Strength Training and Cognitive Health
We often talk about the importance of staying physically strong as we age. We want to continue climbing stairs, carrying groceries, traveling, playing with grandchildren, and living independently. But there’s another part of healthy aging that deserves just as much attention: keeping our brains strong.
Cognitive health–the ability to think, learn, remember, reason, and make decisions–is an important part of maintaining our independence and quality of life. While there is no workout that can guarantee we will avoid cognitive decline, a growing body of research suggests something encouraging: strength training may benefit our brains as well as our muscles.
Submitted photo
Studies examining resistance exercise have reported positive effects in areas such as overall cognitive function, executive function, working memory, and processing speed, although results vary depending on the population and type of training studied.
When you think about it, there’s a lot happening between your brain and your body during a workout at The Exercise Coach. You aren’t simply moving resistance from point A to point B. You’re concentrating on your movement, responding to real-time feedback, maintaining proper form, controlling your effort, and continuing to work when your muscles begin telling you they’ve had enough. Your muscles are certainly being challenged, but your brain is actively involved in the process as well.
Researchers are also continuing to explore the longer-term relationship between resistance training and brain health. Exercise affects numerous systems throughout the body, including blood flow, metabolism, and biological processes involved in maintaining healthy brain function. This connection becomes increasingly meaningful as we get older. We readily accept that maintaining muscle requires us to use it, and it makes sense to consider how taking care of our physical health may also help support the brain that directs everything we do.
At The Exercise Coach, the good news is that supporting a stronger body doesn’t require spending hours in a gym. Our data-driven strength training workouts are designed to challenge your muscles efficiently in approximately 20 minutes, twice per week. Those 40 minutes are an investment not only in what your body can do today, but in what you want your body–and mind–to continue doing tomorrow.
Perhaps that means we should expand our definition of “strength.” Strength is getting out of a chair without assistance, carrying your own suitcase, maintaining your balance, and preserving your independence. But strength can also mean remaining mentally engaged, processing information, solving problems, remembering what matters, and continuing to make thoughtful decisions.
We exercise because we want more from our bodies as we age. Maybe it’s time we started thinking just as seriously about what we want from our brains.
949.482.4442 / ExerciseCoach.com/san-juan-capistrano
31401 Rancho Viejo Rd., Suite 102, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675
Any content, resident submissions, guest columns, advertisements, and advertorials are not necessarily endorsed by or represent the views of Best Version Media LLC (BVM) or any municipality, homeowners associations, businesses, or organizations that this publication serves. BVM is not responsible for the reliability, suitability, or timeliness of any content submitted, inclusive of materials generated or composed through artificial intelligence (AI). All content submitted is done so at the sole discretion of the submitting party.
