Everyone has a general understanding that moderate exercise is beneficial to your overall health. Even the smallest amount of exercise can improve your circulation, help fight arthritis, and even improve conditions such as diabetes and high cholesterol. Most people, however, do not realize how beneficial simple exercise is to keeping the brain young.
Exercise Requires Coordination
All forms of exercise require coordination. Because of this, your brain must make the effort to stay coordinated to complete the task. This is very helpful to keeping your brain young. Many people when they age start to lose their ability to maintain their balance or stay coordinated to complete certain tasks. This is why falling is common in the elderly. By keeping your brain active through exercise you will be able to maintain your balance and coordination.
Exercise Requires Dedication
Making a commitment to exercise everyday requires you to make a commitment to the routine. Establishing a routine of any type is beneficial to the brain because the brain is required to remember and perform this routine on command. Repeating an exercise routine helps you retain your memory skills and keeps the brain stimulated.
Feeding Your Brain
Your brain requires fresh blood and pure oxygen to work properly. When you exercise, you are pushing more blood and more oxygen through your system. This means that you will feel more alert and your brain will function at optimal strength. By continuing to exercise, you will feed your brain and help it to stay healthy.
Social Interaction
Many people find that it is easier to exercise with a friend. Going to the gym or attending exercise classes gives you the opportunity to interact with other people. This social interaction is beneficial to your overall mental health, and this benefit extends to your physical brain. Your brain “enjoys” the pleasure hormones that it receives when you are socially interactive and this response keeps your brain active and young.
Health Benefits
There are many medical disorders that can have adverse effects on the brain. High cholesterol, diabetes, even high blood pressure can all take its toll on the brain. When your body is unhealthy your brain will also suffer. Exercising decreases your risk for many of these diseases and can help improve them if you are already suffering from one of these conditions. For every other medical condition you eliminate, prevent, or manage, your brain will benefit from your healthy efforts.
Exercise, when added to a healthy diet, is one of the most beneficial things you can do for your body and your brain. Exercise will help you remain strong, keep you feeling young, and help your brain stay active and healthy. You do not have to commit to an aggressive workout routine to see the benefits. Making the commitment to add twenty minutes of movement of any type to your day will be very beneficial to your overall health.