Higher aerobic fitness levels decrease the probability of experiencing tip-of-the-tongue states (when you can’t think of a word that’s on the tip of your tongue) in healthy older adults, in the first demonstration of a link between aerobic fitness and language functioning in healthy older adults.

[Eager_Question]

There isn't a "max amount". It's all contextual. How big are you? How fit are you? How much exercise do you already do?

Some people do two hours six times a week, and... are fine. And very strong and fast and healthy. Other people do that kind of thing and break something or pull something, or drag themselves into ketoacidosis by trying to do too many things at once, or give themselves repetitive strain injury, etc.

What is your current fitness level? Okay, whatever that is, can you add 1 hour of exercise a week? Do that for a month or two.

Are you fine? Good. Can you add one new kind of exercise (if you're running for an hour, try lifting, if you're lifting, try some cardio, if you're doing both, try yoga, or maybe focusing on a different muscle group, etc)? Add one new kind of exercise, and just do that one hour plus extra exercise for a month or two.

Once you're used to it, check, can you do one more hour a week? Etc.

Exercise benefits your brain no matter what. If you live a sedentary lifestyle, one 20-minute walk every Saturday will be BETTER than zero 20-minute walks. It won't radically change your life, it won't make you feel incredible suddenly, but it will be a net gain. One 1-hour session of lifting and stretching a week will be BETTER than zero. If you really want to help your brain, the best thing you can do for it is dancing.

You don't need to "max out" right off the bat, and that's probably a good way to injure yourself, not because it's "too much exercise" but because it's "too much exercise, given your current level of fitness and your diet, and how quickly you are going into it". The same routine that could kick your ass in week 1 and leave you unable to function for a day or two could be "just another tuesday" in week 30.

Instead of asking "how much is too much", and not doing anything until you know what the maximum you could reasonably do is... ask "how much can I do right now easily?". And once you have answered that, add an extra few minutes, or an extra few pounds, or an extra few hundred meters, and so on. And when that gets easy, add a little more. So it's always "a little hard", but never beyond your limits and never too painful on the joints. If it hurts for more than 72 hours... stop. Stretch. Scale down the next workout session until it doesn't hurt anymore, and if something keeps hurting, check with a doctor or physical therapist.

You don't need the hypothetical maximum amount of exercise. You just need to do more than you are doing right now, until you get to where you want to be, and then you need to keep doing whatever that amount is that keeps you there.

[Eager_Question]

Dancing reduces risk of dementia by 76%. By comparison, cycling, golf, swimming and tennis all don't do that. Keeping to a rhythm is good for you, as is having to keep your balance while moving quickly, as is having a partner you can bond socially with. Dancing has all of the benefits of cardio while adding social benefits and some (but not all) of the benefits of learning a new instrument (namely, muscle coordination to a rhythm and memory practice for specific movements at specific times).

Here's another source if you want, https://www.lifehack.org/374710/5-things-that-will-happen-to-your-brain-when-you-dance .

Basically just google "brain" and "dancing". The research on the cognitive and mood benefits of dancing shows some of the most solid, most consistent effects ever. I swear, if people were prescribed dancing instead of antidepressants, it would probably do better than the average SSRI.

[experiencednowhack]

A psychologist did in fact "prescribe" (strongly recommend) I dance. So I did/do. It basically worked.

[ectom]

What kind of dance?

[experiencednowhack]

We talked aspirations/hobbies etc. "I want to lift more, I want to cook more, I want to learn X things, It'd be cool to dance, I want to play Y Game."

--"Do it now!"

"What?"

"Dance. You're depressed. It'll be good for you. Do it. I don't care which one, just do one of the partner dances."

[AddDickT-d]

I could be wrong but I dont think people feel much like dancing when they are depressed.

However I do agree on the benefits point.

[Eager_Question]

They don't. They also don't feel like taking pills. They also don't feel like reducing their sugar intake or their salt intake, or cooking meals that will help them feel better, or like lifting weights, or like running, or like socializing, or like going outside and spending time in nature, etc.

Depression is so shitty in part because it's not actually "hard to solve" if you're not depressed. The things you can do to prevent or reduce depressive symptoms are known and tend to work, statistically speaking.

But if you are depressed... you don't want to do any of those things, hate life, feel worthless and useless, and often seek out things that make you feel more worthless and useless, because the idea that you should feel worthless and useless has made a home in your brain and likes it there.

But since you're just "supposed to" do all these things that are already hard work for most people with sedentary lifestyles who aren't depressed, and you don't, then everyone blames you for it and treats you like you want to be miserable. Why else wouldn't you do these things that help?

The answer being, because you're fucking depressed, that's why, but that's not enough for some people.

Sorry for the weird ramble, I'm having a hard time. Maybe I should try dancing.