How Exercise Makes Your Brain Work Better!

As a parent, a spouse, and someone who works full time at my job and pretty much full time at keeping a household running, I often feel like I have 20 tabs open in my brain at once.

There are always appointments to be made and kept, chores and bills to keep on top of, work deadlines, social plans, missing toys to find (I knew I saw that stuffed animal in the dining room!)…

I also have things I want to learn. I want to get better at cooking, learn to speak a different language, master excel, and much more.

If this sounds familiar, imagine how much easier it would be to do all the things you need to do and all the things you want to do if you could boost your brainpower.

It’s pretty obvious that improving the way your brain works can have huge effects on your overall well-being and quality of life. Imagine what you could do if your memory was better, if you could focus more effectively, if your critical thinking was better.

You could make better decisions in your personal and professional life. You could learn new skills or information more easily. It would be easier to remember the precious moments spent with your family or friends, and so much more.

Even more, imagine how great it would be to protect yourself against the debilitating effect of aging on your brain.

Exercise is an incredibly effective way to improve your brain function!

Your brain is an ever-changing organ. Scientists used to think that the brain was hardwired once you reach a certain age. It turns out that’s not true at all. Brain cells can keep growing and changing throughout your life.

You can train your brain, just like you can train your muscles. “Brain training” games and apps are popular these days, but one avenue for brain training that you may not know about is exercise.

Exercise has powerful effects on a lot of different aspects of your brain. It can improve memory, decision-making, attention and focus, and help you think faster and more creatively.

These improvements can happen after an individual workout. Studies have found that people do better on brain function tests after exercise than after they sit still.

They also happen in the long-term, with studies finding that people do better on brain tests after completing multi-week physical activity programs. Other studies have found even longer-term associations between better brain function and higher levels of physical activity.

As if all of those amazing benefits weren’t enough, exercise even helps protect your brain against the negative effects of aging. Exercise has been shown to significantly decrease the risk of developing different types of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease. Some studies show a 40% decrease in Alzheimer’s risk in active people.

How does exercise improve brain function?

When you exercise, a huge number of changes take place in your brain. Many of them can improve brain function and learning capacity.

Exercise sends more blood to your brain. 

Blood brings nutrients with it and takes away waste products. That's why increasing blood flow promotes optimal functioning in all parts of your body, including your brain.

Exercise releases a range of different substances in your brain that help it work better! 

One important substance in your brain is called a neurotransmitter. Neurotransmitters help brain cells communicate with each other.

Many different drugs, like those used to treat depression and anxiety, work by releasing more neurotransmitters or helping to balance the ones that are already there.

Exercise does the same thing. It releases neurotransmitters and helps your brain balance them. The better your brain cells communicate with each other, the better your thinking and learning skills.

Speaking of learning, there are also substances called neurotrophins, which are a type of protein that helps protect your existing brain cells and grow new ones. One of these substances, called BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor) has been referred to as “miracle-gro for the brain”.

BDNF and other neurotrophins are essential for better brain function and learning. Guess what stimulates the release of BDNF and other similar substances? That’s right… exercise!

Exercise can even change the structure and function of your brain!

As we age, we tend to lose brain volume, which means our brain actually shrinks in certain areas.

The most well-studied brain area related to exercise is called the hippocampus, which is involved in memory and learning. People who exercise are less likely to lose brain mass in this area as they get older. That could explain why exercise helps with brain function and learning.

Studies have also found that exercise increases the connections between different areas of the brain. Our brains are made up of lots of different parts that perform different functions. They depend on each other to work as effectively as possible.

To do that, they need to communicate with each other. Connections between those brain areas open up lines of communication.

It’s just like working in a team or a group, you need clear communication to do your best work. Exercise improves the networks of connections between different brain areas, which could also help your brain work better.

Repetitive exercise can clear your head and help you think in a different way. 

Have you ever noticed that when you’re fully immersed in something you’re doing, your mind feels clear and calm? You don’t notice racing thoughts, that inner critic in your brain, or the constant internal dialogue narrating your day. Some people call that feeling “getting out of your head” or “flow state”.

Some people think differently when they’re in that state. They’re able to find solutions to big problems, organize their thoughts in a new way, or come up with creative ideas.

Many people meditate and some people take drugs to achieve that altered state of thinking, but one of the best ways to get into that mental state is through exercise.

There’s a theory that explains why you’re able to clear your head and think differently while you’re exercising. It’s called the transient hypofrontality hypothesis.

Basically, those racing thoughts and inner dialogue come from a brain area called the prefrontal cortex. That area is responsible for your conscious thoughts, critical thinking, and decision making. It usually gets a lot of resources: blood flow, nutrients, and neurotransmitters are usually highly concentrated there.

But when you exercise, other parts of your brain need those resources too, like the areas that control your muscles, your heart rate, your breathing, and many more physical functions. Since those brain areas are so important to your ability to exercise, your brain starts to send resources to those areas and gives your prefrontal cortex a rest.

Your mind might feel clear and calm during a workout because the part of your brain that usually clutters it up with a lot of conscious thoughts is taking a break. After your workout, when your brain fires up that prefrontal cortex again, that “reset” can result in a new idea or way of thinking.

How To Exercise For Better Brain Function:

Aim for a well-rounded exercise routine. 

Cardio and strength training have been shown to improve brain function individually, but combining the two as part of your weekly routine seems to have the best results. That might be because cardio and strength training each has slightly different brain benefits, so if you do both your brain will benefit in more ways than one!

Include skill-based exercises.

Anything that challenges your brain can help with learning and brain function, and exercise is no different. Exercise challenges your brain because it has to coordinate your muscle movements in just the right way.

Some types of exercise, like balance exercises and gymnastics skills like handstands, challenge your coordination even more and can boost the brain's response to exercise. Other types of exercise combine that coordination challenges with a conscious learning challenge.

Martial arts, tai chi, dance, and even strength training challenge you to remember movements and sequences. That gives you a coordination challenge plus a memory and learning challenge. The novelty of those kinds of workouts might help you enjoy the exercise more, too!

Set aside some time for your workouts.

Studies have found that exercise longer than 20 minutes has a positive effect on brain function, although longer sessions of about 45-60 minutes seem to have an even bigger effect.

Up the intensity. 

Both moderate and vigorous-intensity exercise has been found to improve brain function. However, it seems that higher-intensity exercise is your best bet for a better brain.

For cardio, interval training is a great way to get the benefits of high-intensity exercise. You can also work on increasing your intensity over time in your traditional cardio sessions. Track your pace and aim to go a little faster in each session.

For resistance training, both moderate (sets of 8-12 reps) and heavy (sets of 4-6 reps) weightlifting seem to have a similar brain effect, as long as you push yourself close to failure in most of your sets.

Do it frequently. 

As usual with the benefits of exercise, any amount of exercise is better than none. As few as 1-2 sessions a week can have a positive effect on brain function, but more frequency is better. The best benefits are seen with 5 or more sessions a week.

Work on improving your fitness level.

Some studies have found that the amount of brain-boosting substances released after exercise is related to your fitness level.

Fitter people tend to get a bigger boost during and after exercise. Yet another good reason to treat your exercise program as training and work on progressively increasing the difficulty, which will increase your fitness.

Use the brain-boosting power of exercise to your advantage.

To take advantage of the brain priming effect of exercise, think about when you’ll need to be at your sharpest. If you’re doing a moderate, repetitive type of exercise like cardio, your brain will probably be in the best state for learning about 20 minutes into your session. For more intense exercise, your brain tends to be primed for learning and thinking about 10 minutes after your workout.

If there’s a new skill you’re trying to learn or you have a big decision to think about, start on it about 20 minutes into your moderate workout or about 10 minutes after you finish a more intense one.

If You Need Help

To get started with strength training to support your brain health, download my FREE Strength Training 101 eBook. This guide includes everything you need to know to create your own strength training program, including which exercises to do, how to choose the right weights, and how to make progress as you go.

For an even more guided option, check out my Strength Training For Anxiety program. This program is delivered through an app and contains 12 weeks of done-for-you workouts with videos and instructions for each exercise. It also has unique bonus features to help you get the best benefits for your mental health.