The Best Exercise for Your Brain
Do you find yourself forgetting things? Or feeling fuzzy-minded when you need to be clear and sharp? Perhaps you’re feeling stressed, and you can’t concentrate?
Although it feels like the problem in in your head, the answer might be in your body!
A 2021 Harvard Health article adds to the mountain of scientific literature linking exercise and cognitive function and improved memory and thinking skills. Exercise boosts your memory and thinking skills by acting on both the body and on the brain.
More specifically, exercise encourages the growth of new blood vessels and neurons in the brain. It also seems to increase the size of the areas of the brain that control thinking and memory. Exercise also improves mood and reduces stress and anxiety, all of which play a part in cognitive function and mental health.
But what type of exercise is best for peak mental performance?
HIIT (high-intensity interval training) might just be the answer.
Interval training is any exercise where you vary the pace of your workout session. That means mixing short periods of hard work with periods of rest and recovery. For example, if you’re an absolute beginner to exercise, you might mix some easy-paced walking with short bursts of high-speed walking. Your muscles will start to tire, and you’ll get out of breath—and then you slow back down to that easy pace to recover. Rinse and repeat.
The benefits of interval training also extend to the mind. During exercise, your brain is flooded with brain-derived neuro- trophic factor (BDNF), which stimulates the growth of new neurons and can improve mental alertness, learning, and memory. Although circulating levels of BDNF are elevated for only 30 to 60 minutes before returning to baseline, studies have shown that exercise has long-term benefits on cognitive function.
One hypothesis for these benefits is that repeated bouts of BDNF exposure through regular exercise continuously stimulates the brain, leading to long-term functional and structural brain adaptations.
Add some HIIT to your regular routine
If you want to challenge yourself a bit more but you’re new to interval training, here are some keys to help you get started:
This type of training is a lot harder on your body than aerobic exercise. So, you don’t need to do any more than two or three interval workouts per week. Make sure you give yourself 48 to 72 hours of recovery between intense workouts.
Start small. If you’re completely new to this type of training, start by just adding a little bit of intensity into a walk, jog, or bike ride. For example, maybe on a long slow run, bump up the pace until you get to the next stop sign and then slow it down again. You can do this a few times throughout the run.
If your joints or other health conditions prevent you from doing anything too high impact, you could walk some stairs or speed walk up a nearby hill. Aquafit is another incredible option for anyone.
This type of training can take very little time. So, if you find it hard to fit exercise into your schedule, this is a good option for you. Try going for a few quick flights of stairs in between meetings or a 20-minute circuit workout before or after work. Health and fitness improvements have been measured after exercise bouts as short as 20 seconds by researchers at McMaster University.
Remember to start slow, take it easy, and build gently. HIIT training is physiologically demanding so ease into these workouts and take your time. There is no rush!
Final Thoughts
High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is an excellent exercise for brain health, providing significant cognitive benefits. This type of training enhances the production of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a protein that supports the growth and differentiation of new neurons and synapses in the brain. Increased BDNF levels improve mental alertness, learning, and memory. Additionally, the cognitive demands of HIIT, especially during more intense workouts, help to engage and stimulate the brain, boosting concentration and neuroplasticity over time.
Give it a try and let me know how it goes!
That’s it for this week! Let me know your thoughts in the comments.
Yours for health, wellbeing & peak performance - Dr. Greg
