Relatively, right? It's like adding tons of variation and cycles in training (i.e. periodization). Done correctly, you can keep improving season after season.

Yes. On the one hand the analogy is useful. Just like how physical training makes one physically fit, hedonic hacks might make one hedonically fit. On the other hand, while people might understand and accept that there are genetic limits that they cannot pass beyond, it's never the case for hedonic pleasure. Hedonic adaptation drives one to always look for more.

Or you can just settle for being sad and frustrated knowing that there will come another day and it'll be better.

Guess that's stepping off the treadmill. I'm interested in stoic philosophy as opposed to epicurian philosophy, so all this talk of the hedonic treadmill seems super weird to me.

:)

Maybe to break the treadmill we need to subject ourselves to torture once per month to reset our baseline?

exactly, more more more!