Blog

Mar 7

Saving for the future can be a tricky business. Most everyone believes it is important and that when it comes to answering "how much should I save?" there is a general guidance that is tried and true: "anything is always better than nothing, but more is probably better". This doesn't make it any easier. At some level, saving requires delaying (or deferring outright) what we want now for the promise of something better in the future. This is not only a self-discipline or mental-toughness challenge, it's a physiological one. Our brains have been honed over generations to look for, detect, and avoid short-term threats, but they are not as well-tuned to long-term forecasting. Combine this with our natural curiosity and the ultra-modern-double-edged-sword of having whatever information we want, in whatever format we want it, at our fingertips instantly, and the risk gets real. While social media scrolling (whether for laughs or on the slippery slope of doom) has often been implicated as making things worse, the speed of artificial intelligence, which makes life easier and faster, may come with strings attached. There's a brain-chemistry and plasticity thing going on here, and it's important.

If we consider for example the landmark "marshmallow studies" from Stanford published decades ago, which asked preschoolers in the 70's to delay eating a treat (now) in order to double their reward (later) and then showed that those who waited did better on a variety of measures years in the future including achievement and stress management as well as health measures, having a saver's brain could be powerful. If we compare those ideas to the results from studies like this one from 2023, which showed a negative impact on brain activity and development trajectory in American 12 year-olds who habitually checked social media platforms as compared to peers who didn't (including more activation in stress-centers of the brain in those who "checked"), there could definitely be a risk of trading away our future for the bliss of the now. While some more recent attempts to replicate the marshmallow studies have shown a less powerful effect, animal studies that required delay to increase rewards have shown a definite brain chemistry (dopamine specifically) change in those who "practiced" waiting. The most important question for our future selves and possibly our children might then be, "How do we start building the structures that lead to a saver's brain?".

One powerful answer might be - the same way we build most healthy structures - MOVE, FUEL, RECOVER. For example, this 2022 study showed a significant link between physical activity and fruit and veggie consumption and life satisfaction (happiness), using delayed gratification measures to show the contribution that doing so for a better tomorrow made. This 2024 study, which showed a powerful connection between sleep health and difficulty delaying (impulsivity), adds the third leg of the stool. But where should we start? A brand-new preliminary study out last month, which will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology in April, suggests the best first step might be, well, more steps.

When the research team looked at the data from more than 70,000 individuals who wore activity trackers they found something simple and powerful - those who moved more and sat less, even enough to burn only a few extra calories per day, were as much as 40% more likely to have healthier brains and better sleep than those who didn't. How much is a few extra? Well, as stated in the press release "The people who did not develop any of the diseases had an average daily moderate to vigorous physical activity energy expenditure of 1.22 kilojoules per kilogram, compared to 0.85 for the people who developed dementia, 0.95 for those who developed sleep disorders, 1.02 for stroke, 1.08 for depression and 1.10 for anxiety.". To put this in terms most of us understand, 1.22 kilojoules is about .3 calories, so for a 200 lb (90 Kg) body, that's expending enough energy to burn about 27 calories per day...which can be done in 2-3 minutes of cycling or 7-8 minutes of brisk walking.

If health is an asset, the time to start banking minutes of MOVE is now. It should be hard enough to break a sweat, but doesn't have to feel like torture. Even a few minutes invested now can produce meaningful savings in the future.

Have a great weekend,

Mike E.