Still stumped by two down? Try walking up two f lights of stairs

STRUGGLING to finish the crossword? Then you should elevate yourself like drunken tribal chemists (5,3,6)

Or ‘climb the stairs’ if you’re not so good at cryptic anagrams.

New research shows that walking up just two flights can help trigger those little grey cells into solving problems.

It was already thought that physical activity can help with concentration by getting blood circulating to the brain, but it’s never been clear just how much exercise is needed to achieve this effect.

Now a team of Japanese scientists have found modest exertion is all you need.

Researchers recruited 52 volunteers aged in their twenties and gave them each a test to assess their problem-solving abilities and capacity for creative thinking. They then split them up and got some to take the lift up eight floors, others to climb all eight floors and the rest to just go up two flights of steps.

Afterwards, all the recruits were given a second set of tests to see how they fared.

The results, published in the journal Scientific Reports, showed those who took the stairs performed much better second time around than those in the elevator.

But, perhaps surprisingly, the best results were seen in those who climbed just two flights, not the full eight. The researchers at Yamaguchi University believe that may be because the longer climb was more physically demanding and less enjoyable.

Other studies have found regularly using the stairs instead of lifts can reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes by up to 20 per cent. And a recent investigation by scientists in South Korea found just 20 seconds of stair climbing a few times a week can help obese men and women lose weight and boost their fitness.

In a report on their findings the Japanese team said: ‘This study highlights the substantial impact of brief, very light-intensity physical activity – exemplified by two-flight stair climbing... Contrary to the prevalent emphasis on higher-intensity activities for cognitive benefits, our findings suggest that very light-intensity activities may also offer significant advantages.