There are plenty of good reasons to be physically active. The big ones include reducing the odds of developing heart disease, stroke, and diabetes. Maybe you want to lose weight, lower your blood pressure, prevent depression, or just look better. We are all familiar with these reasons. Here’s another one, which especially applies to those of us experiencing the brain fog that comes with aging: exercise changes the brain in ways that protect memory and thinking skills.

In a study done at the University of British Columbia, researchers found that regular aerobic exercise, the kind that gets your heart and your sweat glands pumping, appears to boost the size of the hippocampus, the brain area involved in verbal memory and learning. Resistance training, balance, and muscle toning exercises did not have the same results. So there’s something to be said for getting that heart rate up.

This huge. Researchers say one new case of dementia is detected every four seconds globally. They estimate that by the year 2050, more than 115 million people will have dementia worldwide.

Exercise helps memory and thinking in both direct and indirect ways. 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 the brain, and even the abundance and survival of new brain cells.

Indirectly, exercise improves mood and sleep, and reduces stress and anxiety. It makes you tired, so you sleep better. Your body needs recovery. Problems in these areas frequently cause or contribute to cognitive impairment.

Some studies even suggest that the parts of the brain that control thinking and memory have greater volume (are Bigger) in people who exercise versus people who don’t. Just ask the docs at Harvard.

So what should you do? Start exercising! How much exercise is required to improve memory? Lots of the studies indicate that walking briskly for one hour, twice a week could do wonders for your brain and your body in general. We are designed to move. That’s 120 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise a week. Standard recommendations advise half an hour of moderate physical activity most days of the week, or 150 minutes a week. If that seems too hard, start with a few minutes a day, and increase the amount you exercise by five or ten minutes every week until you reach your goal.

If you don’t want to walk, consider other moderate-intensity exercises, such as swimming, stair climbing, pickleball, or dancing. Don’t forget that household activities can count as well, such as intense floor mopping, yard work, or anything that gets your heart pumping so much that you break out in a light sweat.

Don’t have the discipline to do it on your own? Try any or all of these ideas:

• Join a class or workout with a friend who’ll hold you accountable.
• Track your progress, which encourages you to reach a goal.
• If you’re able, hire a personal trainer.
• Whatever exercise and motivators you chose, commit to establishing exercise as a habit, almost like taking a prescription medication. After all, they say that exercise is medicine, and that can go at the top of anyone’s list of reasons to work out!