Walking may boost your creative thinking

Are you lacking creative ideas lately? Here’s a good tip that can help you think more creatively: WALK. A new study from Stanford University performed on 176 college-aged adults had them take a test to evaluate their ability to generate ideas by thinking of multiple possible solutions (divergent thinking creativity). The researchers had the participants in the study take the test while walking or sitting under various conditions. The subjects either walked outdoors or indoors or were pushed in a wheelchair for between five and 16 minutes. The results of the study showed that the majority of the participants scored an average of 60 percent higher on the test when they were walking rather than sitting. Researchers said that creative thinking seemed to be boosted while walking either outdoors or indoors and also that creative thinking levels remained elevated for a period of time after a walk. This experiment found that walking outside resulted in 100% of participants generating at least one high-quality complex analogy, compared with only 50% when sitting indoors. Researchers said that further studies are required to explain the beneficial effect of walking on creativity. One thing is sure: incorporating physical activity into our lives is not only beneficial for our hearts but our brains as well. ...

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