EXERCISE SMARTER (LITERALLY)

A fascinating new hypothesis on the brain-body connection says that we may actually have evolved to need a certain kind of exercise. Here's what it could mean for your next workout.

- LORA SHINN

In all the times you've been told that exercise is good for your body and mind, have you ever wondered why that is? What exactly is the relationship between your power walk and your brainpower? Researchers have some fascinating new ideas about that, and they have to do with early humanity very early.

Around 2 million years ago, humans adopted a hunting-and-gathering lifestyle, which led to increased aerobic physical activity, explains David Raichlen, Ph.D., a human and evolutionary biology professor at the University of Southern California. Hunting animals and foraging for plant foods required a combination of spatial navigation, memory, motor control, and executive function.

As a result, our bodies and brains might have evolved to require exercise. We know that cardiovascular and skeletal systems tend to atrophy without the healthy stress of use-and the same thing may be happening to the modern brain, suggest Raichlen and his colleague Gene Alexander, Ph.D., of the University of Arizona. Exercise may increase neuron growth, particularly if the brain is involved in the physical activity, says Raichlen.

A TRUE MIND-BODY WORKOUT

There's a name for the kind of exercise that benefits the brain: dual-task training or neuromotor exercise, explains Ryan Glatt, a brain-based certified personal trainer at the Pacific Brain Health Center in Santa Monica, CA. Glatt, who holds a master's degree in applied neuroscience, runs group and private sessions for older adults with cognitive concerns, using virtual reality and active video games (exergames).

The idea is that by actively engaging the brain while you exercise, you could improve certain aspects of brain activity more than you would with a less cognitively demanding workout.