A new study published in NeuroImage reveals that just fifteen minutes of cardio done immediately after learning or practicing a new motor skill improves long-term retention.
Researchers conducted the study to explore brain mechanisms underlying motor learning and the impact of cardiovascular exercise on motor memory consolidation. Subjects were asked to practice a grip exercise requiring varying degrees of force. Afterward, some participants rested, while others did 15 minutes of aerobic exercise. The subjects then underwent a variety of assessments, including skill retention tests, 8 and 24 hours after the motor practice.
Investigators found that those who had done the aerobic exercise had visibly better motor skill retention. They also had less brain activity when they repeated the motor skill task, indicating that they were connecting different areas of the brain more efficiently than those who had rested. Study authors concluded that cardiovascular exercise, when performed in close proximity to motor practice, strengthens motor memories.
“More intriguing i s that the benefit of exercise was not seen the same day of the learning and the exercise, but the day after, following a night of sleep,” said the study’s lead author, Fabien Dal Maso, assistant professor at the University of Montreal.
“There are hypotheses that [cardiovascular exercise] can also have a positive effect on motor skill involving the full body, but to my knowledge, nothing has been published yet,” said Maso. “This shows that exercise is not only good for the body; it is good for the brain.”
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