Podcast: Dr. John Ratey, leading Neuropsychiatry expert, discusses movement and the brain

Here’s What You’ll Learn: John’s background and how he became interested in the benefits of exercise When scientists began to measure the effects of exercising on mood and other cognitive functions Exercising can help prevent the decline of cognitive function by 10-15 years How do activity, movement and exercise change our brains? When we move we are activating our “thinking brain” Exercise does the same thing as a little bit of Prozac and Ritalin combined Our brain cells grow as we use them and move around (read: you can make yourself smarter just by moving!) A Duke University study (and many others) found movement/exercise can relieve the symptoms of depression Once you exercise consistently for 2-3 weeks you will see a noticeable change in your mood Exercise builds enzymes that help reshape and build the brain How exercise can help mitigate the symptoms of ADD and other attention issues Continuous exercise and movement can help bring stress levels down to a manageable level BDNF is an antidepressant and antianxiety protein in our brain — it grows with movement! Endocannabinoids may be more important than endorphins Studies on how children learn better when they move!