Understanding the brain-tastic benefits of exercise.
Your chest gets bigger. Your heart works more efficiently. You feel better and enjoy improved confidence. But working at the gym doesn't just offer benefits to your physique. According to various sources around the globe, physical exercise offers some pretty impressive benefits for what is arguably one of your most important organs: your brain. In fact, some insist that the real benefits of exercise are how it affects your brain's ability to work - not the improved appearance of efficiency of your body.
What can a little exercise do for your noggin? Read on to find out.
Boost Your Brain Energy
Unless you're a superhuman, you've probably had some of those days during which your brain simply doesn't want to work. Did you know you can probably exercise your way out of these brain-dead moments? That's right. By getting the blood pumping in your body, you increase the blood flow in your brain, which helps it function better, ultimately getting your brain back on track to do all the thinking your life requires. Next time you feel your brain slowing down, skip the energy drink and do a few jumping jacks or push-ups.
Minimal Effort. Only want to do the minimum required to boost your brain's abilities? Go to the gym for 30 minutes three days a week. And make sure you sweat while you're there.
Jump the Funk
Ever been in a mental funk that keeps getting you down? Next time that happens, ask yourself when you last worked out. More than likely, it's been a while. Get your brain into happy gear and get out of your mental funk by hitting the gym. Otherwise, you'll be waiting for a good attitude to make its way to you. With a hard workout, you can essentially force your body to start producing happy vibes to your brain. So stop moping around and hit the gym. Your brain will appreciate the good vibes you send its way, and your overall demeanor will improve as a result.
Stop Being Anxious
When you have a lot going on and little time to take care of it, it's a natural response to be anxious. Unfortunately, anxiety does very little to help you get your to-do list completed. So why not kick the anxiety altogether with a trip to the gym? You may think you don't have time to run a mile or two on the treadmill, but doing so has the potential to get rid of your anxiety, which will ultimately help you complete your list of tasks with greater poise and skill than would have otherwise been possible.
Improve Concentration
It's not always easy to stay on task. With the many rabbit holes afforded by the Internet, your coworker who always has another joke to tell you, and your family wanting your attention for anything and everything, it can seem impossible to stay focused on a task until it is completed. With exercise, your brain is given the gift of focus. With each repetition in the gym, you have to constantly pay attention to form and technique, which translates to improved focusing ability elsewhere. Exercise also helps you get over the need to go do something, which is another way to improve your focus.
Grow Your Brain
Want to stimulate your brain to grow its processing abilities? Better build some exercise into your daily routine. While it is unclear exactly how it happens, researchers have found that exercise creates neurons in the brain.
Responsible for transferring information through your brain, neurons are most useful in large numbers. Therefore, growing more neurons via exercise gives your brain more ability to transmit and process information, giving you the upper hand when faced with tough questions or dilemmas that require right thinking.
