Exercise Works Your Muscles and Your Brain

Exercise gives you endorphins, right?  Well, it's beneficial in plenty of other ways too. 

That's a funny looking mouse!

You can read the article from Science Daily here.

In short:  Researchers from Princeton University found that exercise helps do two main things:

1. Responses to stress are reduced from the way physical activity reorganizes the brain
2. Normal brain function is less likely to be interrupted by anxiety

I know going for a run helps calm me down when I'm stressed, but this study focused on responses to stress (for mice) after six weeks of living an active life or a sedentary life.  The study isn't about an immediate calming effect.  Rather, it shows that exercise can have a prolonged and important impact on the development and growth of how your brain is wired.  The mice who lived an "active lifestyle" were able to run during the six weeks period: "The brain in a runner mouse showed every sign of controlling its reaction to an extent not observed in the brain of a sedentary mouse."

Exercise helps you handle and cope with stress.  Thanks exercise!