Things That Make Yogis Go Hhhmmmmm........ "Science Declares Exercise Important to the Brain!"

  
I am currently reading a book named Spark! The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain. All of the comments on the back go on and on about how "groundbreaking" this work is, and while I'm glad that science is finally "proving" that the mind and body are connected, as I'm reading I can't help but think.....I already knew this.

Anybody who moves regularly or pays attention to their body already knew this.  

(No offense to the researchers or author who makes all the neuroscience stuff  in this book digestible.  I really do like knowing all the nerdy facts, so I can bust them out at a moment's notice and use them to back up my anecdotal evidence.)



This is what I already knew (in a nutshell): 

Movement is important.  It makes you feel good.



This is what the book says so far:

Movement is important.  It makes you feel good...........improving your mood, focus, and ability to learn by stimulating all kinds of action in the neural pathways of the brain. 



Pretty close, right?




Here are a few "nerdy science facts" I found particularly interesting:

Researchers in labs dissect mice brains who've exercised regularly and their brains are larger and more intricate than the brains of their non exercising rodent cohorts.  

And you know what else? They've realized that changing environment and stimuli of the exercise is important. Doing more complex motor movements in addition to simple aerobic activity is more beneficial than simple, monotonous aerobic activity.  In other words, rats who run through mazes and obstacles that change constantly have bigger brains than those that just run on the wheel.  

So, I connect the dots this way:   

We move, we learn. 

We try new activities, we create new ways of thinking. 

In other words, science is finally reaffirming what yogis and people who pay attention have always known:

Your thinking/emotional patterns are directly correlated to your physical body and vice-versa.




So the next time you are feeling down, anxious, stressed, unfocused, or low energy, science will now support me when I say something groundbreaking and radical to you:


"Move it.  Shake it.  Move it in a way that pleases your soul and body.  Challenge yourself, but don't overwhelm yourself.  Swim, dance, run, kayak, kick-box, walk, skip, gallop!  Play!  Play Ultimate Frisbee, Soccer, Basketball, Tennis!  Play in a new environment.  Enjoy it.  "