{"id":840921,"date":"2026-09-08T19:38:10","date_gmt":"2026-09-08T19:38:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/840921\/"},"modified":"2026-09-08T19:38:10","modified_gmt":"2026-09-08T19:38:10","slug":"10-minutes-of-very-slow-exercise-can-improve-brain-function-mood","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/840921\/","title":{"rendered":"10 minutes of \u2018very slow\u2019 exercise can improve brain function, mood"},"content":{"rendered":"

Slow and steady wins the race.<\/p>\n

The benefits of exercise for the brain and mood are well documented and worthwhile \u2014 even taking a few thousand steps<\/a> a day can positively affect cognitive function.<\/p>\n

And whether you love it or hate it, just a few minutes of one exercise in particular can boost brain function and mood, even when done in an easygoing way.<\/p>\n

\"AExercise has been well-documented as a brain and mood booster, even if you do one activity slowly for just 10 minutes. Chinnapong \u2013 stock.adobe.com<\/p>\n

From \u201cinsane marathons\u201d<\/a> to college campus \u201cdarties,\u201d<\/a> running is everywhere these days, and anyone can benefit \u2014 no matter how slow you go, according to recent research<\/a>.<\/p>\n

So exactly how much effort is necessary to reap the benefits? A study published in the journal Imaging Neuroscience put that question to the test.<\/p>\n

Researchers had 24 healthy participants complete a very slow session on the treadmill \u2014 a pace close to walking two to four miles per hour \u2014 while looking at prefrontal cortical activity.<\/p>\n

In a matter of 10 minutes, participants reported a more pleasant mood and measured a shorter Stroop interference time, which translates to better cognitive control, faster processing speed and efficient cognitive inhibition.<\/p>\n

\"AJust 10 minutes of very slow running was found to improve mood and enhance executive function and memory. PORNCHAI SODA \u2013 stock.adobe.com<\/p>\n

Additionally, researchers noticed increased activity in prefrontal regions of the brain associated with executive function and mood regulation.<\/p>\n

A gentle up-and-down movement of the runner\u2019s head, which was previously studied in mice walking on a treadmill, has been linked to improving mood and helping the brain clean itself \u2014 a crucial process called the glymphatic system<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Without this process, harmful proteins can accumulate, triggering inflammation, disrupting communication between brain cells and eventually leading to neuron damage.<\/p>\n

The researchers behind the study ultimately believe that slower running paces at shorter intervals may benefit those who have low fitness levels or find traditional exercise challenging.<\/p>\n

Other studies have also focused on how little running is necessary, with a 2021 study<\/a> from the University of Tsukuba in Japan finding that 10 minutes is the sweet spot for a brain boost.<\/p>\n

However, that study had participants run at a moderately intense pace.<\/p>\n

Previous research from 2018<\/a> has also found that 10 minutes of very light intensity exercise of yoga, tai chi or a slow-paced walk enhanced the hippocampus, a region critical for creating new memories.<\/p>\n

This adds to the theory that even short bouts of light-intensity exercise can have a positive and notable effect on cognitive function.<\/p>\n

And starting low and slow could have greater benefits as more extreme efforts take a toll, like ultramarathons incidentally causing the brain to break down<\/a> its protective barrier and start eating itself.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Slow and steady wins the race. The benefits of exercise for the brain and mood are well documented…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":840922,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[62],"tags":[1491,674,337,97,5117,3284],"class_list":["post-840921","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fitness","tag-brains","tag-exercise","tag-fitness","tag-health","tag-running","tag-study-says"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/840921","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=840921"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/840921\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/840922"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=840921"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=840921"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=840921"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}