The Institute of Sport Exercise and Health’s (ISEH) Professor Mark Hamer, Chair in Sport and Exercise, was a co-author to a study exploring the effects of physical activity on memory improvement the day after exercise and the role of sleep in this relationship.
The research was a collaborative effort led by Dr Mikaela Bloomberg from the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health at UCL, with contributions from Andrew Steptoe (Department of Behavioural Science and Health at UCL), and Laura Brocklebank and Aiden Doherty (Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford).
Physical activity is widely recognised as a key factor in preserving cognitive function. Regular exercise is linked to slower cognitive decline and a reduced risk of dementia, while also providing short-term cognitive benefits. On the other hand, sedentary behaviour, which often replaces physical activity, has been associated with poorer cognitive outcomes. Laboratory research suggests that the cognitive benefits of exercise are most pronounced within minutes or hours after activity, likely due to increased cerebral blood flow and neurotransmitter activity.
To assess the next day cognitive benefits of exercise and the influence of sleep, the researchers examined data from wrist-worn accelerometers used by 76 British adults aged 50 to 83 over an eight-day period. During this time, participants also completed daily online cognitive tests. The study looked at the relationships between physical activity levels (including moderate-to-vigorous and light activity), sedentary time, sleep metrics, and next-day performance in five cognitive domains: attention, episodic memory, working memory, psychomotor speed, executive function, and processing speed.
The team hypothesised that higher physical activity levels, less sedentary time, and longer sleep durations would enhance cognitive performance the following day.
Their findings revealed that as little as 30 extra minutes of exercise can boost memory for up to 24 hours. Additionally, longer sleep durations, particularly those involving deeper sleep stages, were independently associated with better memory and cognitive performance.
Read the article published in the International Journal of Behavioural Nutrition and Physical Activity.
