My dear Friends,

when you think about your health, your first thought is probably healthy eating, maybe dieting, getting plenty of sleep and regular exercise, right?

Have you ever thought about exercising your brain? Probably not, because most of us do take it for granted that our brain works as it should.

There we are terribly wrong; our brain needs an exercise routine as much as our muscles, lungs, blood vessels or heart to stay healthy.

Here is some pretty useful information on why you should have a brain exercise routine.

Brain mysteries

The brain is the most complex part of the human body. It is a three-pound organ and the seat of intelligence, interpreter of the senses, initiator of body movement, and controller of behaviour.

Like a group of experts, all parts of the brain cooperate smoothly, but each part has special responsibilities. The brain can be divided into three basic units: the forebrain, the midbrain, and the hindbrain.

The main components of the brain are several types of nerves. These nerves carry messages by sending electrical impulses back and forth between your brain, organs and muscles – the cranial nerves.

This enables us to:

At birth, the human brain weighs about 1 pound. Throughout childhood, the brain grows to about 2 pounds. As an adult, your brain weighs around 2.7 to 3 pounds. It has around 86 billion nerve cells (neurons). This complex nerve system depends on synapses sending them the right signals to do their work.

What makes our brain truly amazing is its Neuroplasticity, meaning our brains have the ability to modify connections and rewire themselves.

Therefore, exercising the brain strengthens neural pathways and builds new ones. By the way, neural pathways are also the place where our memories live. So, our goal must be to strengthen these pathways with good habits, thoughts and actions.

Not just physical

Research shows that everybody can keep the brain sharp like we keep our body fit, and the results last a lifetime. Neurologists found that regularly exercising your brain increases mental capacity, improves memory, and helps to postpone cognitive decline.

More than 1,000 retired workers, all aged 75 or above, were submitted to a barrage of tests judging their memory and thinking skills. These retirees did the same monthly battery of tests and evaluations for eight years. Indeed, the brains of these older men and women held the answer to the big question:

A life of demanding work actually makes you mentally healthy

Hence, a life requiring fast thinking, prioritizing, and decision-making strengthens your brain and prepares it for top performance for years to come.

Work-life balance

Based on the theory that when you go to the gym, your muscles get bigger and your body grows stronger. The same is true of your brain; with regular exercise, it grows stronger and sharper.

While the analogy rings true, most health advice you read today seems to suggests the opposite.

Don’t overdo it at work! Lower your stress! Regularly take your mind off the hard things. Of course, this is good advice; too much stress is bad for you, but it doesn’t tell the whole story.

Taking it too easy and underperforming is just as bad!

The eight-year study by neuroscientists found that making your brain to work on difficult problems and juggling various tasks is akin to lifting weights with your brain. In other words, hard work leads to healthier minds and more longevity.

That leaves the question, what about a work-life balance? What about avoiding burnout?

Indeed working out too much, skipping recovery days, or using anabolic steroids is unhealthy and so are too much stress or excessively long working hours.

In essence, any extreme is bad, but making it a routine to take the extra step out of your comfort zone does wonders for your brain.

The Exercise Routine

Just as there is a wide range of exercises for strength, fitness and cardio, there is no shortage of programmes that help to build an exercise routine for your brain to improve cognitive function.

Just like lifting weights, BRAIN growth happens when you push yourself a little further than you thought you could.

As much as going to the gym only a couple of times a month won’t get you the results you want, you won’t see improvements in cognitive function if you don’t exercise your brain routinely. Hence, you need a minimum of 15 hours per targeted brain function over an eight-week period if you want to see a real improvement. 

Essentially, you need to merge this training program into every aspect of your daily life. Don’t shy away from big challenges- like your muscles, with every challenge; your brain will grow a little more.

At work 

Always attack the biggest challenges first, rather than going on a procrastination trip. Stop being unproductive by wasting your mornings with routine, repetitive tasks. You need little brain activity for that, exercise your brain instead while it is still ” fresh”. Additionally, finding time to work on all the other things will also help you refine your executive functions.

At home 

Don’t sit and watch TV at the end of the day. Instead, train yourself to take on more challenging hobbies. Do a crossword puzzle, play Sudoku, and make home improvement plans. These are the things that keep your brain healthy.

In relationships 

Don’t avoid difficult conversations with your partner or friends. Tackling them together will improve your brain’s performance. Discuss big ideas and how to bring them to life.

Facts

The more we learn about the brain, the more we recognize the importance of keeping the brain fit and healthy similar to our body.

In fact, with increasing age, our cognitive abilities, such as memory or hand-eye coordination, tend to decline. Keeping those cognitive skills in top shape allows us to remain sharp and enjoy our daily life and experiences. Mental training should be an integral part of maintaining a healthy mental state.

Speed Reading

The brain is the most complex part of the human body. Neurologists found that regularly exercising your brain increases mental capacity, improves memory, and helps to postpone cognitive decline.

With regular exercise, the brain will grow stronger and sharper. Just as there is a wide range of exercises for strength, fitness and cardio, there is no shortage of programmes and apps that can exercise your brain to improve cognitive function.

The more we learn about the brain, the more we recognize the importance of keeping the brain fit and healthy with regular exercise- similar to our bodies.