If you've been diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment, you can't afford to stay sedentary. You've got to find a form of physical activity that you enjoy. But that doesn't mean forcing yourself to go to the gym. Walk instead. Walking is not only pleasant, but evidence shows it's one of the best defenses against cognitive decline.

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Here is a transcript of the video:

Thanks for joining me today. We are on a stroll in the Leonard J. Buck Garden in New Jersey. It's a park near my house and one of my very favorite places to walk, and if I can pan out here, I can show you why.

I brought you here today because I thought it was an ideal location to talk about the importance of walking as your first and arguably one of your very best defenses against cognitive decline.

Hi, my name is Tony Dearing and I write an award-winning column on brain health for NJ.com and the Star-Ledger and I operate GoCogno.com, a website dedicated to the needs and concerns of people with mild cognitive impairment.

So pretty much every neurologist I've ever talked to has told me that the first priority in brain health is exercise. Now I realize I'm not breaking any news here. You know that exercise is important. Everybody knows that.

Except that there's one really big problem here. Most people hate exercise and simply refuse to do it. If the idea of going to the gym and working out is sheer drudgery to you, that's OK. Don't do it. Now that being said, for the sake of your brain and especially if you've been diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment, you cannot afford to remain sedentary. You have got to find a way to be physically active that you enjoy.

For many people, walking can fit that bill. Not only is it a pleasant activity, but there's actually substantial evidence that it is one of the very best ways to defend against memory loss.

The SharpBrains Guide to Brain Fitness says: “As little three hours a week of brisk walking has been shown to halt, and even reverse, the brain atrophy that starts in a person's 40s, especially in the regions responsible for memory and higher cognition.”

If you want to take up that type of a walking program, good for you. Let me just offer you a few tips to help you along the way.

First, never begin an exercise program without consulting with your doctor first to make sure you're healthy enough.

Second, it's really important to understand that in order to get the cognitive benefit of walking, you need to do it at a moderate pace, in other words, brisk walking.

Here's a couple of super simple tips on how to make sure you're getting moderate exercise. Any activity that while you're doing it, you can talk but not sing, is moderate physical activity. And in walking, there's an even easier definition. Moderate walking is defined as a hundred steps a minute.

Now tip number three, I realized that step counters are all the rage now, but don't get caught up in this 10,000-step thing. There's actually no science, no evidence, no foundation that ties 10,000 steps to a particular health benefit. Walk the amount that makes sense to you, and if you can increase that over time, that's good. That's what you're shooting for.

Now step number four, there is a minimum amount of physical activity or walking that you want to get. The recommended amount is at least 150 minutes a week.

Tip number five, if possible, buddy up. Finding an exercise partner, a walking companion, to go with you will increase the likelihood that you'll commit to stick with and have some accountability in a walking program.

Now tip number 6, if at all possible when you can, walk outdoors — walk in a setting like this. There is actually a proven medicinal benefit to body and mind by being outdoors.

So thank you for joining me today, and as always, be kind to your mind.


This site is educational, and is not intended as medical advice. It offers information about lifestyle choices that have been proven to help protect cognition. Always consult your doctor before making changes that can impact your health.

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