Physical Activity for College Students

Exercise helps improve memory retention

So many tests, so much to study…CRAMMING TIME. The
hippocampus is the memory powerhouse of your brain.
A New York Times article found that exercise helps to prevent the shrinkage of the hippocampus and it could also promote the regrowth and increased cell division. College students who exercise have better recall of information, no matter if its retained information or information recently learned. College students who exercise have better recall of information, no matter if its retained information or information recently learned.

BUT DID YOU KNOW…

Exercise is more effective in increasing your energy levels then
caffeine?! Put down those Starbucks’ and get to exercising people!

Exercise relieves stress

Finals week is the most stressful week of the semester for college students! The week prior to  finals, study week, is spend mostly thinking about all the studying you have to do along with preparing to study and that makes our stress level skyrocket! For many students high stress levels will manifest in health issues such as anxiety, falling ill with a cold/flu/allergies, and for some aggravation of stress ulcers. Exercising for as little as 30 minutes can help to reduce stress, aid in overcoming illness, and lower your anxiety levels.

Exercise can help to improve our mood

If there is ever a time and place to have all cranky
people in one place, it’s a full college campus during finals week. There have been studies that found that exercise as a medication produced comparable results to anti-depressant medication in mood improvement. Performing simple aerobic physical activity can significantly help improve college students’ attitudes. However, if you are on medication already for mood disorders then exercising can only additionally aid in
the improvement that you see.

Exercise can improve focus and concentration

One of the greatest struggles about finals week is staying focused! Your mind is constantly running from subject to subject and your lacking the ability to concentrate long enough on materials to learn it. It has been found that students that exercise for as little as 20 minutes have an increase in their ability to focus and concentrate for a short time after the exercise. Exercising more regularly and consistently would be needed for a longer and more significant improvement in focus and concentration.