Brain or Body Building?

How Fitness Makes You Smarter and Keeps You Younger

The mind has an incredibly powerful effect on the body. Motivation, drive and desire all come from your mind. It also works in reverse.

Dopamine and serotonin are the most basic ingredients for experiencing happiness and pleasure.

Most people are familiar with these good-guy neurotransmitters, but have you heard of BDNF? BDNF are brain derived neurotropic factors .

Excercise and caloric restriction increases production of BDNF, which is linked to better performance on learning and memory tests.

BDNF is basically “Brain Food”. Although serotonin and dopamine play an important role in preventing depression and promoting learning, BDNF is the most basic ingredient for maintaining all cognitive functions— It is a protein that helps build and strengthen brain cells.

Weightlifting can actually increase production of BDNF, so body building literally helps builds your brain!

Learning occurs when your brain cells physically grow and form new connections.

When there is more BDNF in the brain, you can learn more efficiently. BDNF enables the brain to create memories and form new associations, also know as brain plasticity. When there’s a deficiency of BDNF in the brain, all kinds of cognitive and mental issues arise.

Studies have found that low levels of BDNF is correlated to depression and mental illness. On the other hand, high levels of BDNF are correlated to mental resilience. BDNF is also linked to enhanced learning and memory. Higher levels of BDNF post -workout showed you can increase your vocabulary retention by 20%.

Understanding whats happening to your brain at a cellular level (excess BDNF) helps explain the cognitive boost you get from regular gym attendance. So make sure you don’t skip a workout to cram for your Spanish vocab exam! If you are shoving weeks worth of information into one all nighter, its scientifically proven that you will remember MORE if you do your workout first.

“Some people want it to happen, some wish it would happen, others make it happen.” — Michael Jordan

As we age, naturally things start to do downhill and we quickly loose some of our precious BDNF. Lower BDNF levels found in old people negatively influences their ability to remember and process new information. Unlike us young folk, old people have an excuse for loosing their car keys. Their brain isn’t producing as much ‘brain food’ as it used to and their neurons are living off a ‘reduced-calorie’ diet, so to speak. However, we can combat these effects by continuing regular excercise programs.

Lastly, there are many other scientifically proven methods to increase levels of BDNF, including dieting and intermittent fasting.

Looking for more ways to boost your brain food, BDNF? Check out this article!

Thanks for reading