Study Shows Exercise Can Give Your Brain & Memory A 24-Hour Boost

Raise your hand if you expect your cup (or three) of coffee to give you all-day energy. While caffeine can certainly perk up your brain and alertness for a bit, it's not the 24-hour boost you may be looking for. 

Researchers of this study aimed to determine how physical activity (or inactivity), as well as sleep quality, impacts a person's cognition the following day. 

To do that, a total of 76 British adults wore a sleep and activity tracker for eight days and took daily cognitive tests to evaluate attention, memory, and processing speed. 

Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity is likely better than light activity (and much better than no activity) as it improves blood flow to the brain2—making sure the organ gets enough oxygen and nutrients. 

If your brain is feeling a bit sluggish, then the best thing you could do for it is to get more exercise—and possibly time it so you move before cognitively demanding tasks (like work). 

Maybe that's a walk before work or school drop-off or a quick workout during a lunch break. Whatever you do, it should be intense enough to raise your heart rate somewhat. 

Of course, the importance of sleep shouldn't be overlooked. But getting quality sleep is always easier said than done. Some good rules of thumb when it comes to sleep hygiene include going to bed and waking up at the same times every day (ideally based on your chronotype), giving yourself plenty of time to unwind in the evening, and getting natural light first thing in the morning to keep your circadian rhythm aligned.

It might also be worthwhile to invest in a reputable sleep aid for a little extra help in improving REM and deep sleep. 

If you're looking for a more targeted approach to improving your memory, then adding certain nutrients to your diet (like omega-3s) or to your supplement routine (like citicoline or resveratrol) also supports long-term and short-term memory.