Exercising to Increase Brain Power

Exercising has more benefits than just working out like cognitive mental acuity. When exercising multiple times a week it will increase the way your brain processes. Most of the time people workout to either get big or lose weight. People also just work out to stay in shape and feel good. Working out is not just that though. It can actually benefit the way your brain processes.When exercising most people do not understand that it is strengthening their brain. A person goes into the gym and does a set of dumbbell curls. Most likely that person will do eight to ten reps of the three sets. Then move onto a next set of arm exercises because dumbbell curls are an arm workout specifically for the bicep. Little do they know that it strengthens their brain. This is helping the brain have a set routine and makes a person more determined in life outside of working out.

This is where the cognitive part of working out comes into play. Most of the time working out is looked at as being hard. There are tons of people who do not work out because they believe it is too difficult and are lazy. A recent study that came out, “The prefrontal cortex is the part of the brain that evolved most recently, and it can be exquisitely sensitive to even temporary everyday anxieties and worries. When things are going well, the prefrontal cortex acts as a control center that keeps our baser emotions and impulses in check.” The prefrontal cortex which is basically the cognitive control center that makes a person want to do difficult tasks. A great example of strengthening this part of the brain is exercising. Exercising everyday can help make this part of the brain better. The effect of this is that it can help in day to day scenarios. People do not really like doing things that they do not like and exercising can get a person to do uncomfortable things.

The brain’s cognitive processing can actually be sped up by working out. Working out can make the brain’s cognitive processing faster and sharp. Cognitive processing is, “Cognitive function or cognitive functional system is understood as the phases in the information process, such as perception, learning, memory, attention, readiness, reasoning power, and problem solving.” The effect of this is great because a person can process thoughts and ideas faster. This can also affect how aware a person can be. While running fast on a treadmill or lifting weights this is actually helping your cognitive processing by 10 times the amount if you were just going day to day. There is little to no risk to increase cognitive function by working out. Instead of surgeries or medicines, exercising is a great way because it helps one stay in shape.

On the other hand, exercising can actually help your brain stay organized. People you exercise every week understand that they need to make a mental schedule on when they are going to work out. If working out five times a week there needs to be at least forty five minutes to an hour of your day. Now a person builds around that and has a much more organized schedule. This helps anxiety and makes the brain a lot more clearer. A lot of people have anxiety because they are unorganized and do not have a routine. Exercising can benefit someone who needs the organization mentally.  

Many people think that exercising is only for physical attributes. When in reality it is not there is more than just exercising to make your body look good. It is like the saying “Look good,feel good”. When you work out you are both physically making the body better and mentally making the brain stronger. A person’s mental state is very important because it can help you live a longer and better life.There are many people who suffer from mental illnesses. Exercising can help benefit from having them. This is because exercising is beneficial for having a healthy brain.  

There is more to exercising than just physical aspects of it. It can help strengthen the brain’s cognitive function and decrease mental illness. When exercising multiple times a week it can help speed up your cognitive processing and also help you stay mentally organized.

References

Antunes, H. K. M., Santos, R. F., Cassilhas, R., Santos, R. V. T., Bueno, O. F. A., & Mello, M. T. de. (2006). Exercício físico e função cognitiva: uma revisão. Revista Brasileira de Medicina Do Esporte, 12(2), 108–114. https://doi.org/10.1590/s1517-86922006000200011

Arnsten, A., Mazure, C. M., & Sinha, R. (2012). This is Your Brain in Meltdown. Scientific American, 306(4), 48–53. https://doi.org/10.1038/scientificamerican0412-48

The health benefits of exercise. (n.d.). Siegeljcc.org. Retrieved March 12, 2024, from https://www.siegeljcc.org/blog/2022/01/24/fitness/the-health-benefits-of-exercise/?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiAw6yuBhDrARIsACf94RVfxkOef7Re9OWXbnKX7fVv5lXoK1jJz4yYpHwc-5ngSR9XeQq6lq4aAtY2EALw_wcB