According to a breakthrough study published on April 4, 2025 in the journal Age and Aging, moderate exercise of only five minutes a day can also significantly improve brain function in older people.
This study shows how older people can allocate time throughout the day, especially the extent to which they engage in increased heart rate, have a significant impact on cognitive performance and see the greatest benefits in processing speed, working memory, and executive function.
“In this study, we explored how the different uses of time affect your brain. We found that higher levels of moderate to intense physical exercise (i.e., activities performed at higher intensity increase your heart rate and breathing, which is related to better cognitive performance,” said Dr. Maddison Mellow of the University of South Australia, one of the researchers in the study.
The survey, conducted in collaboration with the U.S.-based Adventhealth Institute, analyzed data from 585 adults aged 65-80 in the IGNITE trial. The researchers used the wrist-wearing device to measure how participants distributed 24 hours between sleep, sedentary behavior, physical exercise, and moderate to intense physical exercise.
What’s particularly powerful about the researchers’ findings of a bidirectional relationship between exercise and brain health: increasing physical exercise can improve cognitive function while reducing it can lead to cognitive decline.
“Specifically, ‘Huff-Puff’ physical exercise (such as cardio) improves processing speed (speed of the brain’s thoughts), executive functions (your planning, focus and multitasking) and working memory (your ability to store information in a short time),” explains Dr. Mellow.
Most encouraging for inactive older adults was the discovery that the greatest cognitive improvement occurred among participants who had no moderate activity to just a few minutes a day. This suggests that even a small portion of heart-warming exercise can produce significant brain benefits.
Co-researcher Dr. Audrey Collins highlights the actual meaning of these findings: “There are only 24 hours a day, so we make every day decision on how we spend our time.
These findings are consistent, regardless of how genetic factors carry the APOE4 gene (associated with higher Alzheimer’s risk), age, gender, or education level – suggesting the benefits of moderate to toxic physical exercise are widely used in different older adults.
Interestingly, the study found that not all cognitive functions are affected by physical exercise levels. At a significant improvement in the amount of exercises in processing speed, working memory, and executive function, the researchers saw no significant relationship between physical activity and episodic memory (remembering specific events) or visual-spatial function (navigation space).
As global aging accelerates – one in six people worldwide are expected to exceed 60 by 2030 – these findings provide practical guidance for maintaining cognitive health. Qualifying as a moderate to fierce physical exercise does not require expensive equipment or gym membership; brisk walking, aerobics, dancing and even energetic gardening can provide cognitive benefits.
As Dr. Collins noted: “We want knowledge to be power: to strengthen your physical exercise and to strengthen your brain health to stay healthy and older.”
The researchers warn that while these results are promising, they represent snapshots of time rather than changes observed over the years. Further longitudinal and experimental studies are needed to confirm that increasing physical activity directly leads to improved cognitive performance.
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