Study breaks are arguably the best part of studying, many students use this opportunity to watch Netflix, scroll through social media, talk with friends, or eat a snack. Although all of those sounds like great options here are 5 reasons you should swap your study break for exercise breaks to actually help you do better in school.
1. Increased energy
Many students guzzle energy drinks or coffee to stay awake through long study session but low-intensity exercise has been proven to increase your energy levels. It seems strange because some may think that using energy to exercise would actually deplete energy levels however, it actually increases blood flow throughout one's entire body. One research study found that exercise increased energy levels by an average of 20% and decreased fatigue levels 65%.
2. Increased productivity
If you have the space to exercise in your study you could swap ten-minute breaks for 10-minute exercise sessions. The ACSM (American College of Sports Medicine) recommends that exercise sessions be at least 10 minutes and that adults should complete 150 minutes of moderate intensity activity per week. Imagine how accomplished and productive you could feel after completing all your coursework and daily exercise! Bonus now you will have time to binge watch all the Netflix you want...
3. Improved memory
Regular exercise can actually improve memory by increasing the size of the hippocampus. College classes tend to move at an extremely fast pace and require students to remember large amounts of material for exams so any increase in memory can be appreciated by students, especially when they see an increase in exam grades.
4. Reduce stress
I don't think there is a person in the world that isn't stressed out by college work and studying for exams. Stressful situations trigger the release ofcortisol and so does exercise thus regular exercise your body will better adapt to cortisol in the bloodstream and become more efficient at managing it in future stressful situations. This long-term effect will help you feel less stressed over the duration of your college career. In the short term, exercise increases the number of endorphins released in the body which relieve pain as well as promoting feelings of relaxation and positivity.
5. Improved focus
A bout of exercise will actually help sharpen your focus which is essential when you can think of a million things you would rather be doing than studying. Many students will take expensive supplements or purchase Adderall from other students to increase their ability to focus, however, exercise is a much healthier way to improve focus both short and long-term. Exercise also has the added benefit helping with impulse control from the release of endorphins which helps you have a greater focus on the task at hand and make you less likely to become distracted over time.
Extending far beyond these five reasons specific to academic achievement exercise is a completely natural way to make you feel better. In a way, exercise is like medicine as it can cure many common ailments the average person deals with on a daily basis and improve the overall quality of a persons life.
