semi O/T: Aerobic activity increases cognitive brain function...

[sword_]

But what about anaerobic activity?

I was going to ask this in another section but I was thinking I'd get more people viewing this post and more people with more knowledge in this area.

Alright, a trend that I have seen with many of these studies about regular exercise and increased cognitive brain function and/or neurogenesis is done only with aerobic activities such as jogging, swimming, etc. What I never see, and correct me if I'm wrong, is studies like these using anaerobic activities such as weight training in them. I know any form of physical activity can increase certain neurotransmitters in the brain (seratonin in some levels comes to mind) BUT what about the increase in memory and neurogenesis associated w/ aerobic activity?! Any ideas?

[sword_]

bump

[DRP7]

this not really answers your question, but I would throw this little snippet into the discussion, just for some inspiration:

Respir Physiol Neurobiol. 2007 May 14;156(2):196-202. Epub 2006 Aug
Cerebral oxygenation declines at exercise intensities above the respiratory compensation threshold.
Bhambhani Y, Malik R, Mookerjee S.

Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada. yagesh.bhambhani@ualberta.ca

During incremental exercise PaCO2 and PETCO2 begin to decline at the respiratory compensation threshold (RCT-GEX). Since PaCO2 alters cerebral blood flow it was hypothesized that there would be a systematic decline in cerebral oxygenation (Cox) measured by near infrared spectroscopy above the RCT (RCT-NIRS). Cardiorespiratory and NIRS responses were simultaneously monitored from the left frontal lobe during incremental exercise in 17 men. All subjects showed a decline in Cox above the RCT-GEX with a 20-40 s delay. Significant differences (P<0.01) were observed between the RCT-GEX and RCT-NIRS for time (9.83 versus 10.39 min), power (198 versus 212 W) and oxygen uptake (2.31 versus 2.43 L min-1). Intra-class correlations for power and absolute VO2 were 0.97 and 0.98, respectively. Bland-Altman analysis revealed no outliers for any of the variables. The results suggested that the decrease in Cox observed above the RCT was most likely due to a reduction in cerebral blood flow mediated by a decline in PaCO2. This decline in Cox could reduce neuronal activation thereby limiting maximal exercise capacity in healthy subjects.

PMID: 17045853 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

[Trans_Isomer]

I believe in my biomechanics class we were shown a study showing aerobic + anaerobic training helped people with declining neuronal / extremity control the most over either alone.

[sword_]

I'd really like to find a case study that uses anaerobic activity in an isolated incident rather than aerobic+anaerobic together.

[Trans_Isomer]

I'd really like to find a case study that uses anaerobic activity in an isolated incident rather than aerobic+anaerobic together.

Well if I remember this thread when I go home later today ill try to find the study tucked in my notes and post it, I think the groupes were aerobic, anaerobic, aerobic + anaerbic.

[GeneGnomeX]

Oh boy lots of genes to consider here. From what i've covered I would assume a phenotype influenced by aerobic activity would probably be preferable over someone who does only anaerobic activity, but like anything a balance is probably optimal - we do have different fiber types for a reason. Things like PGC-1alpha/PPAR/SIRT/IRS1 & 2/leptin, for example, are probably good starting points to follow the connections to cerebral glucose metabolism etc (IRS2 is especially important there in regulation of brain insulin). But I have had trouble finding anything on resistance training/muscle mass and PPAR expressions (& relating gene expressions) to compare to endurance exercise.

[DRP7]

IMO, the distinction between aerobic and anaerobic is too coarse.

Example: 2 reps with a 200 lbs barbell (A) and extensive sprint training (B). Both are anaerobic. I believe that A and B may have very different effects on overall metabolism.

So, I propose that involved muscle groups as well as the duration of (anaerobic) training may be critical factors.

[sword_]

By anaerobic I specifically mean weight training since I'm sure most of us do this as our primary form of exercise over aerobic activity and anaerobic activities such as sprinting.

[DRP7]

By anaerobic I specifically mean weight training since I'm sure most of us do this as our primary form of exercise over aerobic activity and anaerobic activities such as sprinting.

I know. But it still makes a difference whether you ahve moved only a small muscle (e.g. biceps curls, a few reps) or did a whole-body workout.

the first will only activate the appropriate brain regions (motor cortex etc) while the other will do the same + cause gross metabolic effects that possibly could impact brain function as well.

[sword_]

bump