Whether the goal is losing weight or becoming stronger, the main fitness tips revolve around the importance of cardio exercises. Cardio not only helps in burning calories and thus accelerating the process of weight loss but also boosts your brain activity. Cardio exercises help pump extra blood to the brain. This increase is important for metabolism.
After all, the blood is the transporter of oxygen and certain nutrients and chemicals that are very much needed to enhance certain bodily functions, including problem-solving, memory, and efficiency. One of the chemicals that are released from doing cardio exercises is endorphins.
Endorphins act as your body’s natural anti-anxiety drugs. These chemicals interact with the brain to boost focus, reduce pain, and lift your mood. Many celebrities, including Rihanna and Jennifer Lopez, engage in cardio as a key fitness tip. The impact of cardio on brain activity and its benefits will be explained in detail.
Cardio Exercises’ Effects on the Brain
As previously mentioned, cardio exercises send more blood to the brain, feeding the brain’s cells with oxygen and nutrition such as glucose, which improves the performance of these cells. Additionally, the chemical brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) interacts with hormones that the muscles’ movement sends to the brain.
Therefore, the oxygen and nutrients that the blood sends to the brain and the chemicals released by the muscle movements help the brain grow.
Inefficient dopamine can lead to Parkinson’s disease. Low levels of norepinephrine can result in ADHD or depression. By following fitness tips and doing more cardio, you can help your brain perform better and lower the risk of certain diseases.
The Mental-Related Benefits
Differently from weight loss exercises, cardio directly affects your mental stability. A study conducted among 250 employees of three different companies concluded that 201 performed much better at work after exercising regularly. The employees primarily performed cardio exercises, which boost oxygen consumption. These exercises provide the same energy boost as coffee but with healthier results. While the effects of coffee fade over time, the benefits of cardio grow with continued exercise.
The Immediate Boost of Memory
In another study, 81 German-speaking healthy females were divided into three groups. The first group learned new words after doing nothing, while the second group did so after exercising. The third group exercised and studied simultaneously. Results showed that the third group memorized more words than both the first and second groups.
However, the third group, the inactive one, had the worst performance. Thus, they should start doing more cardio exercises to have better results and better memory.
The Decrease the Stress Level
Moreover, you might have experienced an improvement in your mood after you went for a run. Running is one of the best cardio exercises, according to most fitness trainers. A study presented at the Society of Neuroscience annual meeting shows that running and other cardio exercises help reduce stress.
This study examined rats thrown in cold water to see how they handled stress. The group of rats that could run before appeared less stressed than the group that had not. Running functions as a mechanism against stress, which also happens to humans due to the release of hormones.
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