun part are the jumps and the natural slides that form in the river.

Skydiving

This is probably one of the extreme sports that scares the most ahead of practicing it for the first time. It´s not strange, as jumping off an airplane requires much value. Nonetheless, the feeling of adrenaline when practicing this activity is so strong that when you finally touch the ground you´ll feel an enormous dose of happiness and excitement.

Volcano Boarding

Similar to practicing sandboarding (it's like snowboarding but on a sand dune), volcano boarding consists of sliding down the hillside of a volcano between the ashes. The risk, in this case, consists of doing this near a volcano.

Nicaragua is the preferred country for this practice, where you´ll be able to slide down by the slope of the Cerro Negro volcano at about 80 kilometers per hour. Remember to do it sitting on a wooden board and wearing the mandatory protections.

Slacklining

Slacklining consists of maintaining balance, while walking and jumping on a thin rope. This rope is usually placed barely one meter from the ground, but it can also be several meters higher. The higher up, the more emotion and the more vertigo you´ll feel, and the more challenging it´ll become. That´s why people have been seen practicing slacklining over the void in mountains or even between large buildings. In this sport concentration and balance are fundamental, so make sure to focus on this and start by practicing at small heights.

These six extreme sports are just a sample of all the activities that can help test your bravery and experience how adrenaline fills your body. Different environments, different levels ... but all allowing you to live breathtaking experiences.