Exercise & the Brain
With the kids back at school, I am reminded of my times in college and completing career training courses while life was throwing other challenges in my path; it can be stressful, depleting and at times depressing. Are you currently in school or taking courses to improve your career? Maybe starting a career while your household grows in numbers? Yes life can be demanding and at times overwhelming and to keep life on course we sometimes tend to put our healthy lifestyles on hold. What if there was something that could help with how you are feeling, your grades/courses and keep your health in balance all at the same time? Well there is and it is exercise.
Back in 2013 Dr John Ratey wrote a book called Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain. Inside the book Dr Ratey explains how exercise positively affects our physical health but more importantly exercise’s impact on our mental health by improving our memory and coping with stress, anxiety and/or depression. Exercise can increase various chemicals/hormones to improve the performance of our brain and mood.
Improve your learning, your grades and pass your courses easier with exercise. For starters the brain is metabolically demanding so it requires good blood flow and exercise increases the circulation to the brain helping to deliver the nutrients our brain needs. Also, studies have shown that exercise improves memory by boosting brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). BDNF is like Miracle-Gro but for the brain, it helps form new synapses that mediate learning and memory, making it easier to absorb information and form long-term memories. Grades are up but what about mood?
Exercise changes the chemistry in our brain. When you get your heart pumping your body releases endorphins ,those ‘feel good’ chemicals in your brain which trigger positive feelings. People feel better on the days they exercise because they have more endorphins floating around which can result in a calming effect and reduction in feelings of anxiety and stress. Not only can exercise increase endorphins in the brain, it also increases the availability of anti-anxiety neurochemicals, including serotonin, gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA), and BDNF. Engaging in challenging exercise can divert you from the very thing you are feeling stressed or anxious about.
Within the Dr Ratey’s book he talks about the importance of physical activities like playing sports, walking, running or swimming, mental activities like meditation and of course strength training but being back in school/training can bring more challenges to our already overwhelmed life like time constraints; there is never enough time or so we think. If we view exercise as medicine, we would want to prescribe the minimum dose to see and feel changes and that is what we do at OneUp Fitness.
To find out more information, contact our team at 902-405-3661 and book your free 1 hour fitness consultation with one of our expert trainers at one of our two studios, either in Bedford or our Halifax location, and be sure to check out our website at: https://oneupfitness.ca/.
Paul Madden, BSFL, CSEP-CPT, Personal Trainer
902 405 3661