Spark: The Revolutionary New Science Of Exercise And Brain - John. J Ratey, MD

Spark: The Revolutionary New Science Of Exercise And Brain

Although unpleasant to a vast majority of people, the benefits of exercises cannot be denied

In modern times, technology has lured us into comfort, making us forget that we were designed for action and movement.

The deskbound character of modern life is unnatural to our very being and poses a great threat to our continued existence. Inactivity is slowly killing our brains, causing it to shrivel up. We as a people have forgotten the intricate connection between the mind and the body.

It should be noted that physical activities causes biological changes that encourage brain cells to bind to one another. In order for the brain to learn, these kinds of connections have to occur. This reflects how the brain adapts to challenges.

When you exercise, you are inadvertently creating an environment in which the brain thrives. Aerobic activities are known to regulate out of balance systems of the body and optimizes those that are functioning properly. Exercising is key to unlocking one’s potentials.

Studies show that if students run for a mile, they are more prepared to learn than those who did not exercise. Their senses are optimal, their focus sharp and moods regulated. Anxiety seems to reduce and motivation is easily accessible

Even in the real world, exercising comes in very handy. Not only does it prime our state of mind, it also enhances our learning capabilities. At a cellular level, exercise helps the brain to process new information rapidly and effectively.

The brain functions very much like a muscle, it can be improved through continuous use the same way a muscle is built by lifting weights.

About 80% of signaling in the brain is carried out by two neurotransmitters that balance each other’s effect. Glutamate stirs up activity to begin the signaling cascade, and gamma – aminobutyric acid (GABA) clamps down on activity.

Going for a run has the same effect as taking a little bit of Prozac and Ritalin. It functions the same way the drugs do, It increases these neurotransmitters. Exercise balances neurotransmitters along with the rest of the neurochemicals in the brain.

When the brain is called on to take in information, the demand naturally causes activity between neurons. The more activity, the stronger the attraction becomes, and the easier it is for the signal to fire and make the connection.

A neuron is like a tree that has synapses instead of leaves along its dendritic branches; eventually new branches sprout, providing more synapses to further solidify the connections.

Early on, researchers found that if they sprinkled BDNF onto neurons in a petri dish, the cells automatically sprouted new branches. This produces the same structural growth required for learning — think of BDNF as fertilizer for the brain.

Overall, BDNF improves the function of neurons, encourages their growth, and strengthens and protects them against the natural process of cell death. BDNF is a crucial biological link between thought, emotions, and movement.

We are prone to think that it is merely physically beneficial, not seeing the mental advantages of exercises

Through brain scans, neuroscientists discovered that when we learn something new, for instance, a new word, the prefrontal cortex lights up. After the circuit has been established through the firing of glutamate, and the word is learned, the prefrontal cortex rests. It functions like a founder that starts up a company and once it is functional leaves it for the employees to manage while it moves on to new exploits.

This is the process in which we learn new things and it also explains how activities become second nature. Eg. Swimming

Patterns of thinking and movements are automatically stored in the primitive areas of the brain. This sort of delegation of fundamental knowledge and skills to the subconscious frees up the rest of the brain to perform other tasks. If we had to process every action we want to carry out, we would not get past making breakfast before running out of energy.

Carl Cotman proved the direct biological connection between movement and cognitive function by showing how exercises fosters the learning process. This ignited the interest in the study of exercises in neuroscience.

“One of the prominent features of exercise, which is sometimes not appreciated in studies, is an improvement in the rate of learning,” Cotman says. “It suggests that if you’re in good shape, you may be able to learn and function more efficiently.”

Cotman’s work laid the foundation for proving that exercise strengthens the cellular machinery of learning. BDNF gives the synapses the tools they need to take in information, process it, associate it, remember it, and put it in context.

During the early 1970s in a seminal study, an electron microscope was used to that environmental enrichment made neurons sprout new dendrites. The branching caused by the environmental stimulation of learning, exercise, and social contact caused the synapses to form more connections. And those connections had thicker myelin sheaths, which allowed them to fire signals more efficiently.

Now we know that such growth requires BDNF. This remodeling of the synapses has a huge impact on the circuits’ capacity to process information, which is profoundly good news. What it means is that you have the power to change your brain. All you have to do is lace up your running shoes.

New cells need fertilizers to foster their growth and BDNF is the prime candidate, according to neurogenesis researchers. It is well documented that without BDNF our brains cannot take in new information. Now they have seen that BDNF is also essential in the making of a new cell. BDNF gathers in reserve pools near synapses and is unleashed when we get our blood pumping. In the process, a number of hormones from the body are called into action to help.

During exercise, these factors push through the blood-brain barrier. Scientists have just recently learned that once inside the brain, these factors work with BDNF to crank up the molecular machinery of learning. They are also produced within the brain and promote stem-cell division, especially during exercise. The broader importance is that these factors trace a direct link from the body to the brain.

For instance, IGF-1, a hormone released by the muscles when they sense the need for more fuel during activity. Glucose is the major energy source for the muscles and the sole energy source for the brain, and IGF-1 works with insulin to deliver it to your cells.

The role of IGF-1 in the brain isn’t related to fuel management, but to learning. During exercise, BDNF helps the brain increase the uptake of IGF-1. It activates neurons to produce the signalling neurotransmitters, serotonin and glutamate. Then it spurs the production of more BDNF receptors, beefing up connections to solidify memories. In particular, BDNF seems to be important for long-term memories.

Exercise improves learning in three major ways. Optimizing mindset, encouraging nerve cells to bind to one another, and spurring the development of new nerve cells from stem cells in the hippocampus

The next rational question that would arise from assimilating all this information about the benefits of exercise is, “What is the best exercise plan?”.

The truth is, there is not a well-documented and scientifically proven ideal type or amount of activity that is best for building the brain. However, scientists have already begun to tackle such questions. While there is no answer yet, in a couple of years science should begin to provide more insights pertaining to this issue.

While you cannot analyze a complex material while you are exercising at high intensity because blood is shunted away from the prefrontal cortex, and this hampers your executive function. When blood flow shifts back almost immediately after you finish exercising, this is the perfect time to focus on a project that demands sharp thinking and complex analysis.

So, if you perchance have an important afternoon brainstorming session scheduled, going for a short, intense run during lunchtime would be a smart idea.

A study from Japan found that jogging thirty minutes just two or three times a week for twelve weeks improved executive function. However, it is important to mix in some form of activity that demands coordination beyond putting one foot in front of the other.

Aerobic exercise and complex activity have different beneficial effects on the brain. The good news is they are complementary. It is important to consider both, your regimen has to include skill acquisition and aerobic exercise.

Choose a sport that exercises both the cardiovascular system and the brain, tennis is a good example. Any motor skill more complicated than walking has to be learned, and thus it challenges the brain.

Anything that causes cellular activity is stress; this is not always a bad thing

What does stress mean in the biological context? It is a threat to the balance and optimal condition of the body. Technically, anything that causes cellular activity is a form of stress. In the brain, if anything causes a neuron to fire it will lead to the consumption of energy. The process of burning fuel causes wear and tear on the cell, creating an emotional echo that we identify as stress.

Not counting your natural responses, you have a degree of control over how you are affected by stress. Exercise at a cellular level regulates the emotional and physical feeling of stress. However, are exercises not still stressful activities? Yes, exercise causes damage to the cells, but under normal conditions this is beneficial. Neurons are broken down and built up like muscles. Exercise forces the body and mind to adapt.

As long as the stress experienced is not too severe and there is a sufficient rest period, brain growth will be sparked up. So, when controlled, stress can be beneficial.

Severe stress causes a complex physiological reaction, known as fight or flight response, which makes the body and brain utilize reserved resources. This event is memorized so we can avoid it next time.

For the past several million years, we as humans have evolved to use physical activities to prevent the negative consequences of stress.

The human body is built for regular physical activity, but how much physical activity? In the modern day, our average energy expenditure per unit of body mass is less than 38% of that of our Stone Age ancestors. Because of technological and social advancement, we do not have to expend much energy to find food, and we certainly don’t have to use our brains to figure out how to get our next meal.

Our body and brain can gain resilience, which is the build-up of waste-disposing enzymes, neuroprotective factors, and proteins that prevent the naturally programmed death of cells. The most efficient way to build them up is by inflicting mild stress on yourself: using the brain to learn, restricting calories, exercising, and eating vegetables. The paradox is that our wonderful ability to adapt and grow does not happen without stress.

We all have varying degrees of tolerance toward stress, and it is prone to change in response to influences from the environment or our genetics or our behaviour or any combination thereof. Just like the neurochemistry of the brain, our stress tolerance is always changing. While aging naturally lowers the tolerance level, we can augment it through aerobic exercise.

The stress of exercise is predictable and controllable because you are voluntarily initiating the action, and these two variables are key to psychology. With exercise, you gain a sense of mastery and self-confidence. As you develop awareness of your own ability to manage stress and not rely on negative coping mechanisms, you increase your ability to “snap out of it,” so to speak. You learn to trust that you can deal with it.

We have arrived at a sort of evolutionary paradox, we as a society have advanced well enough that it is much easier to survive in the modern world, yet we experience more stress. The fact that we’re much less physically active than our ancestors were only worsens matters. Just keep in mind that the more stress you have, the more your body needs to move to keep your brain running efficiently.

Anxiety is a natural response to stress, it sharpens your attention so you can rise to the challenge

Someone with generalized anxiety disorder has a warped perception of reality and is prone to respond to normal situations as if they were in fact threatening.

Through exercise you can reprogram your brain into recognizing that most situations are not life threatening and that you are capable of surviving. It is well known that aerobic exercises work effectively on the state of anxiety.

We sometimes forget the fact that the mind, body and brain all affect each other. After exercising, you feel good about yourself which helps to improve your mood. It builds a sense that you can count on yourself to perform necessary tasks which makes you feel safe and secure.

Exercise regulates all of the neurotransmitters that are targeted by antidepressants and increase the amount of endorphins. It wakes up the brain and helps it to function properly.

It also boosts dopamine, which improves mood and feelings of wellness which jump-starts the attention system. Dopamine is all about motivation and attention.

If you are depressed, it would be ideal if you engaged in exercises with other individuals. We humans are social animals and putting yourself in a new setting will give newly hatched neurons a strong reason for existing.

The trick is to develop positive feelings that you can devote to something, by motivating the body to move, you are encouraging the mind to embrace life.

Do not mistake exercise for an instant cure, it is a gradual process of tricking your brain into functioning properly. Depression is caused by a lack of progression, or absence of moving toward a goal. Exercises can divert those negative signals and help the brain function optimally.

It also works on addiction, forcing addicts to adapt to a new stimulus and enabling them to appreciate healthier scenarios.

As a treatment, exercise works from the top down in the brain, forcing addicts to adapt to a new stimulus and thereby allowing them to learn and appreciate alternative and healthy scenarios. It’s activity-dependent training, and while it may not provide the immediate rush of a snort of cocaine, it instills a more diffused sense of well-being that, over time, will become a craving in its own right. The inoculation works from the bottom up, physically blunting the urge to act by engaging the more primitive elements of the brain. Exercise builds synaptic detours around the well-worn connections automatically looking for the next fix.

Exercise fights the urge to smoke because in addition to smoothly increasing dopamine it also lowers anxiety, tension, and stress levels. Exercise can fend off cravings for fifty minutes and double or triple the interval to the next cigarette.

When an addict quits, what’s left is emptiness. In this respect, dealing with addiction is similar to battling feelings of anxiety and depression; getting rid of the problem is only the first step. Once the addiction or the negative emotions are gone, the void needs to be filled with some positive behavior for the change to take root. There can hardly be a better option than physical exercise. After all, this is what we’re supposed to be doing — moving in the world.

The fact that exercise counteracts anxiety and depression directly can have a huge impact on any form of addiction, as both of these mood states undermine treatment. A recovering addict who is feeling anxious or hopeless is much more likely to slip in her determination and ability to quit.

If you have a tendency toward addictive behavior it’s vital to develop some sort of consistent exercise habit.

If you haven’t been in the habit of exercising, it can be helpful to join a gym or hire a personal trainer, because spending the money is a strong motivator. If you have an addiction to food, try a quick walk around the block or a few minutes with a jump rope or even a set of thirty jumping jacks anything to snap your mind out of the cycle of thinking about the reward.

Exercise isn’t necessarily a cure, but it’s the only treatment I know of that works from the top down as well as from the bottom up, rewiring the brain to circumvent the addictive pattern and curbing the craving. Try it. Maybe you’ll get hooked.

Getting older is unavoidable, but falling apart is not. People who stay involved and active as they age can slow down the degeneration

Researchers found that those who exercised maintained nearly the same level of blood flow in the brain after four years. While the inactive individuals had a significant decrease. If your brain isn’t actively growing, then it’s dying. One surefire way to slow down the aging process is to exercise. This is because it slows down the natural decline of the stress threshold. Paradoxically, it’s good that cells be periodically subjected to mild stress. It improves their ability to cope with more severe stress.

In addition, exercise sparks connections and growth among your brain’s cell networks. It increases blood volume, regulates fuel, and encourages neuronal activity and neurogenesis. Because the aging brain is more vulnerable to damage, anything you do to strengthen it has a pronounced effect.

It shows up in the little things first. As the connections in the brain break down, you have a harder time calling to mind people and places you’ve known.

Exercise does not just maintain the brain, it reverses the adverse effects that come from aging, like cell deterioration. Exercise improves the brain’s ability to compensate. Let’s say the prefrontal cortex isn’t functioning quite up to par. You might be able to recruit other areas of the cortex to do the task in a different way. One way to think about the increased volume is that it might turn back the clock in terms of how well the circuits function to do different things

Conclusion

Exercise is absolutely the best tool you have to optimize how your brain works.

How much exercise should you do for your brain? The best advice is to get fit and then continue challenging yourself. The prescription for how to do that will vary from person to person. It has been proven after loads of research that the more fit you are, the stronger your brain is. And the better it functions both cognitively and psychologically. If you get your body in shape, your mind will follow.

Most studies just suggest walking. Any level of activity will help, certainly. But, if you’re going to bother doing something for your brain, you might as well do enough to protect your body against disease. Body and brain are connected. Why not take care of both?

The best advice is to follow our ancestors’ routine. Take a walk or a jog every single day, you can run a few times each week, and occasionally, take a sprint.

Your choices aren’t limited to these modes of aerobic activity. But it's helpful to distinguish between low-intensity (walking), moderate-intensity (jogging), and high-intensity (running) exercise.

If you want to make the most of your time and effort, you’ll need a way to accurately judge your level of exertion along with these divisions. Walking, or low-intensity exercise is exercising at 55 to 65 % of your maximum heart rate. Moderate intensity falls in the range of 65 to 75 %, while high intensity is 75 to 90 %. The upper end of high-intensity exercise is sometimes painful but always powerful territory that has gained a lot of scientific interest recently.