Exercise your body to exercise your mind
We all know that exercise is good for us, both for our mental and physical health, but exercising regularly isn’t something that’s in everyone’s weekly routine. It often gets assigned a low tier of importance when prioritising a busy week, with people forgoing their 30 minute run for 30 minutes of revising or getting on top of the mountain of tasks that have flooded into their inbox.
The point of this article is not just to say “Exercise. It’s good for you.” It’s to show you the direct benefits that working out has, whether that’s running, cycling, swimming, hiking, weights, boxing, dance, yoga, rowing, judo, or whatever activity you enjoy. Here are five direct benefits of exercise and reasons why you should prioritise it when planning out your weeks.
1. It boosts memory
In one study, higher fitness levels were associated with larger bilateral hippocampal volume, which was thus associated with better spatial memory performance (1). Additionally, a meta-analysis, reviewing 134 separate studies, found a statistically significant increase in cognitive functioning with exercise (2).
The evidence is not conclusive, and the studies do have limitations, but there is enough evidence, both scientific and anecdotal, to take note. Yes, anecdotal evidence is deemed questionable by the scientific community, but if something has worked for a large enough number of people (it certainly has for me) then it might be worth a try, even without a watertight, published study to confirm the benefits!
2. It allows you to decompress
My physical fitness at school was that of a potato. I was never into sport as a child and never got into exercise until I started my first year of university. When I look back, I wonder how I didn’t go stir-crazy with my A-Levels and university applications without the respite of a long run or a session in the gym.
When I’m feeling busy or overwhelmed nowadays, a long 60-90 minute run is the best cure for me. To 17-year-old me, a 90 minute run would sound (1) impossible and (2) like being tortured, and I’d be surprised to hear my older self offering this as a way to relax and destress… but it works! You don’t have to start out by running for that long, you start with a 5 minute jog and build it up. Or maybe you want to get a bike and cycle around the block, or swim 3 lengths at your local pool. You might be thinking “that’s too easy” or “that’s too hard” or something else, but the point is, regardless of your fitness level, there are serious mental health benefits to exercise.
Moving your body and getting those endorphins flowing works wonders for stress and gives your brain a much-needed break from whatever task is currently bothering you. If I go a week without exercise I feel myself getting antsy and tense until I lift some weights or go for a run.
3. It makes you feel good
Endorphins are wonderful things. Our mood, on the whole, is governed by a bunch of chemicals that float around our circulatory system. I could get quite metaphysical and existential about our day-to-day moods being controlled by bundles of atoms floating around our bodies, but maybe that’s more suited for whoever creates Philosophy-access…
One class of these mood-altering chemicals are called endorphins, which are produced in the pituitary (a gland in the brain) alongside your central nervous system (CNS). They act within the brain by binding to opioid receptors, the same targets of drugs such as Morphine. The result are increased feelings of wellbeing and pleasure, alongside mitigating any pain or discomfort. They’re colloquially known as ‘natural painkillers’ for a reason!
4. It helps give structure to your week
Everyone plans their workload differently, but I love to write out a brief schedule for my week ahead on an online calendar so I know what needs to get done and when my downtime is. By planning in at least an hour of exercise at least 5 days a week, I provide my mind and body with some much-needed structure. The discipline I’ve developed in committing to this training schedule has transferred into better discipline in planning out my academic work and getting on top of other tasks that need to be done too.
5. It’s a fun thing to do!
I firmly believe that everyone innately enjoys some form of physical activity. It’s in our genes. Initially, it can prove a chore if you’re unfit or not used to it, as I was when I first started university, but once you make it a part of your routine it becomes a highlight of your week. The key thing is doing something you enjoy. Don’t force yourself to cycle for an hour a day if you hate being on a bike, just because of the purported benefits. If you enjoy playing tennis, or doing yoga, or martial arts, or dancing, or calisthenics, then do that instead. You’ll get more benefits out of it and be able to keep it up long-term if you take the time to try new things and find a sport you enjoy. In the last few years I’ve tried rowing, running, weight training, calisthenics, boxing and cycling, and the mix has proven both refreshing and fun.
This post is a bit of a tangent to the previous topics directly related to revision and life at university, but it’s something I feel passionately about and wanted to share, as it’s worked wonders for my own productivity and mental health!
References:
1) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3951958/
2) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK67031/
Rhodes Willoughby is Co-Founder and Director of STEMaccess, at the time of writing in his fifth year of his MBBS/BSc degree at Imperial College School of Medicine.
