Senior Health and Fitness -
Exercise is Good for Your Brain?

The conventional school of thought throughout the scientific community has always been that as the brain ages, neurons die, wreaking havoc on your memory and quick wit.

You can think of neurons as the telephone lines that run through your brain and allow everything to communicate and exchange information.

If you cut the phone line between you and your neighbor, you wouldn’t be able to talk with them on the phone. When neurons die different areas of the brain can’t communicate with each other, and memory, sharpness, and balance can all suffer, among other things.

The good news is that recent studies have shown that your brain can actually grow new neurons, and assumption that would have been considered laughable just a few years ago.

Here’s where I get excited though – guess what one of the best ways is to help your brain build new brain tissue? Exercise! Specifically cardiovascular exercise, like walking, biking, rowing, swimming, etc.

It is believed that the exercise promotes blood flow to the brain (which is always a good thing), and may even release a certain hormone that stimulates the growth of neurons.

So there’s another great reason to be exercising your heart. I recommend that you do some sort of cardiovascular exercise a minimum of three times a week. Five times would be better.

By the way, that’s three to five times every week. Consistency is crucial!

Shoot for at least twenty minutes, and gradually work it up to forty-five minutes or so. It doesn’t have to be super intense, either. You just want to get the heart to beat faster than it is right now as you’re reading this.

As you’re exercising, imagine how all that bloodflow is bringing nutrients to the brain and helping it grow new neurons.