Why Walking Might Be Messing With Your Memory (If You’re Getting Older

 # Why Walking Might Be Messing With Your Memory (If You’re Getting Older)

You know that feeling when you’re trying to walk and talk at the same time, and suddenly you lose your train of thought? Or when your aging parent stops walking to answer a question? There’s actually some fascinating science behind this, and it has to do with how our brains manage walking as we get older.

## Walking Isn’t Always Automatic

When we’re young and healthy, walking is practically automatic. Our brain handles it in the background, kind of like how your computer runs updates while you’re typing an email. You don’t have to think about it—you just walk.

But as we age, especially if balance or mobility becomes an issue, walking can shift from autopilot to manual control. Instead of the more primitive, automatic parts of our brain handling the job, our prefrontal cortex—the brain’s command center located right behind your forehead—has to step in and take over.

## The Problem: Your Brain Can’t Multitask as Well as You Think

Here’s where things get tricky. That prefrontal cortex that’s now babysitting your walking? It’s also responsible for memory, attention, problem-solving, and pretty much everything that requires focused thinking. It’s like the CEO of your brain, and it only has so much bandwidth.

When your prefrontal cortex gets busy managing each step you take, there’s less mental energy left over for everything else—including forming and retrieving memories.

## What This Means in Real Life

This isn’t just theoretical. It shows up in everyday situations:

**Forgetting conversations during walks**: If your brain is working hard to keep you balanced and moving safely, you might not fully absorb what your walking partner is saying. The information simply doesn’t get encoded into memory as well.

**Losing your place in thought**: Ever stop mid-stride because you forgot what you were about to say? Your brain literally paused the walking to free up resources for memory retrieval.

**Difficulty with directions**: Trying to remember turn-by-turn directions while walking can be especially challenging when your brain is already maxed out on the walking itself.

## The “Walking While Talking” Test

Doctors and researchers have actually turned this into a diagnostic tool. They’ll ask older adults to walk while counting backwards or reciting a list, and those who struggle with this dual task often have underlying cognitive issues or higher fall risk. It’s a window into how much mental effort walking requires for that person.

## The Chicken and the Egg

Interestingly, this relationship goes both ways. Declining memory and cognitive function can make walking harder to control, which then makes memory tasks even more difficult while walking. It’s a feedback loop that researchers are still working to fully understand.

## What Can You Do?

The good news is that staying physically active, practicing balance exercises, and keeping mentally engaged can all help maintain both walking ability and memory function. The more automatic you can keep your walking, the more brain power you’ll have left over for everything else that matters.

So next time you see an older person stop walking to finish their sentence, they’re not being dramatic—they’re just redistributing their brain’s resources. And honestly? That’s pretty smart.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​