It is well known that exercise benefits the brain by increasing blood flow since blood carries oxygen to the brain.

A study shows that resting for just ten days without exercise leads to a slower regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in eight different brain regions. Researchers asked a dozen master athletes between the ages of 50 and 80 to not move much for ten days. Ten days were probably challenging for these runners since they trained for at least 15 years for four hours every week at high-intensity paces.

It was found that in just 10 days, there was slow regional cerebral blood flow in eight different areas of the brain. Blood flow notably slowed in both the left and right hippocampus, the part of the brain that is necessary for memory formation, storage and retrieval.

With this study being short term and with a low number of participants, the team of researchers do admit that more research needs to be done. But yet the results from men that run over 35 miles a week for at least 15 years are significant.