Running
Research shows that just two weeks of moderate-intensity running can improve our mood while increasing volume in the hippocampus - a brain structure often associated with affective functioning.
► Fink et al. (2021) A two-week running intervention reduces symptoms related to depression and increases hippocampal volume in young adults
In a current study "Running with heart and brain" (funded by the FWF) we want to get to the bottom of this question
Dancing
Dancing develops skills such as coordination, balance and posture. All of these skills help us to stay physically fit in everyday life. However, more and more studies are also showing that dancing can have a positive effect on our mood and well-being, and perhaps also on our cognitive functions.
In a current research project (funded by the FWF), we are getting to the bottom of the psychology of dancing. We are investigating how a dance intervention lasting several weeks affects our brain and our physical and mental well-being.
Slackline study
Have you ever tried a slackline?
Under expert guidance, we can actually learn to walk a slackline quickly, with a variety of effects on our brain. Slacklining requires balance and coordination and leads to significant changes in the brain after just over two weeks. Initial results of a study from our laboratory show that the alignment and extension of fiber bundles are changed, which according to relevant findings are associated with sensorimotor and spatial-visual functions.
Unicycle study
There is hardly any other sport that is as complex as unicycling in terms of visuomotor and coordination requirements. It is therefore not surprising that learning to ride a unicycle is accompanied by massive changes in the brain.
As a recent study from our department shows (► Weber et al. 2019, Learning Unicycling Evokes Manifold Changes in Gray and White Matter Networks Related to Motor and Cognitive Functions), these changes affect very different aspects of our brain. The volume of gray matter, the thickness of the cortex and properties of large white fiber bundles such as the corticospinal tract and the corpus callosum.