TL;DR
Ten minutes of slow running is enough to lift mood and sharpen focus, and the more your head bobs, the better you feel.
Research on how exercise helps the brain has piled up. The real question is not whether it works but how little you can get away with.
The answer turns out to be very little. Neuroscientists at the University of Tsukuba in Japan took 24 healthy adults, strapped on a device that measures blood flow in the brain and an accelerometer to track head movement, and had them 'slow run' at 3 to 6 kilometres an hour, which is really a brisk walk.
Ten minutes, and the scores move
Focus was measured with the Stroop test: the word 'red' flashes on screen but may be printed in blue, and you have to name the colour of the ink. After just ten minutes, participants answered faster, felt better, and showed more activity in the left prefrontal area.
The oddest result was in the accelerometer data. The more a runner's head bobbed, the more their mood improved. Earlier cycling studies found light exercise barely touches mood, so running appears to be a different experience altogether.
Good news for anyone who cannot face high-intensity training. Bad news for anyone who simply does not want to move.
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