How Daily Exercise Boosts Your Brain & Improves Memory

Exercise isn’t just good for your physical health, it can be good for your mind as well.

Keep reading for 5 surprising ways daily exercise can improve memory.

Did you know that almost 13% of homes have someone struggling with diagnosed memory loss? And many people suffer in silence when they can’t remember where they parked or forget their sister’s birthday.

Memory challenges can occur for many reasons. But one you may not even think of is lack of exercise.

Regardless of who you are, everyone wants to have a clearer and stronger memory.

Let’s explore how daily exercise can help you achieve it.

1) Improve Blood Flow

Exercise increases the blood flowing in the brain. Blood is responsible for carrying nutrients and fluids to the cells and carrying dead cells and toxins away.

With regular daily exercise, the number of blood vessels in your brain will increase. And every part of your brain will be more nourished.

Exercise is like hiring remodeling contractors for your brain.

All parts of your brain will work better because of it. When your brain is well-nourished, you can process memories and recall better.

2) Reduce Inflammation

Inflammation is your body’s natural response to something in the body that isn’t right. You know that over-exercising, injury, certain foods and infection can cause inflammation.

Lack of activity can cause it as well.

When the body is inflamed, your brain focuses extra energy on the inflamed area. That’s less brain power to put toward memory.

By reducing inflammation you can improve your memory.

3) Help Manage Stress

Stress, anxiety, and depression can keep your mind on high alert. Fight or flight hormones are coursing through your body and your mind is racing. Or you’re just tuning everything out.

If you spend a lot of time in this state, not only is it bad for your health. It’s horrible for your memory.

You’ll find you forget what you were saying. You can’t remember where you set your keys 2 minutes ago. People tell you that you said something, but you can’t remember what you said.

Daily exercise helps eliminate the hormones that cause fight or flight. It replaces them with dopamine. That’s a hormone that relaxes you and improved mood.

When you’re cool, calm and collected, you think more clearly and can remember.

4) Get Better Sleep

Daily exercise will help you get a better night’s sleep.

Most researchers believe that we process, log and store memories in our dreams. When you’re well rested, you have a better memory.

5) Make Your Brain Bigger

No, this won’t change the size of your head. With that said, there’s plenty of room in there for a bigger brain.

Our brains are a “use or lose it” organ. They shrink over time when not used. Exercise stimulates many areas in the brain so that they actually gain more mass — and keep it.

A bigger healthier brain will have better memory storage and recall.

Daily Exercise Can Do All This and More

There are many reasons to be more active, like having a healthy heart, joints, and bones. But your mind needs exercise, too. Try to do something active every day, even if you need to start small.

Soon, you’ll begin to feel the benefits and find it easier to do more and more.

For more on well-being and having good health at any age, be sure to follow our blog!

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