Regular Exercise And The Mind

Realising The Effect Exercise Has On Our Brain

In recent years we have all read articles, listened to podcasts and watched programmes informing us about the important role regular exercising plays in keeping our bodies fitter, healthier and ultimately more immune to ailments and illness.

A key area that is rarely discussed however is the vital impact regular exercising can have on our brain as well as the subsequent positive knock on effect.

When you consider that the mind controls the body, we believe that by explaining and educating people about the real value of regular exercise in this arena, it will encourage them to participate more often, understand the purpose and ultimately enjoy the process.

The human brain is the most complex machine on earth but when it comes to using fuel to function, it is certainly not the most efficient. It only makes up 2% of our body weight but swallows up one fifth of the oxygen we take in to keep operating.

To make sure it operates at its most optimum, many experts believe that regular exercise is crucial. Even a 20 minute walk can help us better fight stress or anxiety, think and act more logically and help make clear and concise decisions.

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A recent study conducted at the University of Illinois showed how a nine year old’s brain is affected by 20 minutes of exercise. The results were astounding. Cognitive testing on the child was tested both before and after exercising. Post walking on a treadmill for short periods during 30 minutes of exercising, the child’s brain registered a 5 to 10% improvement in mental processing.

To reap the physical benefits of exercise often takes hours of hard work but the moment you set off for a walk, run, cycle or swim - each of which is attainable for us to perform - there are hidden mental benefits that kick in straight away:

New Brain Cells Are Created - levels of protein are raised improving brain function

Creativity Is Increased - Stanford research 2014 showed that simple walking can increase creative output by up to 60%. Have you ever stood up and walked about when on an important phone call? Try it sometime!

Greater Focus Is Achieved - increased blood flow delivers oxygen and glucose to the brain improving concentration levels for up to three hours after exercise

An Improved Mood - production of serotonin (the happy serum) is increased, acting as a natural antidepressant

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Since the advance in technology - from online shopping to ready meals - everything has become that much easier; we’ve got it made. A sedentary lifestyle however can have huge implications, not only to our physical health but also to our mental health.

Science presenter, Greg Foot, conducted the following research with regard to the important part regular exercise can have on our brain:

Stress - when we are ‘stressed out’, we very often forget things. This is because stress hits the part of our brain called the hippocampus, which plays an important role in our memory. Regular exercise produces vital neurohormones that in turn improve our cognitive function, learning and mood. Although stress can never be totally avoided, exercise is massively important in controlling it. Next time you feel highly stressed, go for a 20-30 minute walk, jog or cycle. You will truly notice the difference in how much more settled and relaxed you feel afterwards!

Sleep - in middle age, another battle that exercise can help us fight is insomnia or lack of sleep. A UK survey found that over 50% of us struggle with sleep deprivation. One 20-30 minute session of cardiovascular exercise will raise our body temperature by up to two degrees for up to 5 hours before it then dips lower than if we hadn’t exercised. This dip is a trigger which can ease us into a deeper sleep when it’s time for bed. Exercising in the late afternoon/early evening isn’t always possible for everyone but even if we just do some basic exercises or stretches we can improve our sleep regimes.

Dementia - according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), one new case of dementia is diagnosed every four seconds and by 2050 they estimate over 135 million sufferers. A 2015 study carried out by Cambridge University looked at the top factors that would increase the risk of developing Alzheimer’s. Above smoking and well above depression is physical inactivity. So, how can exercise fight dementia? Answer: Neuroplasticity. Our brain can change and maintain itself over time if treated right. Regular aerobic exercise generates new brain cells and keeps it healthy.

A Game Changer says…

Completely eradicating stress, anxiety and insomnia as well as other personal worries and frustrations is simply not possible. These are elements of our day-to-day lives that we have to learn to manage and control. And by the way, that's OK!

It is the same with regard to our emotions. They are hard wired within us for a reason and there areimportant times when they are required for those reasons.

Our advice is always:

a) learn to identify when you are experiencing a continuous problem. The sooner you identify it, the faster you can start to manage it.

b) once you have identified it, accept it. When experiencing a problem or concern, ‘acceptance is something that the vast majority of us find very difficult.

c) when our brain ‘accepts’ something, it can then start to relax and focus on the healing/solution process.

There are no quick and easy fixes but as you can see from this article, regular exercise will really help and it is so important to carry out for our mental well being.

N.B. The mind and body are inextricably linked - one will always affect the other.

It's What You Do With It That Counts

In The Pursuit Of Happiness

It is an age-old question that has been discussed amongst family and friends in homes, offices, coffee shops and bars all around the world…'can money make you truly happy?'

Most people are in the pursuit of happiness. Some economists even think happiness is the best indicator of a healthy society. We know that money can make you happier, though at a certain point it doesn’t make you much happier.

One of the keys to this ‘financial happiness’ appears to be how we choose to allocate our money, especially considering it is a limited resource for the vast majority of us.

A logical assumption that most people make when spending their money is that by purchasing a physical object, it will a) last longer and b) make us happier for a longer time than if we spent it on a one-off experience like a concert or vacation.

It turns out that assumption is in fact completely wrong!

“One of the enemies of happiness is adaptation” says Dr. Thomas Gilovich, a psychology professor at Cornell University, who has been studying the question of money and happiness for over twenty years.

“We buy things to make us happy and we succeed. But only for a while. New things are exciting at first but then we adapt to them and the novelty wears off.”

These findings show that money can buy happiness but only up to a point.

During a survey on how ‘adaptation affects happiness’, people were asked to self-report their happiness with major material and experiential purchases. Initially, the happiness shown with both types of purchase was ranked about the same. Over time, however, people’s satisfaction with the things they bought went down whereas their satisfaction with experiences went up.

Surprisingly, it’s therefore counterintuitive that something like a physical object that can be kept for a long time, doesn’t actually keep you as happy as long as a ‘once-lived’ experience does.

The reason is that experiences effectively become ingrained in your identity. They are a bigger part of yourselves than your material goods. You can end up really liking your material stuff but nonetheless it will remain separate from you. In contrast, your experiences really become a part of you. You are the sum total of your experiences.

Another reason, is that shared experiences connect us more to other people than shared consumption. You are much more likely to feel connected to someone you took a vacation with to say South America than to someone who also happens to own the latest hi-tech flat screen TV.

You are also much less prone to negatively compare your own experiences to someone else’s than you would with material purchases.

Another conducted study by researchers Ryan Howell and Graham Hill found that it’s easier to feature-compare material goods (how many carats is your ring? how fast is your car?) than it is experiences. And since it’s easier to compare, most people do so.

A Game Changer Says…

The concept of material versus experiential in the pursuit of happiness can also be understood in the way that neurology plays a key part.

Hungarian psychologist, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, researched the subject of happiness for many years. His findings provided us with a new word, 'flow'.

The differential between pleasure and flow in the pursuit of happiness couldn’t be greater, with pleasure being a primarily passive state (i.e. reading a book, having a massage or receiving a gift) versus flow being the result of a more active state (i.e. travelling, playing a sport, or learning a new skill).

In Mihaly’s mind there is absolutely no doubt that flow contributes to a far greater impact on our happiness, as it can last much longer than pleasure which can reach its peak or intensity in a relatively short space of time.

So, now that you are aware of all this, rather than buying the new Apple Watch or latest BMW series car, ensure you book up your next holiday or concert; attend your next art EXPO or theatre production; or simply take up a new hobby, or learn a new skill. The fulfilment will be everlasting.

The stronger the experience, the stronger the emotion. The stronger the emotion, the stronger the memory. So if you want to recall many fantastic and happy memories in your later life, ensure it’s experiential activities that you invest in from now on!

The purpose of this blog is to identify and show the implications for individuals who want to maximise their happiness return on their financial outlay, for employers who want to have a happier workforce and for policy makers who wish to have a happy citizenry.

Finally, just ask yourself this one question:-

"Of all the things that have brought most happiness and enjoyment to my life, have they been physical objects or lived experiences?”

This answer should reveal the answer.