Selected Podcast
The Neurological Benefits of Movement
James Harris shares his insight on the neurological benefits of movement.
Transcription:
James Harris: Welcome to this week's podcast. My name is James Harris. And I'm a doctor of physical therapy. I'm excited about this opportunity to talk about one of my favorite topics, the effect that physical activity has on the brain.
Guest: A number of years ago, I read a book called Spark, which is all about the science of exercise and the brain. It is written by Dr. John Ratey who is a psychiatrist. He begins the book by telling a story of Naperville District 203 in Naperville, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. In the early '90s, the PE teacher at the middle school, Phil Lawler, realized that the students spent a lot of time in his class just standing around. Whether that was waiting for their turn at bat or waiting for the ball to be passed to them, he realized that the overall activity level of the students was relatively low.
Lawler wanted to actually help his students improve their health, so he changed the focus from sports to cardiovascular fitness. He started having the students run a mile every week. Lawler realized quickly that he would also have to change how grading was done. So instead of saying, if you run a mile in under X number of minutes, you get an A, he graded students based on their effort using heart rate monitors. So as long as a student maintained a high enough heart rate during class, they'd receive a good grade. On the days that the students didn't run a mile, he organized activities that kept the students moving and their heart rates up.
What's interesting is that not only did the fitness levels of the students improve, so did their academic performance. The program expanded and became district wide, and the grades across the board improved, including performance on standardized testing, both at the state, national, and international level. Naperville District 203 began to consistently rank in the top 10 districts in the state in spite of the fact that the amount of money being spent on each student was notably less than the top tier schools in the state. On international standardized testing, Naperville scored first in the world in science and sixth in math. Students also found themselves being more prepared to handle the stress of college and adult life following graduation. Rather than turning to binge eating or drinking as many new college students do when confronted with the stress of adult life, students from Naperville turned to exercise and were able to continue to be academically successful in college as they had been in high school.
So, I wish that I could read the story right out of the book because I had to leave out so much for the sake of time. But I wanted to share this brief summary to show a real life example of how exercise improves and enhances the brain's performance, not only academically, but in its ability to cope with stress.
So, why does this happen? Why does getting our heart rate up improve the function of our brain? The answer is in four letters, BDNF. BDNF stands for brain-derived neurotrophic factor. Dr. Ratey refers to BDNF as Miracle-Gro for the brain. BDNF increases neuroplasticity or our brain's ability to make changes and learn. It also helps to regulate and increase the production of chemicals in the brain like serotonin, a chemical that is in short supply in the brains of people who suffer from depression. BDNF is also neuroprotective, meaning that it protects the brain from diseases such as dementia and Parkinson's disease. Bottom line, BDNF is awesome.
So, you're probably thinking, "Well, shoot, how do I get more BDNF? And the answer is you guessed it, exercise. The amount of research about the connection between exercise and BDNF production is substantial to say the least. A quick search of the National Institute of Health shows nearly 200 articles on the topic. It has been repeatedly shown that exercise increases BDNF production, which in turn provides all of its associated benefits. It is an undeniable fact that exercise is good for the brain.
All right. I have shared a lot of information. Now, I want to talk about how we can take this information and actually do something about it. But before I do, I want to clear something up. Exercise is not just running and lifting weight at the gym. I firmly believe that people who say they hate working out just have not found the right activity. I could do a whole podcast on all of the things that you could do other than going to the gym that would likely be just as beneficial. If you want to exercise but don't want to go to a traditional gym, I encourage you to think outside of the box and to find something that you enjoy. Doing so will increase the likelihood of creating a habit of regular exercise.
Now back to BDNF. So, it turns out there is a recipe for effective BDNF production. In the book Spark, Dr. Ratey suggests that you choose a sport that simultaneously taxes the cardiovascular system and the brain. The example that he uses is tennis, because you're running around a lot, which fulfills the cardiovascular component, and the coordination required to swing a tennis racket challenges the brain.
Another option, according to Dr. Ratey, is to perform a 10-minute cardio warmup, followed by an activity that requires a lot of coordination and balance like rock climbing or yoga. Either of these combinations will result in increased BDNF production, which further increases as you perform the activity for an extended period of time. Studies in laboratory rats showed that not only did rats that had access to running wheels produce more BDNF than sedentary rats, but the rats that logged more time on the running wheel had increased BDNF levels compared to those who ran less.
Something that I want to bring special attention to is the ability exercise has to combat stress, anxiety, and depression. These are all too common in the healthcare industry, and I will be remiss in not addressing it. Our bodies and brains evolve with one goal in mind, survival. Early humans evolved to have a strong sense of danger. You likely have heard of the fight or flight response. This neurologic response was developed over millions of years to kick our nervous system into high gear and prepare for confrontation. When the fight or flight responses triggered, our blood pressure, heart rate, and breathing rate, increase in hormones like norepinephrine and cortisol are dumped into the bloodstream to increase alertness and prepare the body to react quickly to the danger. This response is triggered in less than 10 milliseconds after a threat is perceived. For early humans, when the fight or flight response occurred, they would then literally fight or run away. Doing this allow the hormones and chemicals produced by the body to clear out of the bloodstream and for the system to fully reset.
But here's the problem, modern humans are using a brain that evolved over millions of years to promote survival in a modern world where the challenges that early humans had practically are non-existent. We don't go through the day worrying if a sabertooth tiger is going to attack us, but our brains are still every bit as good at identifying perceived threats and the fight or flight response is every bit as active. But when it flips on in response to an unpleasant email or a deadline for a project, there is typically no literal fight or flight response. We recognize there's no physical threat, so we don't run away or fight. But the physical and neurological response is the same. So, what happens is our system gets ramped up and stays that way. And in some cases, it stays that way indefinitely. Remaining in this heightened state can result in weight gain, chronic high blood pressure, overeating, and many of the other health disorders that are prevalent today.
Stress and anxiety are ever present in healthcare. Stress over proper and timely medication administration, stress over cleaning and preparing rooms quickly enough to accommodate the never ending flow of patients, stress over providing the correct diet for a patient or stress over correct differential diagnosis. And unfortunately, it's not uncommon for depression to follow prolonged stress and anxiety. It's a cycle that repeats itself day after day, week after week, and year after year. Obviously, people experience this at varying levels of intensity, but regardless of how it's handled, it's not pleasant or healthy. Fortunately, we have a great friend in exercise and physical activity.
Exercising helps to regulate and reset our nervous system, which in turn allows us to avoid the ill effects of chronic stress, anxiety and depression. I've learned firsthand what a powerful tool exercise is in coping with poor mental health. For me, and I struggle with depression, anxiety and a lot of stress, mountain biking is the most effective activity for me. It's something that I enjoy and it checks off both the cardiovascular requirement and it challenges my brain as well.
If poor mental health is a struggle for you, I highly encourage you to make it a goal to find an activity that you enjoy that gets your heart rate up and engages your brain. Whether that be a team sport or something you do on your own, I can say with almost total certainty that you won't regret it. I should also say that if you're someone who has not been very active for a long time or has a complicated medical history, be sure to talk with your doctor before starting any new form of exercise.
My challenge today is to make a goal to increase your activity level by even just a little bit today, whether that be taking the stairs rather than the elevator, going for a walk during your lunch break or wrestling with your kids when you get home, decide now to do that one thing today.
I have really enjoyed putting all this together. And I know for me it has renewed my commitment to regular exercise, so that I can take advantage of all of the amazing benefits that it has for my brain. I hope that it helps you to do the same. Thank you very much.
James Harris: Welcome to this week's podcast. My name is James Harris. And I'm a doctor of physical therapy. I'm excited about this opportunity to talk about one of my favorite topics, the effect that physical activity has on the brain.
Guest: A number of years ago, I read a book called Spark, which is all about the science of exercise and the brain. It is written by Dr. John Ratey who is a psychiatrist. He begins the book by telling a story of Naperville District 203 in Naperville, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. In the early '90s, the PE teacher at the middle school, Phil Lawler, realized that the students spent a lot of time in his class just standing around. Whether that was waiting for their turn at bat or waiting for the ball to be passed to them, he realized that the overall activity level of the students was relatively low.
Lawler wanted to actually help his students improve their health, so he changed the focus from sports to cardiovascular fitness. He started having the students run a mile every week. Lawler realized quickly that he would also have to change how grading was done. So instead of saying, if you run a mile in under X number of minutes, you get an A, he graded students based on their effort using heart rate monitors. So as long as a student maintained a high enough heart rate during class, they'd receive a good grade. On the days that the students didn't run a mile, he organized activities that kept the students moving and their heart rates up.
What's interesting is that not only did the fitness levels of the students improve, so did their academic performance. The program expanded and became district wide, and the grades across the board improved, including performance on standardized testing, both at the state, national, and international level. Naperville District 203 began to consistently rank in the top 10 districts in the state in spite of the fact that the amount of money being spent on each student was notably less than the top tier schools in the state. On international standardized testing, Naperville scored first in the world in science and sixth in math. Students also found themselves being more prepared to handle the stress of college and adult life following graduation. Rather than turning to binge eating or drinking as many new college students do when confronted with the stress of adult life, students from Naperville turned to exercise and were able to continue to be academically successful in college as they had been in high school.
So, I wish that I could read the story right out of the book because I had to leave out so much for the sake of time. But I wanted to share this brief summary to show a real life example of how exercise improves and enhances the brain's performance, not only academically, but in its ability to cope with stress.
So, why does this happen? Why does getting our heart rate up improve the function of our brain? The answer is in four letters, BDNF. BDNF stands for brain-derived neurotrophic factor. Dr. Ratey refers to BDNF as Miracle-Gro for the brain. BDNF increases neuroplasticity or our brain's ability to make changes and learn. It also helps to regulate and increase the production of chemicals in the brain like serotonin, a chemical that is in short supply in the brains of people who suffer from depression. BDNF is also neuroprotective, meaning that it protects the brain from diseases such as dementia and Parkinson's disease. Bottom line, BDNF is awesome.
So, you're probably thinking, "Well, shoot, how do I get more BDNF? And the answer is you guessed it, exercise. The amount of research about the connection between exercise and BDNF production is substantial to say the least. A quick search of the National Institute of Health shows nearly 200 articles on the topic. It has been repeatedly shown that exercise increases BDNF production, which in turn provides all of its associated benefits. It is an undeniable fact that exercise is good for the brain.
All right. I have shared a lot of information. Now, I want to talk about how we can take this information and actually do something about it. But before I do, I want to clear something up. Exercise is not just running and lifting weight at the gym. I firmly believe that people who say they hate working out just have not found the right activity. I could do a whole podcast on all of the things that you could do other than going to the gym that would likely be just as beneficial. If you want to exercise but don't want to go to a traditional gym, I encourage you to think outside of the box and to find something that you enjoy. Doing so will increase the likelihood of creating a habit of regular exercise.
Now back to BDNF. So, it turns out there is a recipe for effective BDNF production. In the book Spark, Dr. Ratey suggests that you choose a sport that simultaneously taxes the cardiovascular system and the brain. The example that he uses is tennis, because you're running around a lot, which fulfills the cardiovascular component, and the coordination required to swing a tennis racket challenges the brain.
Another option, according to Dr. Ratey, is to perform a 10-minute cardio warmup, followed by an activity that requires a lot of coordination and balance like rock climbing or yoga. Either of these combinations will result in increased BDNF production, which further increases as you perform the activity for an extended period of time. Studies in laboratory rats showed that not only did rats that had access to running wheels produce more BDNF than sedentary rats, but the rats that logged more time on the running wheel had increased BDNF levels compared to those who ran less.
Something that I want to bring special attention to is the ability exercise has to combat stress, anxiety, and depression. These are all too common in the healthcare industry, and I will be remiss in not addressing it. Our bodies and brains evolve with one goal in mind, survival. Early humans evolved to have a strong sense of danger. You likely have heard of the fight or flight response. This neurologic response was developed over millions of years to kick our nervous system into high gear and prepare for confrontation. When the fight or flight responses triggered, our blood pressure, heart rate, and breathing rate, increase in hormones like norepinephrine and cortisol are dumped into the bloodstream to increase alertness and prepare the body to react quickly to the danger. This response is triggered in less than 10 milliseconds after a threat is perceived. For early humans, when the fight or flight response occurred, they would then literally fight or run away. Doing this allow the hormones and chemicals produced by the body to clear out of the bloodstream and for the system to fully reset.
But here's the problem, modern humans are using a brain that evolved over millions of years to promote survival in a modern world where the challenges that early humans had practically are non-existent. We don't go through the day worrying if a sabertooth tiger is going to attack us, but our brains are still every bit as good at identifying perceived threats and the fight or flight response is every bit as active. But when it flips on in response to an unpleasant email or a deadline for a project, there is typically no literal fight or flight response. We recognize there's no physical threat, so we don't run away or fight. But the physical and neurological response is the same. So, what happens is our system gets ramped up and stays that way. And in some cases, it stays that way indefinitely. Remaining in this heightened state can result in weight gain, chronic high blood pressure, overeating, and many of the other health disorders that are prevalent today.
Stress and anxiety are ever present in healthcare. Stress over proper and timely medication administration, stress over cleaning and preparing rooms quickly enough to accommodate the never ending flow of patients, stress over providing the correct diet for a patient or stress over correct differential diagnosis. And unfortunately, it's not uncommon for depression to follow prolonged stress and anxiety. It's a cycle that repeats itself day after day, week after week, and year after year. Obviously, people experience this at varying levels of intensity, but regardless of how it's handled, it's not pleasant or healthy. Fortunately, we have a great friend in exercise and physical activity.
Exercising helps to regulate and reset our nervous system, which in turn allows us to avoid the ill effects of chronic stress, anxiety and depression. I've learned firsthand what a powerful tool exercise is in coping with poor mental health. For me, and I struggle with depression, anxiety and a lot of stress, mountain biking is the most effective activity for me. It's something that I enjoy and it checks off both the cardiovascular requirement and it challenges my brain as well.
If poor mental health is a struggle for you, I highly encourage you to make it a goal to find an activity that you enjoy that gets your heart rate up and engages your brain. Whether that be a team sport or something you do on your own, I can say with almost total certainty that you won't regret it. I should also say that if you're someone who has not been very active for a long time or has a complicated medical history, be sure to talk with your doctor before starting any new form of exercise.
My challenge today is to make a goal to increase your activity level by even just a little bit today, whether that be taking the stairs rather than the elevator, going for a walk during your lunch break or wrestling with your kids when you get home, decide now to do that one thing today.
I have really enjoyed putting all this together. And I know for me it has renewed my commitment to regular exercise, so that I can take advantage of all of the amazing benefits that it has for my brain. I hope that it helps you to do the same. Thank you very much.