How Plank Training Boosts Grit and BDNF for Chronic Pain Relief

Name: The Secrets and Science of Mental Toughness | Joe Risser MD, MPH | TEDxSanDiego
Uploaded: 2025-04-01T15:05:27+00:00
Duration: 8 min 44 s
Channel: TEDx Talks
Description: Summary and key takeaways on How Plank Training Boosts Grit and BDNF for Chronic Pain Relief, covering The Phenomenon of Grit George Hood set a world record by

TEDx Talks

Apr 01, 2025

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8 min video

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1 min read

YouTube video ID: rNxC16mlO60

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George Hood set a world record by holding a plank for 10 hours, 10 minutes and 10 seconds. The feat demonstrates that extreme endurance is largely mental; Hood described the effort as 90 % mental, using distractions and external energy to stay focused. This perspective reframes grit from simple willpower to a biologically grounded capacity.

The Science of BDNF

Brain‑derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) acts as fertilizer for the brain, promoting neuron growth, health and communication. BDNF underlies memory formation and mental resilience. Levels rise with sunshine, blueberries, antidepressants and, most powerfully, exercise that demands concentration. Focused movement triggers a stronger BDNF response than repetitive, low‑focus activity.

Clinical Applications and Research

At the University of California, San Diego, a clinical professor works with medically destitute patients suffering chronic pain and disability. A 2005 study in Hippocampus found that maze navigation—a task requiring mental focus—produced more BDNF than continuous swimming, an exhausting but less cognitively demanding exercise. Yoga, which blends physical effort with concentration, generates some of the highest measured BDNF levels.

A patient named Daniel, diagnosed with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, completed a nine‑hour plank. The prolonged, high‑focus exercise suggests that mental effort combined with physical strain can modulate pain through elevated BDNF. An August 2024 article in Experimental Neurobiology confirmed that physical exercise can double BDNF levels, reinforcing the link between focused activity and neurotrophic benefits.

Mechanisms Behind the Mental Effort Hypothesis

The mental effort hypothesis proposes that exercises requiring intense concentration—such as planks or yoga—stimulate BDNF more effectively than purely physical, repetitive movements. The mental fortitude needed for a sustained plank likely triggers biological pathways that increase BDNF, which in turn may help manage chronic pain and enhance overall resilience.

Takeaways

The longest recorded plank of 10 hours 10 minutes 10 seconds illustrates that extreme endurance relies heavily on mental focus rather than pure physical strength.
Brain‑derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) functions as fertilizer for neurons, supporting growth, communication, memory and resilience.
Sunlight, blueberries, antidepressants and especially exercise that demands concentration raise BDNF levels more than repetitive, low‑focus activity.
Clinical observations show that patients with chronic pain, such as a CRPS case who completed a nine‑hour plank, experience pain‑modulating benefits linked to heightened BDNF.
Research from 2005 and 2024 demonstrates that mentally demanding physical tasks double BDNF, suggesting a promising avenue for future chronic‑pain therapies.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does a plank that requires mental focus increase BDNF more than continuous swimming?

Mentally demanding exercises stimulate BDNF more because they engage brain circuits that coordinate focus and movement, triggering greater neurotrophic signaling than purely repetitive activity. The 2005 Hippocampus study showed maze navigation produced higher BDNF than continuous swimming, and the 2024 Neurobiology paper confirmed that focused physical effort can double BDNF levels.

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Helpful resources related to this video

If you want to practice or explore the concepts discussed in the video, these commonly used tools may help.

Non-Slip Exercise Yoga Mat Recommended

Provides a stable, comfortable surface for performing planks and yoga, which the speaker identifies as key exercises for mental focus and BDNF production.

Amazon →

Digital Interval Timer For Exercise

Helps track time during long-duration planks or focused exercise sessions, allowing the user to measure and improve their mental grit.

Amazon →

Book On Neuroplasticity And Brain Health

Provides deeper scientific context on how physical and mental habits influence brain structure and resilience, complementing the speaker's research on BDNF.

Amazon →

High Quality Yoga Blocks Set

Supports proper alignment and intensity during yoga and focused movement, which the speaker notes are highly effective for stimulating BDNF.

Amazon →

Links may be affiliate links. We only include resources that are genuinely relevant to the topic.

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Full Transcript YouTube

Transcriber: isabella hilário
Reviewer: Emma Gon
You're about to hold a plank.
Just 60 seconds.
You know it’s coming.
That tension in your core.
The burn in your arms.
The mental countdown ticking away.
You’re already thinking,
Now imagine you push through that feeling.
You hold on. 
Maybe your body starts shaking.
Your mind is screaming for you to stop.
You tell yourself just one more second, 
and you make it to 60.
You’re feeling pretty proud of yourself.
(Cheers and applause)
But then you don’t stop at 60 seconds.
You don't stop at five minutes.
You keep going for an hour,
for two hours and then ten hours.
Yep, ten hours, ten minutes, 
and ten seconds.
That's exactly what George Hood did
when he set the world record
for the longest plank in history,
a feat that most people
would not believe possible.
I met George eight years ago
when he set the record,
at that time, five hours.
And I’ll tell you this,
he just looked like the definition
of mental toughness.
The focus in his eyes was razor sharp
 and he was drenched in sweat.
He was hurting.
You could see it in his face.
Feel it in his body, but he didn’t stop.
Later I asked him,
George, how do you do it?
His answer surprised me.
The plank is 90% mental.
George told me 
he kept his mind busy
distracting himself by focusing on 
the conversations in the room,
drawing energy 
from the people around him.
But there was something
deeper happening here.
We often think of grit
as that mental toughness
that helps people achieve
extraordinary things,
like ultramarathoners finishing
races with broken bones.
But here's the twist.
Grit isn't just about willpower.
It’s rooted in biology, and the most
powerful indicator to date is a protein
 that we’re just starting to understand,
called Brain-derived
neurotrophic factor, or BDNF.
Think of BDNF as
fertilizer for your brain.
A protein that helps neurons, 
the cells in your brain,
grow, stay healthy, and 
communicate more effectively.
This protein is crucial for things
like memory and mental resilience.
Many things increase BDNF, 
including sunshine, blueberries,
and antidepressants.
Exercise increases BDNF the most.
And the plank?
Yes, that simple yoga pose,
just might be one of the best exercises
for building mental toughness.
I’m a clinical professor and diplomat
in the Department of
Preventive Medicine at UCSD. 
I’ve been doing clinical research
for over 40 years.
In the clinic, 
many of the patients I care for
 are so-called medically destitute.
Some had a heart attack
or stroke in their 40s.
Some experienced 
a horrific accident in their 20s,
rendering them unemployable,
stripping them of everything
 and leaving them with chronic pain
or disability and 
a heavy dose of despair.
In no way am I suggesting something as
basic as a plank can fix these conditions.
But more research is warranted
to learn the potential benefits.
What makes the concept of grit
 and BDNF so compelling to me
are real life examples of individuals 
enduring these devastating conditions.
Researchers and clinicians still have a
lot of questions about grit and the plank.
No one has ever studied
BDNF during a plank.
Yet, what we know is this: 
the most effective exercises
for raising BDNF levels 
are those requiring mental effort.
If you've ever done a plank, you know
how quickly mental fortitude is required.
That, along with what
we've learned from George,
leads us to believe the plank
may be one of the most efficient
and effective ways of increasing BDNF.
You see, grit is not just for planks.
And BDNF is not just a theory,
it’s backed by science.
A 2005 article in the aptly 
named journal Hippocampus
described an animal study
in which exhausting physical exercises
like continuous swimming
 produce less BDNF
than exercise that required
 mental focus, like navigating mazes.
In people, activities 
such as yoga, of all things
that combine physical effort 
and concentration,
have produced some of the highest levels
of BDNF ever measured.
Currently, I’m designing 
a study for people like Daniel
to see if the plank relieves pain.
Daniel suffers from 
a very rare condition
known as Complex regional
pain syndrome, or CRPS,
which is infamous as
one of the most painful diseases.
There is no known cure.
As one patient said,
the slight sensation of water dripping
on my foot feels like hot lead.
Despite living with 
this excruciating pain,
Daniel managed to do 
a plank for over nine hours
 on his CRPS arm.
Think about that for a minute.
The most physically and mentally
challenging exercises helped
one of the most painful conditions.
Now we have evidence that an important 
part of the answer lies in BDNF.
In August of 2024, an article appeared
in Experimental Neurobiology titled
“Modulation of BDNF 
by Physical Exercise.”
They found exercise
doubled the level of BDNF.
I am here to raise awareness 
so that this relationship 
between exercise, BDNF
and improving the quality of life 
may be studied further.
BDNF is hot in the research world.
I'm about to make it hotter.
(Cheers and applause)
George, Daniel and 
my patients deserve as much.
Now I'm going to leave you
with the challenge.
The next time you feel you need
 more grit in your life, do a plank.
If you can't get on the floor,
do it against a wall.
It only takes a minute, 
but that minute can be transformative.
Thank you. (Applause)