Neuroscience: Go swimming and your brain will thank you

Memorial Day weekend marks the unofficial start of summer, which means many entrepreneurs’ minds are turning towards beach getaways, lakeside camping trips, or lazy days at the pool with the kids.

These kinds of water-based activities are a great way to relax and stay cool. But according to fascinating research in neuroscience, swimming isn’t just a fun vacation activity. It actually has special brain benefits that other forms of exercise just can’t match. 

Not just another form of exercise 

It will surprise exactly no one that exercise is good for your brain. (If this is news to you, here are some studies for you to get up to speed.) Swimming is, obviously, a form of exercise, so therefore it’s good for your brain too. And that’s the end of it, right? 

Not exactly. Swimming is a perfectly excellent way to get the generalized benefits of more movement in your life if that’s your preferred way to work out. But psychologists and neuroscientists have uncovered a variety of unique benefits that swimming seems to provide. 

1. Swimming reduces stress. 

In fact, the benefits of swimming start before you even stick a toe in the water. Psychologists have discovered that even just looking at a beach seems to help us calm down and let go of stress. 

“Recent experiments show that after just two minutes of viewing water outdoors, blood pressure and heart rate drop. It’s more calming to look at a lake, pool, or stream than trees or grass. And wider bodies of water bring more tranquility,” explained star psychologist Adam Grant in a recent edition of his newsletter, Granted. 

Evolutionary psychologists suggest this may be because marine environments offered our hunter gatherer ancestors a rich source of food and a clear view of incoming predators. Whatever the reason though, the effect is clear. The human brain seems wired to love the beach. 

2. Swimming makes your brain work better.  

You might spend time by the pool or lake in order to forget the stresses of your working life. But while you’re leaving your stresses behind, you’re actually also boosting your memory in general. 

For one study, neuroscientists forced rats to do daily laps in a mini rat pool and then tested their memories. “After just seven days of swim training, researchers saw improvements in both short- and long-term memories, based on a reduction in the errors rats made each day,” reports neuroscientist Seena Mathew. 

And it’s not just rats. Studies on whether humans see the same cognitive benefits are ongoing but initial results are promising. One showed kids recalled a list of words much more accurately after swimming, compared to when they colored or did CrossFit-like exercise. Another study of older adults “concluded that swimmers had improved mental speed and attention compared with non-swimmers,” Mathew says. 

3. Swimming boosts mental health. 

If your holiday involves swimming outdoors under the sky, you can expect to see additional benefits. A large recent global survey of “wild swimmers”—i.e., those who take their dips in open air pools or natural environments—found that mixing swimming and nature delivered a particularly large boost to people’s well-being. 

Experiment after experiment shows nature just seems to make humans happier. But the researchers behind the study think something else is driving much of the increase in mental health experienced by wild swimmers. 

“Our study suggests that the key to this effect lies in experiencing feelings of autonomy and competence—freedom and mastery over the swimmer’s environment—two factors that are strongly linked to well-being,” explained Lewis Elliot, one of the researchers behind the findings. 

Swimming outdoors makes us feel free and confident. And freedom and confidence make us happier. 

Time to hit the beach or pool? 

All of which adds up to a simple message for entrepreneurs: If you’re daydreaming of the beach, pool, or lake this Memorial Day weekend, maybe you should follow your impulse to plan that trip. You already know swimming is a great way to unwind. New neuroscience reveals it is also apparently a form of exercise with special brain benefits. 

Spending some time in the water this summer is likely to make you calmer, smarter, happier, and more confident. So maybe it’s time to dig out that bathing suit.  

View the full article