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Gretchen Reynolds, a health and fitness writer, penned a Well column in The New York Times outlining the effects of exercise on brain health. Reynolds summarizes the recent body of work from 2015, tying physical activity to strong mental capacity over time.

Research that found healthy older women who committed to light resistance training twice a week for one year “showed fewer and smaller lesions in their brain’s white matter afterward than women of the same age who had completed a stretching and balance-training program or gone to the gym only once a week.”

Japanese scientists also discovered that brains of physically fit older men were almost as efficient as their younger counterparts. Another study indicates that “physical activity of any type and in almost any amount seemed to keep people physiologically young.”

These findings contribute to science that also links exercise to increased job performance. Research referenced by Harvard Business Review came to the following conclusion:

“On days when employees visited the gym, their experience at work changed. They reported managing their time more effectively, being more productive, and having smoother interactions with their colleagues. Just as important: They went home feeling more satisfied at the end of the day.”

Exercise is a keystone habit that increases brain function and supports high performance at work. As Reynolds states, any amount of exercise will probably contribute to someone’s well-being. Based on her findings, she recommends based that people commit to an hour a day of moderate exercise or shorter durations of higher intensity workouts.