How Exercise, Coordination, And New Movement Patterns Protect Cognitive Health

   There has been growing conversation in recent years about brain health, especially when it comes to preventing Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Not every lapse in memory is a cause for concern. Forgetting where you parked your car or losing your house keys are not by themselves cause for alarm. Our brains will age along with the rest of our body. That said, we can take some specific steps in support of optimizing our brain health. This month’s newsletter will explore how regular exercise, improved coordination, and learning new movement patterns can strengthen the brain. Research continues to show that staying active not only benefits us physically, but also supports our memory, focus, balance and overall brain health. Challenging your mind and body will help keep our brain and body healthy for many years.

Why coordination matters

   What is coordination? Coordination is your body’s ability to move smoothly and efficiently with control. Good coordination helps to improve posture, body awareness, and reaction time, which can help reduce injury risk. Exercise strengthens communication between your brain and muscles, creating stronger neuromuscular connections. Every time you move, your brain processes information from the environment and decides which muscles to use and how much force is needed. When these connections are strong, you’re better able to react to unexpected situations, such as catching yourself if you trip or recovering your balance if someone accidentally bumps into you (1). You can improve coordination through activities such as ladder drills, hand eye coordination exercises, balance exercise and even in the act of learning new exercises.

The Power of Learning New Movement Patterns

  When we learn a new movement, we create positive structural changes to our brain pathways. These changes lead to benefits like a stronger memory and better executive function (helps us plan, focus attention, regulate emotions). There are also structural brain changes such as increased hippocampus volume and increased grey matter density (2). Studies have shown that this can have an even greater effect on adults already experiencing early cognitive decline.

Why Progress Workouts

In your own workouts at Body Basics, you might notice that your workouts change gradually over time. That is done intentionally. As our body begins to adapt to new exercises it becomes more efficient. By introducing new patterns, the challenge increases. This helps to stimulate muscles as well as our brain. Progressive workouts help build strength, improve bone density and enhance balance and coordination. Consistency is important, but we wouldn’t want to be doing the same exact workout for a long time. Variety and progression are what help us to continually improve without plateauing. Whether your goals are to move better, have more independence, or to be pain-free, progressing workouts is one of the best ways to support long term physical and cognitive health.

References

1) Guilford Athletic Center. Balance, Coordination & Strength for Daily Life. https://guilfordathleticcenter.com/balance-coordination-stregth-for-daily-life

2) Glatt, R. (2025, June 13). The advantage of neuromotor exercise for brain and body health. Pacific Neuroscience Institute. https://www.pacificneuroscienceinstitute.org/blog/brain-wellness-lifestyle/the-advantage-of-neuromotor-exercise-for-brain-and-body-health/