Why is exercise good for your brain?
If you exercise frequently, you’ll know how physically good it makes you feel. It can help strengthen muscles, boost your lung function and keep your ticker healthy.
But working out also seems to favour the brain.
From improving learning to modulating depression and possibly even protecting our brain cells from degeneration, frequent aerobic exercise is a tonic for that 1.3kg or so of salty fatty tissue that keeps the show running.
Why is that?
For one thing, exercise is linked to the release of several “neurotrophic” biochemicals in the brain that help it to function.
Animal studies suggest that these factors can improve learning and may even have anti-depressant effects.
And lest we think it’s just the rats swimming around mazes who benefit, exercise also seems to boost measurable forms of brain function in humans across the lifespan – even in pre-adolescent children a bout of treadmill walking has been found to bump up cognitive function and attention.
Another contributing factor could be that by challenging our cardiovascular systems to a good cobweb-
clearing workout we improve the flow of blood above the neck.
For such relatively small organs, our diva brains are energy and oxygen hogs, and physical activity appears to enhance delivery of the goods to the dressing room door: non-human work has shown that frequent aerobic exercise increases the volume of blood vessels serving the brain.
So what are you waiting for? Bring your brain for a run.
