Using Interval Training to Better Your Memory

In this article, Dr. Stephanie Louie explains how high intensity interval training can improve memory.

A new Canadian study reports that high intensity work-outs can improve memory. Three groups of young healthy adults were either assigned to be part of a six-week study. The first group performed high intensity interval training (HIIT) with cognitive training, the second group did HIIT only and the third group remained inactive. The groups that performed the HIIT exercise showed the greatest improvements in fitness, which was no surprise, but the first group who performed HIIT work-outs as well as cognitive training had the greatest memory improvements.

So don’t think of memory decline as an inevitable result of aging says Victoria, BC Family Chiropractor Dr. Stephanie Louie. Studies are proving that your brain can rejuvenate and regenerate itself even as you age. Therefore, staying physically active throughout your entire life exceptionally important.

Physical exercise has also been shown to resist your brain from shrinking, improve cognitive function and increase creativity. Stanford University Researches found that the simple act of walking can increase creativity by 60 percent. Try to aim for 10 000 steps per day. There are many devices including your smart phone that have apps that can track the number of steps per day you walk or run.

Listed below is proof of how exercise not only helps you stay healthy but also boosts brain function:

Increase in Blood Flow – When you start to exercise blood will start pumping throughout your body and to your brain at a faster rate. Blood carries oxygen to the brain, which allows you to feel more focused after a work out improving your productivity.

Decreases Disease – Exercise has been shown to reduce plaque formation, which can damage the brain and therefore slow the development of Alzheimer’s disease.

Decreases Inflammation – Exercise has also been shown to lower levels of inflammation markers in the brain.

Improve Mood – When you work-out, your brain releases “feel good” hormones associated with improved mood. Many runners talk about a “runners high” where initially, starting the run may be difficult, but once these chemicals are released in the brain, the run gets easier.

Reduced Stress – Exercise has been shown to reduce stress and depression.

To learn more about HIIT check out my previous blog https://mindbodyspine.ca/a-home-exercise-program-that-only-takes-12-minutes/.