The Neurological Effects of Cycling

Some people call cycling the new 21-century fever. If we look back at human evolution, the roots of cycling can be found two million years ago, when our ancestors had to engage in intense physical activities seeking fat proteins to survive. The environment, as you must understand back then, was inhospitable and, for that reason, occurred a phenomenon called biology adaptation, which was rewarding seeking combined with mental focus and aerobic exercise. 

Nowadays, and entering the traditional medical field, we continue to focus on treatment rather than prevention when prevention could reduce the number of degenerative brain diseases, such as Parkison and Alzheimer’s. 

But how can aerobic exercise and cycling prevent those brain diseases? The answer is simple. Every time we do aerobic exercise, we increase our level of blood flow to the entire body, including the brain. Also, we should understand and accept that to age properly look after the levels of hormones is imperative. Cycling, for example, can enhance the production of neurons but also stimulate the production of dopamine, serotonin, and ignite positively hippocampus structures, which plays an important role in memory and spatial navigation. 

Cycling is a good sport for women (I am a cyclist), and even children diagnosed with ADHD can benefit from it. I want to call your attention to the fact that with menopause, the levels of estrogen and progesterone (principal sex hormones in women) will drop. And while this is happening, the aging process, women might experience memory loss or other forms of mental distress (estrogen more than a sex hormone is also a neuroprotector). The reality is sex hormones have been implicated in neurite outgrowth, synaptogenesis, dendritic branching, myelination, and other important mechanisms of neural plasticity.

To conclude, cycling or another form of aerobic exercise combined with bioidentical hormonal modulation (if needed) and nutrition education can enhance not only your well being and longevity but also reduce the impact of aging and free radicals on your body. 

Anti-aging medicine is accessible to everyone, not just to Hollywood stars or people with money. The principal value of this scientific field is to put the individual in the center of his/her own life, working together with specialists and changing what needs to be changed as a way to create better ways of living and well-being. Aging doesn’t have to be the end of the line, and society has to wake up and accept that there is no plausible reason to remain in the misinformation age.

Now, I invite you to listen carefully to the neuroscientist Lisa Mosconi Ted Talk presentation, where she talks about how menopause affects women’s brains.

Wishing you a great weekend!

Alexandra