Consolidating skills- sleep, exercise, oxygen and more

Erin Malone

7 Consolidating skills- sleep, exercise, oxygen and more

Sleep

Repeated studies have shown that skills are improved after sleep, at least for young adults. Naps are good; true sleep is better. However, the skill consolidated is the last skill practiced and probably in the manner practiced at the end (good, bad or indifferent). The benefit is minimal for learners over the age of 50.

M. Christova et al. Adult Gross Motor Learning and Sleep: Is There a Mutual Benefit? 2018 Neural Plasticity. Article ID 3076986

FH Rangtell et al. Learning performance is linked to procedural memory consolidation across both sleep and wakefulness. 2017 Nature/Scientific Reports | 7: 10234 | DOI:10.1038/s41598-017-09263-5

EN Spruit et al. The Effects of Spacing, Naps, and Fatigue on the Acquisition and Retention of Laparoscopic Skills. 2017 J Surg Educ 74(3):530-538.

SM Fogel. fMRI and Sleep Correlates of the Age-Related Impairment in Motor Memory Consolidation. 2014 Human Brain Mapping 35:3625–3645

Exercise

Exercise alters neurogenesis. Not only does limiting exercise impair brain function, exercise associated with skills learning improves both learning and consolidation. Exercise before learning increases blood flow to the brain, stimulates the production of BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor) and seems to stabilize new hippocampal cells. [This pre-learning exercise effect is influenced by genetic variations.] Most new hippocampal cells “self-destruct” within 2 weeks. Moderate aerobic exercise within 2 hours of learning stabilizes those cells, with greater effects associated with closer timing and more intense exercise. Ten-fifteen minute bouts of exercise seem sufficient. The effects of exercise on consolidation and retention seem to be strongest with more complex skill learning. And, unlike sleep consolidation, exercise has benefits in older adults as well. It may even be more essential as older brains may need more oxygen for learning.

R Adami et al. Reduction of Movement in Neurological Diseases: Effects on Neural Stem Cells Characteristics. Frontiers in Neuroscience 2018 Vol 12 Article 336

Tomporowski and Pendleton. Effects of the Timing of Acute Exercise and Movement Complexity on Young Adults’ Psychomotor Learning. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 2018, 40, 240-248

L Hubner et al. Acute Exercise as an Intervention to Trigger Motor Performance and EEG Beta Activity in Older Adults. Neural Plasticity, Volume 2018, Article ID 4756785

R Thomas et al. Acute Exercise and Motor Memory Consolidation: The Role of Exercise Timing. Neural Plasticity Volume 2016, Article ID 6205452

KMM Berghuis et al. Age-related changes in brain deactivation but not in activation after motor learning. NeuroImage 186 (2019) 358–368

Deep nostril breathing

Simple, paced deep breathing has been shown to enhance cognitive function. Yadav and Mutha showed that 30 minutes of deep breathing improved retention and consolidation of new motor memories. This may be related to improved cerebellar blood flow.

Yadav and Mutha. Deep Breathing Practice Facilitates Retention of Newly Learned Motor Skills. Nature Scientific Reports. 2016, Vol.6, pp.37069

Shimizu et al. Cerebellar Activation During Motor Sequence Learning Is Associated With Subsequent Transfer to New Sequences. Behavioral Neuroscience, 2016, Vol.130(6), pp.572-584