Strength for Success: Exercise for Energy and Focus

This post is the second in a series about some perhaps less obvious – but still vital – tools for success in graduate school. As a graduate student, you may feel like the most important part of you is your brain. But the truth is, we are whole people, not “brains on a stick” (Smith, 2016). What you do with the rest of your body, mind, and spirit is going to directly and deeply affect your academic success. In a previous post, I wrote about the importance of food for energy and focus. In this post, I’ll share some thoughts about the role of exercise in the academic life.

The Benefits of Exercise

Quite a bit of evidence exists that exercise is good for your focus, energy, and grades. One of my favorite books on the topic is Spark, by John J. Ratey. This book demonstrates that physical activity promotes academic achievement among K-12 students. It recommends that schools start every day with a P.E. class to get students moving, and it includes fascinating data from a high school in Illinois that instituted this practice and boosted student scores on international science and math tests.

I originally thought that in this next paragraph, I would explain some of the physiological reasons why exercise is good for the brain. After reading a couple of articles about it, I think I will just say that research indicates “positive effects of aerobic physical activity on cognition and brain function, at the molecular, cellular, systems and behavioural levels” (Hillman et al., 2008, p. 58). The effects have to do with things such as electrocortical functioning and grey and white matter, which I am not really qualified to explain. I suggest that if you want the scientific details, Hillman and co-authors can definitely provide those better than I can.

Exercise and Graduate School

A few recent studies have looked at exercise and academic performance in undergrad and grad students. Littleberry et al. (2023) investigated the feasibility of implementing physical activity breaks (PABs) into graduate classes. The goal was to increase student focus and reduce “sedentary behavior” (p. 2920). Similarly, Brown et al. (2024) implemented and tested a program to increase exercise among university students. They were motivated by research showing multiple benefits of regular exercise. One of those benefits is that it improves cognitive functions, including attention. In case you are wondering, they defined “regular,” as engaging in exercise for 10 minutes or longer at least three times a week. Littleberry and Co. and Brown and colleagues took it for granted, based on the available research, that exercise would promote academic achievement. Their studies were more about how to get students to do it.

Karakada et al. (2022), on the other hand, wanted to see how moderate exercise (30 minutes of brisk walking, 3-4 times a week), combined with awareness of emotional intelligence (EI), affected academic performance (measured by grades) in medical students. They determined that “the combined effect of EI awareness with induced moderate physical exercise . . . is ideal for improving academic grades” (p. 814). Maybe I’ll dive into EI in a future post – for now, let’s just say that it seems, from the discussion section of this study, that improving your cardiorespiratory fitness could also improve your grades.

Making it Work

So, I hope I have persuaded you that there is evidence that physical exercise might be an important tool in your productivity arsenal. For some practical advice on how grad students can use exercise to boost energy and focus, I turned to my friend Cari, who is a yoga instructor, certified life coach, and one of the fittest people I know. She suggested starting with something that people may not even think of as exercise: breathing.

Breathing for Focus

“Breathing is accessible to everyone,” Cari said. “It’s free, and more importantly, with only five minutes, you can make a difference.”

Cari teaches breathing workshops, where she shares a technique called box breathing. This technique is apparently used by Navy Seals to help them prepare mentally for a mission. She suggested that students do box breathing before a presentation or test, or before starting a reading or writing session.

“For box breathing, you pick the same number – typically, people do four,” Cari said. “Count to four on the inhale, hold for four, count to four on the exhale, hold for four.” She said this works to focus your mind because “you are controlling your breath. You have to count. It makes you ready to go into action.”

Start with this breathing technique for a minute or two, then work up to a three- to five-minute session whenever you are going to start a new task.

A Little Intensity

For a more active exercise, Cari suggested yoga. Yoga is good for energy and focus, she said, because “you are supposed to connect your breath to movement.” So, you get the benefits of controlled breathing combined with the benefits of poses that will build strength and flexibility.

Some people find yoga intimidating. If that is your case, Cari suggested walking, especially walking outside, as a way to renew your energy and improve your focus. And while you are walking, pay attention to your breathing. “Go out in nature and take a big breath,” she said.

Upping the Ante

More intense aerobic exercise has benefits as well. If I know I am going to have to sit and pay attention to something (which, let’s be honest, is most days), I always try to take a run first. The run makes my body tired, which helps me relax, and enables my mind maintain focus.

Additionally, in Spark, Ratey shared evidence that activities combining movement and decision-making – like rock climbing – tend to boost academic achievement because they explicitly link the mental to the physical.

But Don’t Overdo It

For all you overachievers out there, a word of caution: More exercise does not necessarily mean more benefits. Pushing your body beyond its limits will leave you exhausted and possibly injured – neither of which is going to help you with your studies. Consider your current fitness level, and choose exercise that leaves you relaxed and focused, but not drained. Then, build from there to increase your endurance, both for working out, and for working.

References

Brown, C. E. B., Richardson, K., Halil-Pizzirani, B., Hughes, S., Atkins, L., Perowne, R., Pitt, J., Yücel, M., & Segrave, R. A. (2024). Developing the PEAK mood, mind, and marks program to support university students’ mental and cognitive health through physical exercise: a qualitative study using the Behaviour Change Wheel. BMC Public Health, 24(1), 1959–20. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-024-19385-x

Hillman, C., Erickson, K. & Kramer, A. (2008). Be smart, exercise your heart: exercise effects on brain and cognition. Nat Rev Neurosci 9, 58–65. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn2298

Karkada, I. R., D’souza, U. J. A., bin Mustapha, Z. A., & Mohanraj, J. (2022). Academic performance improves with emotional intelligence awareness and physical exercise among medical students. Biomedical & Pharmacology Journal, 15(2), 803–817. https://doi.org/10.13005/bpj/2417

Littleberry, A., Amruthapuri, R., Taverno Ross, S. E., Hunter, I., & Documét, P. I. (2023). Feasibility of student-designed, peer-led classroom physical activity breaks in graduate school. Journal of American College Health, ahead-of-print(ahead-of-print), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2021.2007113

Ratey, J. J. (2013). Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain. Little, Brown.

Smith, J. K. A. (2016). You Are What You Love. Brazos Press.

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