Things that makes you a better creative! Taking care of your body is as important as taking care of you soul, as a creative. Because, when we are exercising lots of great things happens inside our body and brain, besides losing weight and looking healthier. 

If you haven’t read my previous post about how training and working out affects your brain and body as a creative, you can read them here and here. 

The Dopamine effects on a creative person

When you are running, working out or some other physical activity good things start to happen in your body. The substance that causes you to feel exited, happy, having the urge to have sex and so on is called Dopamine. The feel-good-feeling you get out of having sex, eating food (and exercising) is thanks to Dopamine. 

Yes, that is all good, but how can my creativity benefit from feeling good when I’m eating a nice meal or running? As said, exercise releases dopamine in your body and dopamine has also been connected to curiosity and the will to discover and learn new things. Studies has also shown (according to Anders Hansen book, Hjärnstark) that if you have been exercising before starting a creative task, you can perform up to 60% better creative wise, than if you haven’t exercised before. What seemed to have the biggest impact on exercising was the ability to brainstorming and generate new ideas. Things that makes you a better creative!

So, before you need to be creative, like coming up with a new design concept, an advertising campaign or need to get that striking headline on your article, make sure you exercise for at least 40 minutes prior to starting your task. You will benefit from a creative boost in your brain. But don’t deplete tour energy completely, this will have the opposite effect.

What also was interesting is that the classic move, changing location, wasn’t that effective. The important thing was that you are going for a walk or a jog (to a new location?) and get your pulse up, that mattered.

Do you remember the last time you exercised? 

If not, it’s time to go for a jog! When we are physical active we release dopamine (as stated above) and we get blood flowing to our brain and the frontal lobe. This causes our brain to create new braincells and actually add mass! One of the areas in your brain that adds mass, if you are exercising on a regular basis, is the Hippocampus. The Hippocampus is the part of your brain that is responsible for your memory.

Anders Hansen claims, with scientific research behind him, that there is nothing else that is so important for our memory as exercise. As we are growing older our brain is shrinking and so is the Hippocampus. But, if you are exercising on a regular basis you can prevent the aging and actually add mass to the brain (and Hippocampus).

Yes, again, that is all good, but how can my creativity benefit from having a better memory? Well, good memory is always a good thing to have. It prevents us from making mistakes in our work and work life due to forgetting details, big or small, and other important tasks that needs to be done as a small business owner. It can be everything from accounting, reporting to the IRS or sending that e-mail. It also boosts your sense of direction when in new places.

Some extra freebies

• Some other perks that comes from exercising on a regular basis is that we will become less controlled by your emotions and handle stress better. 

• Regular exercise prevents against depression due to you get more resilience against stress which is the most common cause of depression.

•  Too much alcohol, stress, sleep deprivation and a diet of too much saturated fats causes less new brain cells to form.

All information in this post is from the book Hjärnstark by Anders Hansen. If you think this is interesting and want to know more (in Swedish) how your brain benefit from exercising I can’t recommend enough to buy his book!

Do you find this post useful? Let me know by leaving a comment below or reach out on my Facebook page or Instagram or share it to a friend!