A 20-minute bout of physical activity or a 90-minute nap can help preserve new memories after a prolonged period of wakefulness. Researchers from McGill University reached this conclusion, with their findings published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The experiment involved 54 healthy young adults. Volunteers stayed awake for 30 hours under professional supervision; afterwards, some engaged in 20 minutes of moderate-to-high-intensity cycling, others took a 90-minute nap, and a third group performed no additional activities.
Immediately following this, participants were shown a series of images. Three days later, they were asked to recall what they had seen: the exercise and nap groups performed approximately 22% better than those who had neither rested nor exercised.
Brain activity recordings revealed that sleep and exercise aided memory in different ways. According to the scientists, napping partially restored the brain’s ability to process and retain new information, whereas exercise enabled more efficient use of remaining mental resources.
The authors suggest that a brief workout could be beneficial during demanding shifts when there is no time or suitable environment for sleep. This approach has potential applications in medicine, transportation, emergency services, and other fields where personnel work while sleep-deprived.
However, the researchers emphasized that exercise is not a substitute for a full night’s sleep and does not provide all of its physical and mental benefits. Nevertheless, in situations of temporary sleep deprivation, a short workout can help the brain retain recently acquired information.
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