BETTER! Building bodies women can trust with Dr. Stephanie Estima Stop Overthinking Your Workout: Your Brain Just Needs You to Move with Dr. Tommy Wood
Mar 16, 2026
Tommy Wood, neuroscientist and author of The Stimulated Mind, studies brain health across the lifespan. He argues movement is nonnegotiable for aging brains. Short bursts, resistance work, and open-skill activities like dancing or racket sports each protect different brain systems. He also covers nutrition basics, strength targets, and how learning new skills and failing drive plasticity.
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Sixty Year Olds Completing Brutal 4x4 Intervals
- Tommy describes older adults in their 60s completing the demanding Norwegian 4x4 HIIT three times weekly for six months.
- He highlights surprise that such a rigorous protocol produced rapid hippocampal gains in that age group.
Use Acute Stress With Recovery To Lower Baseline Inflammation
- Treat acute exercise stressors as hormetic: do short, intense sessions then recover so baseline inflammation and stress tolerance decline over time.
- Avoid chronic stress/inflammation which impairs adaptation and raises long‑term brain risk.
Use Relative Strength As A Practical Brain Health Marker
- Use simple relative strength tests to gauge sufficiency: be in the top third for muscle/strength or aim to leg press ~2× bodyweight.
- If you can regularly lift once or twice weekly you'll likely maintain protective muscle mass for aging.
