Which type of exercise is best for the brain? (2016) • Hacker News Board

Re: Which type of exercise is best for the brain? (2016)

#81

Post by Swizec » Fri, Apr 09, 2021, 2:36 PM UTC

saberience wrote: post #72

Swizec wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I find HIIT doesn’t do it for me. Can’t push myself hard enough in such short bursts because I have ridiculous cardio conditioning* from running. Boxing is great because it’s hiit but with technique and tactics and strategy. * ridiculous conditioning in that I can keep average heart rate at 155bpm for 2 hours no problem. Most hiit isn’t long enough to get me above 110

You're probably doing it wrong? Try running 400m flat out sprints with 1 min rest between each one and tell me how high your heart rate gets.

According to my watch, I have pretty good recovery. 150bpm down to 120 or less in 1min

Boxing for 10 years trained that into me very well. 1min rest between 3min rounds

Re: Which type of exercise is best for the brain? (2016)

#82

Post by tejtm » Fri, Apr 09, 2021, 3:40 PM UTC

cma wrote: post #66

tejtm wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is the lack of fur allowing sweat cooling that prevents heat stroke that made us the apex predators; we jogged all mega fauna we met to extinction.

Other animals sweat though, like horses, hippos (no fur).

yes those are other not extinct species :)

Re: Which type of exercise is best for the brain? (2016)

#83

Post by TrevorJ » Fri, Apr 09, 2021, 4:11 PM UTC

PragmaticPulp wrote: post #2

Rodent studies aren't really great for measuring this because it's nearly impossible to control for the rodents' enjoyment of each exercise. We know that rodents enjoy running wheels because they use them voluntarily. It's not surprising that the exercise they enjoy is the one that seems to produce the most benefits. For humans: Doing any exercise is better than doing no exercise. Doing frequent exercise is better th…

>We know that rodents enjoy running wheels because they use them voluntarily.

I can think of a lot of behaviors that humans engage in voluntarily that we would not call 'enjoyable', so I am not certain we can state this categorically.

I totally agree with the rest of your statement though, and I would add that people tend to overlook variety as well. Enjoyment is so key, and we tend to enjoy things that are novel. Relative to the cost of a gym membership, it's pretty reasonable to pick up a new activity/active hobby every so often to add to the mix. A plastic kayak, some old skis, a tennis racket. If you are saving 50-100 bucks a month by not paying for a gym, allow yourself the luxury of some new (to you) equipment every couple of months and keep things fresh.