{"id":192098,"date":"2025-12-19T17:41:08","date_gmt":"2025-12-19T17:41:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/192098\/"},"modified":"2025-12-19T17:41:08","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T17:41:08","slug":"exercise-benefits-executive-function-during-class","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/192098\/","title":{"rendered":"Exercise Benefits Executive Function During Class"},"content":{"rendered":"

Charles Hillman<\/a> has known for a long time that exercise has a positive impact on the brain. This effect has been demonstrated by the Northeastern University psychology professor and others in varied and robust experimental contexts.<\/p>\n

A new study<\/a> co-authored by Hillman, emeritus professor Art Kramer and intercollegiate colleagues provides real-world evidence of exercise\u2019s effect on concentration and executive function. College students, who underwent a short bout of exercise prior to attending class, demonstrated improved executive functioning through several survey metrics.<\/p>\n

Students were asked to perform a 10-minute round of continuous, focused exercise just before they attended their regular class. They filled out questionnaires designed to gauge their executive function both before exercising and again after the class.<\/p>\n

\"ACharles Hillman, Manganaro distinguished professor of psychology and director of the Institute for Cognitive and Brain Health, says that there are \u201ca million ways we can be active, and it\u2019s a matter of sampling to find the ways that work for us.\u201d Photo by Matthew Modoono\/Northeastern University<\/p>\n

On another day, the students answered the same pre- and post-class questionnaires but without any exercise intervention, as a control for the experiment.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Executive function, broadly defined by the Cleveland Clinic<\/a>, refers to the set of cognitive processes \u201cthat help you set and carry out goals.\u201d These cognitive processes are involved in problem-solving, plan-setting and emotion management.<\/p>\n

Hillman, the Anthony Manganaro distinguished professor of psychology and director of the Institute for Cognitive and Brain Health<\/a>, says the exercise required to create a positive effect on cognition doesn\u2019t need to be that high in intensity. The moderate intensity required, he says, is about equivalent to \u201cif you were walking between buildings on campus for a meeting and you\u2019re maybe just a hair late.\u201d<\/p>\n

In fact, he continues, they\u2019ve gauged the effect in both \u201cHIIT,\u201d high-intensity interval training, which can spike the heart rate, and \u201cMICE,\u201d moderate-intensity continuous exercise. For young adults at least, the improvement in cognitive processing was most pronounced after moderate exercise.<\/p>\n

Many Northeastern students, he notes, may already be getting some of the effects of exercise just by walking to class in the morning, depending on factors like distance and intensity.<\/p>\n

Even before this recent study, some school districts around the United States had already adopted pre-learning exercise routines supported by Hillman\u2019s research. Elementary school teachers and administrators who asked students to perform some structured exercise prior to test-taking \u201csaw improvements in standardized achievement tests of reading and mathematics, arithmetic. That was true both in typically developing kids and kids with ADHD,\u201d Hillman says.<\/p>\n

Advice that isn\u2019t just for students<\/p>\n

One of the keys to long-term brain health, not to mention physical health, Hillman says, is maintaining physical activity at regular periods throughout the week, and throughout the day if possible.<\/p>\n

The examples he provides of his own fitness routine \u2014 ice hockey, mountain biking, hiking, yoga \u2014 notably don\u2019t require a gym membership. \u201cI\u2019ve never run on a treadmill,\u201d he says with a laugh. \u201cThere\u2019s a million ways we can be active, and it\u2019s a matter of sampling to find the ways that work for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hillman says that, at this point, the benefits of exercise on cognition and executive function are practically incontrovertible. This study is one more link in the chain suggesting that we could all use a little more movement in our lives, especially when going into activities that require concentration and problem-solving.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think there\u2019s definitely utility in using exercise prior to taking classes,\u201d he concludes.<\/p>\n

Noah Lloyd is the assistant editor for research at Northeastern Global News and NGN Research. Email him at n.lloyd@northeastern.edu<\/a>. Follow him on X\/Twitter at @noahghola<\/a>.<\/p>\n