Thesis: Exercise can help improve academic performance.
Introduction
Many people associate exercise with its effects on the body, but fail to think about its effects in other aspects. Exercise, although it helps make one stronger, can also help one do better in school. Physical activity causes one to feel energized, awake, and alert. Exercise promotes better sleep, as well as improves mood and brain functions. As a result, students are able to perform better academically.
Exercise promotes better sleep
It is general knowledge that students need a lot of sleep in order to do well in school. When students get enough sleep, they are able to think clearly, be in a positive mood, and focus on the material. Exercise is one way to get better sleep.
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One of the many functions of the brain is to go through the process of neurogenesis, which is the growth and development of nerve cells in the dentate gyrus region of the hippocampus (Suzuki, 110). The dentate gyrus is the subdivision in the hippocampus where all new neurons are born. The hippocampus is responsible for a wide range of memory tasks such as: “spatial maze tasks, memory-delay tasks, recognition-memory tasks, and a range of memory-encoding tasks” (Suzuki, 111). Exercise directly affects this area of the brain so that these functions are radically improved. In recent experiments, rats grew up in an enriched environment, which is an environment where they can socialize, exercise, and have stimulating toys. As a result of an environment that encouraged exercise, the rodents’ brains became physically larger, neurons were able to receive and process greater amounts of information, and there were higher levels of good brain chemicals and growth factors such as the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, which regulates learning and memory, and the brain-derived neurotrophic factor, or BDNF (Suzuki, 18). During development, BDNF supports the survival and growth of neurons, which allow the brain to process information (Suzuki, 109). From these animal studies, scientists conclude that exercise has similar effects on the human brain, such as increasing the number of neurons and strengthen their connections in the hippocampus (Suzuki, 110-111). A test of 27 healthy male student athletes found that their ability to learn vocabulary was 20% faster after high impact anaerobic sprints in comparison to low impact aerobic running or being inactive. The intense physical activity also produced the strongest increases in BDNF, which were related to better short-term learning success. Exercise also produced higher absolute dopamine levels that correlate with intermediate
Bad sleeping habits are the common cause of sleep deprivation. There are some tips on how to get a good night of sleep. First of all, it is important to follow a consistent bedtime routine, because there is a certain pattern that the human body follows for regular activities. A good example would be eating habits. The chances of getting stomach and intestine diseases are much smaller when a pattern is followed every time you eat. Skipping or delaying meals could increase the risk of getting diseases in your digestive system. The brain also follows the same behavior, it needs constant rest so it is really important to follow a consistent bedtime routine. Second tip is to establish a relaxing setting at bedtime. Often times, students cannot sleep immediately after doing homework, studying for test, playing computer games, and other activities that uses the brain a lot. The brain needs to feel relaxed in order to enter the stage of complete rest. Third, it is advisable not to go to the bed hungry, nor consuming a big meal before bedtime. Both of these will make the body feel uncomfortable, and the brain will find it more difficult to get proper rest. Fourth, excessive exercise before bedtime is also a bad sleeping habit, since the body will feel excited. Although regular amount exercise is advisable during daytime. The result of a recent study reported students that experiences regular good sleep
Second, more sleep means better attention. What happens when you have more attention? You get better grades! Whenever children don’t get enough sleep, they slack off at school. This means their grades will drop. It’s just a simple fact that if people got more sleep they’d be better
There is strong evidence to suggest that decreased BDNF is associated with hippocampal dysfunction, memory impairment, and increased risk for depression. In mice who voluntarily engaged in wheel running, researchers noticed how the neutrophic upregulation occurred the earliest in the hippocampus, which is a crucial area for repair (Cotman & Cesar, 202). Aerobic exercise also has been shown to increase BDNF and, therefore, reduce the risk for learning and memory deterioration as well as the risk for depression (Erickson et al., 2012). Furthermore, the increase in BDNF levels as a result of exercise was not short-term, but rather long term in that it can stay elevated after 6 continued weeks of voluntary exercise (Cotman & Cesar, 2002). Lastly, it has been suggested that the increases in BDNF are dependent on exercise intensity. An experiment conducted by Vega and colleagues, noted dramatic increases in serum BDNF during a cycling test to exhaustion, but the same dramatic increase was not seen with moderate aerobic exercises lasting over ten minutes (Vega et al., 2006). This may be related to the differences in anaerobic and aerobic exercises, which suggests that exercise training plans should be designed with this in mind. We have seen that exercise has the ability to enhance brain
It is common knowledge to most, that people perform better at school when they are adequately rested. Sleep is a necessary prerequisite for any action that an individual desires
Research shows that sleep is a necessity in order for someone to be able to perform at their maximum potential. College students are no exception to the rule and are often at a greater risk to suffer from conditions that accompany sleep deprivation. Regardless of the time period, a college student must be well rested in order to perform at his or her best in terms of physical performance, memorization capabilities, and test-taking abilities. Also, without adequate sleep, the person will be more susceptible to illnesses, both mental and physical. In conclusion, I believe that sleep deprivation among college students is extremely common and has a direct effect on how well that student will perform or feel.
Adams, Jill U. "Physical Activity May Help Kids Do Better in School, Studies Say."Washington Post. The Washington Post, 21 Oct. 2013. Web. 21 Oct. 2013.
This means that students may also be taught about things such as mental health, sleep, drugs and more. According to the CDC, a person who takes a gym class is more likely to have better grades, brain performance, school attendance and more. If this is indeed true gym class is a key component of a student’s school and life success because it fosters a healthier lifestyle leading to people being more mentally stable. Also According to the Harvard Health department exercising often can actually help to boost your immune system preventing you from getting sick.
Sleep has always been a popular subject among humans. There have been many studies that examine sleep and its correlation with a wide variety of variables, such as depression, energy levels, and grades. Students, as a group, are widely studied. As the world’s future leaders and thinkers, there is great importance placed on their achievements. In this study the effect of student sleep habits on perceived academic performance is investigated. Many things may affect students’ academic success among these variables are sleep habits.
Chemically, the “ benefits of exercise come directly from its ability to reduce insulin resistance, reduce inflammation, and stimulate the release of growth factors—chemicals in the brain that affect the health of brain cells, the growth of new blood vessels in the brain, and even the abundance and survival of new brain cells” (Godman). This process, known as neurogenesis, counters the primary ramifications of aging on the brain, and helps with mental clarity, decision making skills, and organization. In the long run, this continuous growth of new blood vessels and the survival of new brain cells aid
Insufficient sleep at night are cause of bad sleeping pattern. Reasons why students are not having enough
I believe that physical activity will improve one's health in two aspects – the physical state of one's body, and the mental health of the individual, both of which are crucial in maintaining the well-being of a person, and taps onto other domains mentioned in the Healthy Lifestyle Index Report (such as BMI, sleep, stress and depression).
Working out can help with one’s studies. There are different chemicals that are given off to your brain while you work out. Endorphins and Serotonin chemicals get released into the brain. These two chemicals that flood the brain improve self-esteem, enhanced mood, provide better memory and provide mental functioning, and a decrease of stress. Therefore, exercise helps in school and everything throughout the
It even helps you test better according to a the Mayo Health Clinic’s statement: “Those who had exercised during the preceding month but not on the day of testing generally did better than those who had been sedentary, but did not perform nearly as well as those who had worked out that morning.” Another internal effect of working out is muscles receiving more blood, higher VO2 level, and helping maintain bone mass. The fitter a person is, the more efficiently their heart works therefore, blood pressure decreases and new healthy blood vessels form. Exercising expands a person’s life cycle because the more someone workouts, the healthier they are. Furthermore, the brain is one part that no one would think exercising has anything to do with, but it’s the main one that is affected. Exercising results in increased brain flow which helps the brain function more efficiently. Also, new brain cells are formed that help boost memory and learning. A number of neurotransmitters are triggered, these are what controls a person’s mood; this is how exercise prevents depression. Working out improves development of neurons, production of nerve protecting compounds, and can reverse brain and muscle decay. There are various positive internal effects that exercise has on people’s
Exercising helps in many different ways such as gaining muscular strength and ability. A person's desire is to lose weight and have a perfect toned figure, but it also helps ease a lot of other conditions as well. Exercising is considered to be a mood booster. It helps improve self esteem and will lower depression. It will make a person a lot happier, and will help bring a positive reaction in the body. Physical activity is very important for obesity. It is really important for obese children or adults to get some form of exercise in their lives. It can be very beneficial for them and can help prevent long term illnesses. People that exercise on a daily basis do it because it helps them feel more positive about themselves and they will be more energized, motivated and focused for the day. It gives people an excessive amount of happiness.
Improving your mood and boosting your energy also comes from exercising. The physical activity activates different chemicals in your brain that makes you happier and more relaxed. When exercise is done regularly, it can also lead to making a person gain more self-esteem and being more confident in appearance. Also,...