The Healthy Writer Blog

Brain Fitness

Posted by Trish Milburn Nov 17 2011, 12:01 am in exercise, fitness, guest blogger

By Anju Gattani

Just when I thought workouts were for muscles, I learned a new term, ‘brain fitness’ – the improvement of the cognitive abilities of the brain by exercising the brain. It’s a term used less in the science world and more in the self-help arena. It’s a term that could possibly go hand in hand with creativity too!

As writers we crave the next best idea… a wave of inspiration… a character that will draw us into his or her story and imagination. Have you recently heard a writer complain he’s brain-dead or suffering from writer’s block – that too, during NaNoWriMo? Gasp! Have you been reading up on tried and tested methods to wake up the muse in you? Well, I have a little news for you… Good news!

BDNF. It’s short for Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor or… a Miracle-Gro for your brain, according to Daniel G. Amen, author of Change Your Brain, Change Your Body. The bad news is you won’t find a shot of BDNF at Home Depot or Pike Nursery. You’ll find it at the local fitness center – not stocked on shelves, taped to the lockers or sitting in some vending machine – but bang behind the cardio room.

BDNF is a chemical that helps the growth of new brain cells. “When you exercise, your brain sprouts new cells.” Amen explains that aging is the process when the brain is not creating as many cells as it is losing.

Research has proven that exercise generates new brain cells in: the temporal lobes (memory), which is great for all those characters that you’ll continue to write in your series, the prefrontal cortex (planning and judgment) – for plotters, and a cardio routine is great for activating the natural pathway of morphine, which in turn releases endorphins (a feel good transmitter) – for pantsters who naturally write to go-with-the-flow.

Besides making you smarter, cardio has proven to be an instant mood booster, as equally effective as antidepressants, and it allows more of the enhancing amino acid tryptophan, also found naturally in bananas—more details in my last post ‘Going Nuts over Bananas?’—to enter the brain.

And what about resistance training, you ask? Weight-training has been known to slow the rate of osteoporosis in women and possibly prevent cognitive decline in adults.

For writers who love to multi-genre and multi-task, the cerebellum, located at the back of the brain–(thinking, cognitive flexibility and processing speed)—exercise that requires coordination is a natural boost to overall smartness (author presentation skills) and self-control (not stalking agents and editors at conferences).

So next time you’re ready to drop and die during a high-impact routine, just remember the four magical letters, B-D-N-F, and the good news…. The harder you work out, the more work you’ll get done in return!

Anju Gattani is an international freelance journalist and fiction author. Her debut novel DUTY AND DESIRE, contemporary women’s fiction (with an international twist) will be released on Dec 1, 2011. You can preorder your copy now at Barnes & Noble and Amazon. She is a member of Georgia Romance Writers, Romance Writers of America, a columnist for Khabar, an Indo-American magazine, and is at work on her third novel. Anju grew up in Hong Kong under a British education system; she has also lived in India, Singapore, Australia and New Jersey, Connecticut and Atlanta in the U.S. Anju hopes her novels will one day bridge cultures and break barriers. Visit Anju at www.anjugattani.com.

5 Comments

Comments

5 Responses to “Brain Fitness”

Carol Burnside/Annie Rayburn says:

November 17, 2011 at 11:00 am

Hey, this is great news. Just what I needed to push me over the edge in buying that stationary bike I’ve been sitting and thinking about. LOL!

Have a great day.

Reply
- Anju Gattani says:
  
  November 17, 2011 at 2:25 pm
  
  Hi Carol,
  glad you could join me and I hope you do buy that stationery bike!
  
  Reply
- Trish Milburn says:
  
  November 17, 2011 at 2:53 pm
  
  Have fun with the bike, Carol! I wish I had a spin bike. We have a recumbent bike that my husband bought, but I don’t like it. I use it but I have to put a pillow behind my back because it hurts my back otherwise.
  
  Reply
Anna Sugden says:

November 17, 2011 at 11:09 am

Hi Anju – I’m glad to know there is a scientific explanation for it! I always used to find that on days when I did boxing training, my writing was so much better. I thought it was because I had to concentrate so hard, it blew all other stuff out of my brain and let me start afresh! LOL

Now I just need my back to get better so I can get back to exercising!

Reply
- Anju Gattani says:
  
  November 17, 2011 at 2:26 pm
  
  I agree, Anna,
  I’m glad it’s explained and now I understand what all the difference is about too. I go thru the same thing… the writing’s much better (and so is the thinking) on days when I burn calories. I still like your theory though… maybe you can blog on that one!
  
  Reply

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