Practicing physical exercise improves academic performance
The years of university are demanding, so many students feel great pressure to get good grades s, sometimes leaving them exhausted. The important exams can cause anxiety and emotional instability, because when they approach, it is usual to lock themselves in their rooms (or in libraries) for weeks, being able to adopt harmful habits such as: eating badly, not practicing exercise, etc.
Adopting this attitude may not be the best. Several studies, such as the one presented by the American College of Sports Medicine, have shown that Physical exercise helps relieve anxiety and leads to better grades .
The psychological benefits of practicing exercise
For several decades, experts recommend us to practice physical exercise for its many benefits both physically and mentally. Regarding the latter, the regular practice of physical or sports activities can help us achieve greater well-being , but also to improve our cognitive functions, regardless of age or physical condition.
The psychiatrist John Ratey, professor at the Harvard Medical School and author of the book The New and Revolutionary Science of Exercise and the Brain, explains: "Performing physical exercise regularly is good to improve the perception we have of ourselves, our mood, memory or learning." Therefore, exercising regularly helps us obtain a higher academic performance, since, in addition to producing chemicals for happiness or improving our self-esteem, it provides other benefits that may favor a better outcome in academics: it reduces stress, improves memory and learning, increases brain capacity and improves productivity.
To know the results of different studies that explain the psychological benefits of the practice of regular physical activity, I invite you to also visit my article:
"The 10 psychological benefits of practicing physical exercise"Better notes for those who practice exercise
That practicing physical exercise improves academic performance is not a new idea. Therefore, researchers from Saginaw Valley State University (United States) decided to test this theory. After analyzing the exercise habits of 266 students, the researchers concluded that those individuals who exercised vigorously had higher scores in the GPA scale than those who did not.
The GPA scale is a grade point average that ranges from 0.0 to 4.0, and is used by many academic institutions. The results of this research showed a higher average of 0.4 points for those who exercise regularly. Knowing this, you may want to schedule a session of gym, yoga or running as part of your study hours, if only to disconnect.
Improvements in the academic performance of children and adolescents have also been documented
Improvements in academic achievement thanks to physical exercise not only affect university students, but also children and adolescents also see their grades improved thanks to the practice of physical activity .
A study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine affirms that those boys and girls who are more active perform better in school. For this study, a group of researchers from the United Kingdom, Scotland and the United States measured the physical activity level of 5,000 boys and girls of 11 years. Their scores in math, English and science were evaluated when they were 11, 13 and 16 years old.
After analyzing the results of the study, the researchers concluded that children who were physically more active at age 11 obtained better results in all three disciplines. Further, 17 minutes of exercise per day are enough to improve academic performance in boys . In the case of girls, 12 minutes a day is enough.
Studies on school performance in children
Another study, in this case carried out by a group of researchers from the Vrije University (Holland), relates the best cognitive performance of children with the level of physical activity of these .
But more studies corroborate the assertion that physical activity influences children's school performance. According to the University of North Texas, a healthy heart and lungs have a beneficial impact on the level of reading and the level of mathematics of children. Which could indicate that cardiovascular exercise improves both school competitions. Therefore, the director of the study, Trent A.Petrie recommends that schools "review their physical education policies, since including more hours per week of this subject could have a beneficial effect on the performance of their students."
On the other hand, an investigation by the Autonomous University of Madrid, led by Irene Esteban-Cornejo, analyzed data on 2,038 Spanish children from 6 to 8 years of age. The results showed that Cardiorespiratory fitness and motor ability correlated positively with academic performance , both independently and in combination.
