High angle shot of fitness young Asian sportswoman relaxing after exercising, lying on a yoga mat and using her smartphone against sunlight in the morning, reusable water bottle and headphones by her side.



A new study shows that exercise can help improve your memory for up to 24 hours. (Getty Images) (d3sign via Getty Images)



Decades of research has found that exercise is helpful for overall health and fitness, doing everything from lowering the risk of heart disease to helping you sleep better. Exercise can also help, according to a new study boost your memory – and the results can last up to a day after your sweat session.


The small studypublished today in the International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, analyzed data from 76 people aged 50 to 83 who wore activity trackers for eight days and took daily cognitive tests. The researchers found that people who engaged in more moderate to vigorous physical activity than normal on a given day performed better on memory tests the next day.


Being active in general also seemed to help. People who spent less time than usual sitting and logged six hours more sleep also scored better on memory tests.


The findings could have major implications for everyone, including older adults “where it is very important to understand factors that may maintain daily cognitive function.” Mikaela Bloomberglead author of the study and senior research fellow at University College London, tells Yahoo Life.


But what’s behind this link and how much exercise do you need to do to reap the benefits? Doctors explain.



It’s important to point out that this isn’t the first study to link exercise to better memory. Lastresearch found that people performed better on memory tests in the hours after exercising, but many studies have not determined how long these benefits last.


Doctors say there are a few different things that could be behind exercise-induced memory improvements. “Exercise leads to increased blood flow and stimulation of neurotransmitters that are thought to contribute to improvements in cognitive function,” says Bloomberg. (Neurotransmitters help move messages from one nerve cell to the next and aid in memory and thinking.)


Exercise can also lead to the birth of new neurons in the hippocampus, a part of the brain essential for memory and learning. Dr. Vernon Williamssports neurologist and founder and director of the Center for Sports Neurology and Pain Medicine at the Cedars-Sinai Kerlan-Jobe Institute in Los Angeles, Yahoo Life reports. “Exercise also promotes neuroplasticity, the brain’s ability to form new connections and reorganize itself,” he says.


Exercise can even help reduce inflammation in the brain, which is linked to cognitive decline, Williams says.



The researchers found no hard number for how much exercise is needed to achieve the brain benefits. “We only looked at when people did more physical activity than normal,” says Bloomberg. “Regardless of their current level of physical activity, doing more was better.” So if you exercise regularly for 30 minutes, an additional five minutes of practice can keep you feeling mentally sharp for the next 24 hours.


The study found that doing more moderate or vigorous physical activity than usual was linked to better working memory and better recall of events the next day. Also worth noting: Spending time being more sedentary than normal was associated with poorer working memory the next day.



Bloomberg emphasizes that its study was small, making it difficult to infer too much from the findings without further research. But she also says there can be practical ways to use the results to your advantage.


For older adults, having an exercise routine can help improve memory and keep people sharp as they age. And if you have an exam or a big presentation to do, practicing the day before won’t hurt when it comes to improving your memory, says Bloomberg.


While this particular study found that exercising more than usual had an impact, Williams says it’s also important to have a consistent exercise routine for brain health and memory. “There is also likely some cognitive stimulation associated with regular physical activity that may also play a beneficial role,” he says.



This research found that you don’t have to do anything extreme to get a memory boost from exercise. Bloomberg says that exercises that fall into the “moderate intensity” category or higher, such as brisk walking, cycling or jogging, have helped improve memory.


However, other research has shown that more intense exercise can also help. A study recently published in the journal Communication psychologyfor example, found that cycling and High-intensity interval training (HIIT) would most likely help boost memory, attention, executive function, information processing, and other cognitive functions.


Overall, Bloomberg says research supports staying active as you get older. “There are many health reasons why older adults should integrate physical activity into their daily lives, and there is certainly evidence that this could help maintain cognitive function as we age,” she says.


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