Exercise and Brain Health — So Many Benefits!
The theme for this week …
A lesser known benefit of being active has to do with brain health. At every age, we all desire to stay at our cognitive best. Moving has so many powerful boosts for the brain!
Read on …
Your brain on exercise
Staying active is important for your muscle and bone health, and it is equally important for your brain health!
Basic brain benefits from being active include:
- Attention and focus improvements result from releases of norepinephrine.
- Memory and learning capacity improvements via growth and stimulation of the hippocampus with exercise.
- Pain modulation from the release of endorphins and enkephalins.
- Mood stability from serotonin releases.
- Motivation related to dopamine hits associated with exercise.
- Brain cell regeneration from the creation of BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor) which is the required to form new neurons.
- Brain cell health resulting from improved blood flow (nutrients and oxygen) and clearing of cellular waste.
How can Bridging® play a role ?
What we’ve seen at the Bridging® Institute is that our clients want to move more easily and confidently. They understand the health benefits, including brain health.
Clients find Bridging’s targeted approach to problem-solving finds the issues that keep them from easily moving. Often these are issues that other professionals don’t consider, and don’t show up on imaging.
Even better is the gentle, rocking, and stretch-based way muscles are reset during Bridging®, which is often very relaxing.
Insight of the Week from Cara
Memory, mood, and movement
Movement/activity sets in motion so many other processes in the body and brain. The result is a calmer body and mind which is more easily engaged in learning, play, and social activities. At EVERY age!
Adults report being able to think on their feet faster, and stay more level headed when stressed after their Bridging® sessions.
Children we work with are doing better in school after just a few sessions, especially with focus and behavior. Parents have a hard time understanding how exactly Bridging® helped, but they do see the changes.
It’s all about the BDNF!
Many of us worry about keeping as many brain cells as we can. A key ingredient in brain cell regeneration is the metabolic hormone BDNF. BDNF is ONLY produced in the body as a response to exercise and movement.
I think we just found another great reason to get up and move!
How does Bridging® help us stay active?
No matter the root cause of your movement pain or challenge, we take a systematic approach to getting you moving better so you can think better! Our proven, three-step process is:
- Assess a universal basic set of micromovements
- Analyze the findings along with your history of injuries, medical interventions, and the effects of the genetic condition.
- Reset muscle memory to restore symmetry and enable transitions.