The brain is your body’s command center—so keeping it in working order is really a nonnegotiable. While doctors have repeatedly recommended factors like eating well and trying to do new activities to support brain health, research over the last few years has found two habits worth prioritizing in your daily life: walking and spending time with loved ones.
Every walk you take is a step toward a sharper mind in more ways than one. A growing body of research shows that regular walking can boost memory, sharpen focus, and even slow cognitive decline—including reducing risk of developing dementia. Separate research has shown that walking can boost creativity, too. People who were physically active—including with walking—at some point within the last 3.5 hours showed processing speeds equivalent to someone four years younger while playing brain games, a recent study published in the Annals of Behavioral Medicine found.
The second game changer for your thinker: socialization. Your brain thrives on connection, and research backs this up. A separate body of research shows that regular social connection can shore up memory, problem-solving, and also reduce dementia risk. One study, published in The Lancet Healthy Longevity, found that people who interacted with family and friends on a weekly or monthly basis had a slower rate of memory decline than those who socialized less.
Meet the experts: Jonathan Howard, MD, is a neurologist at NYC Health and Hospitals/Bellevue. Scott Kaiser, MD, is the director of geriatric cognitive health for the Pacific Neuroscience Institute at Providence Saint John’s Health Center. Amit Sachdev, MD, is medical director in the Department of Neurology at Michigan State University.
With that, it’s worth exploring whether doing both at once would be a double whammy for brain health. While this powerhouse combo hasn’t technically been studied formally just yet, doctors say there might be something to this health hack. Let’s investigate.
Why Walking With A Loved One Is A Smart Combo For Brain Health
There are a few mechanisms at play. One is the fact that walking is simply a great form of exercise. “Anything that improves overall cardiovascular health will help reduce dementia risk,” says Jonathan Howard, MD, a neurologist at NYC Health and Hospitals/Bellevue. Your brain needs healthy blood vessels to function properly, get nutrients, and remove toxins, and there’s an established link between heart disease and dementia.
Getting your steps in can help support overall health—and that will do your brain a solid too, says Amit Sachdev, MD, medical director in the Department of Neurology at Michigan State University. “Overall health is important for brain health,” he notes.
Walking directly boosts brain health, too. It triggers the expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a protein that supports nerve cell growth and survival in the brain and spinal cord. BDNF is involved in crucial tasks like memory and learning, says Scott Kaiser, MD, director of geriatric cognitive health for the Pacific Neuroscience Institute at Providence Saint John’s Health Center. “That helps to create a well-functioning brain network,” he says.
Walking also can help reduce your overall stress levels. Stress can negatively impact your brain on a cellular level when it goes unchecked, and ramping up your step count can help counteract this, says Dr. Kaiser.
Time with loved ones is an anti-stressor, too, and can support good heart health which, again, ultimately boosts brain health, Dr. Kaiser says. There may even be an indirect link here: “If you’re feeling well connected, you may be more likely to make better choices for your health—and brain health—around drinking, eating, and substance abuse,” Dr. Kaiser says.
To be clear, there are no available studies that specifically found walking with a loved one can prevent dementia. (However, a 28-week group-walking program helped people with dementia maintain a steady quality of life over the testing period, and the intervention was well-liked by both participants and their caregivers.) There are studies to support the benefits of group exercise, particularly outdoor group exercise, especially when it comes to lowering stress levels.
“We know that exercising is good and that socializing in groups is beneficial,” Dr. Kaiser says. “Theoretically, the benefits for brain health could be greater when you do them together.”
How Often To Walk With Your Loved Ones For Optimal Brain Health
It’s hard to put a specific number on this, given that research hasn’t extended into this territory just yet. If you want to set a lofty goal, Dr. Howard suggests trying to walk for 30 minutes at a time on most days of the week.
Since it can be tricky to consistently block out that time with family and friends, Dr. Kaiser just recommends doing what you can. “Most evidence suggests that inactivity is bad and any amount of activity is a good amount,” he says. “But, in general, more is better.”
If going for longer walks with loved ones is hard to pull off, Dr. Kaiser recommends trying to squeeze in “exercise snacks,” like walking out of the office at the end of the night with your work buddy or taking a lap around the neighborhood with your mom during a visit instead of catching up on the couch. You can also try taking up your own walking habit and socializing by chatting on the phone with loved ones.
By the way, you can take up this new habit any time. “I can’t think of any age group that won’t benefit from this,” Dr. Kaiser says.
There’s a lot that goes into supporting good brain health, but walking with a loved one checks off a lot of boxes and gets in some quality social time, too. “It makes sense to kill two birds with one stone,” Dr. Howard says.
Korin Miller is a freelance writer specializing in general wellness, sexual health and relationships, and lifestyle trends, with work appearing in Men’s Health, Women’s Health, Self, Glamour, and more. She has a master’s degree from American University, lives by the beach, and hopes to own a teacup pig and taco truck one day.