Welcome to the Get Fit Guys, quick and dirty tips to slim down and shape up.

My name is Ben Greenfield. I'm the Get Fit Guy. And in today's episode, you're going to learn about what kind of exercise makes you smarter.

Now, there is an episode that I had about a year ago called an exercise trick to make you smarter. Now, there is an episode that I had about a year ago called an exercise trick to make you

smarter. And in that episode, I introduced a compound called brain-derived neurotrophic factor,

or BDNF, which is a protein that acts on neurons in your central nervous system and peripheral

nervous system to help your existing neurons survive and

thrive, and also to encourage the growth of new neurons and neuronal connections, also known as

synapses. And in that post, I recommend making the BDNF flow better by fitting in an aerobic 20 to 45

minute run bike ride or other bout of cardio on the morning of any day in which you have

high intellectual demands. Then I recently tweeted, here's why I like to go on a nice, easy

walk, simple nasal breathing jog or bike before a big cognitive task or speech. And in that tweet,

I referenced a runner's world article that went into some of the

latest research on brain and BDNF and exercise. Well, let's dive in this episode into what these

new studies have discovered. And also, I'm going to give you a few quick and dirty tips on using

intervals, weight training,

and cardiovascular exercise to increase BDNF, and to elicit a few other brain-boasting effects, too.

Now, in addition to knowing about BDNF for brain survival and growth, you also need to be familiar with another term, neuroplasticity. Neuroplasticity is the ability of your brain to

engage in the strengthening or weakening of existing neuronal pathways. That's called synaptic

plasticity or the establishment of entirely new neurons and connections. And that's called

structural plasticity. Well, we already know that compared to strength training, aerobic training

can cause a much more significant BDNF boost, likely due to the fact that BDNF stays more localized to muscle tissue in response to strength training.

We also know that aerobic running can inhibit the lowering of neuroplasticity that can occur after a stroke.

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