Regular Exercise Helps the Aging Brain

By: Royane Real Click author's name for more of his/her articles

Recently scientists have been discovering that regular physical exercise has long term benefits for brain function. Those seniors who have exercised consistently tend to be in better shape mentally than their non-exercising counterparts.

Even though we know that exercise is good for us, not all of us are keen about exercising our bodies, just as not all of us are keen about exercising our brains. As children, most of us loved to do both. Yet as we grow older we often lose the urge to exercise ourselves, either mentally or physically.

When you watch movies or television programs, or glance at magazines and newspapers, you will see many images of young, strong, healthy people running joyfully in the park or happily working out at the gym.

However, when it comes to real people in the real world, most of us live very sedentary lives. Many of us eat poorly and we get almost no exercise at all, other than flipping channels with our remote control device.

It wasn’t always this way. Until quite recently most people had to work hard physically for many hours a day. Now many of us spend hours sitting at desks, sitting in cars, and of course, sitting watching television, or staring at a computer screen. The human body was not designed for excessive sitting and lying around. It was designed to move.

Aerobic exercise in particular can bring positive benefits to the brain and the body.

To gain aerobic benefits for your heart, lungs and circulatory system, aim to do the type of exercise that will push your heart rate up to 50 % faster than your rate at rest.

You don’t need to work up a sweat for your heart and lungs to benefit, and you don’t need to overdo it. Learn to keep up a steady pace while doing some form of aerobic exercise that still allows you to talk comfortably with a friend. To improve your aerobic capacity, exercise aerobically for about 20 minutes three or four times a week.

Swimming is a form of exercise that can greatly improve the oxygenating capacity of the heart and lungs, especially swimming under water. The amount of time you spend holding your breath while swimming under water should be built up gradually. Swimming under water should not be attempted if you have any form of heart or blood vessel disease unless you have clearance from your doctor.

Another type of exercise that many people find very beneficial for their brains is some form of mind-body exercise. People who practice mind-body exercises regularly report they experience reduced stress, increased calmness, and greater clarity of thinking. There are many schools and variations of mind-body exercises, including yoga, tai-chi, and chi-gung.

For many people, the most easily accessible and universally beneficial form of exercise is walking. You can walk alone or with others. You can walk indoors or outdoors. A walk can be part of a formal program, or an individual ramble through a favorite neighborhood or nature area.

Is it better to walk slowly or quickly? It’s up to you. Some people find that a brisk walk is a great stress reliever, while others get more peace from a very slow and meditative walk. Your mind will benefit more if you stay totally focused in the moment, rather than using this time to continue dwelling on your problems.

Whichever form of exercise you choose, it’s important that you do it regularly. That means that you should find one or two forms of exercise that you really enjoy, and commit to doing it for the rest of your life.

This will increase your chances at keeping a healthy brain for a lifetime.

Article Source: ABC Article Directory

About The Author: This article is taken from the new book by Royane Real titled "How to Be Smarter - Use Your Brain to Learn Faster, Remember Better, and Be More Creative" You can get the paperback version or download it from www.lulu.com/real