Mental fitness#

You can improve your memory and learning performance if you improve your overall mental fitness. There are many likenesses between physical and mental fitness. Let’s explore some:

You can build up your mental fitness over time using various exercises and activities.
You should not expect immediate results. Good results come with time.
Good mental fitness impacts many other areas of brain performance, not just those directly involved in the exercises.
Don’t try to do too much at once. Start slowly and find exercises you enjoy and could do regularly.
Good mental fitness protects the brain and helps it stay healthy for longer.

As I mentioned, various exercises and activities can increase your mental fitness. I’ve listed some examples below:

Try Neurobics. Neurobics is a relatively new term for a style of brain exercises. Neurobic exercises involve at least one of three features: “They involve one or more of your senses in a novel way, they engage your attention, and they break up a routine activity in an unexpected, novel way.” Examples from a book called “Keep Your Brain Alive” (by Lawrence Katz) include:
Changing the hand you write or brush your teeth with.
Taking a different route, or means of transport, to work.
Finding your way around a room with your eyes closed.
Interacting with others without talking.
Turning pictures or a clock on your desk upside-down.
Tasting food with your eyes closed.
…and more - the book contains eighty-three examples!
Learn music or singing. Learning a musical instrument or learning to sing at any age does not just develop your aural skills. It also exercises your memory and concentration skills, and positively influences your visual and spatial reasoning abilities.
Games and puzzles. Many games and puzzles exercise various mental skills - from the basic “Concentration” card game through to whole books of puzzles that challenge various parts of the brain. Many of these are available free on the web. (I talk more about the Concentration game on page the concentration game below).
Try some software. You can exercise your brain and memory with the help of some specialist software. Some examples include IQ Builder, Brain Builder and MindGym and various packages based on the “Concentration” card game. Be wary of anything that has an excessive price or that promotes it can improve mental performance without any effort on your part. Examples include only listening to sounds or music, or watching light patterns, or “altering brainwaves.”
Travel. Travel, especially international travel, exercises a wide range of brain abilities. Finding your way around with a map, running into unexpected problems, being aware of your surroundings, planning and getting lost are some examples. More include currency conversions, breaking your usual routines, developing your understanding of history and other cultures and trying to communicate with others without a common language. All these activities are great for exercising your brain and are the perfect excuse for an overseas holiday!

These are just a start. There are so many other ways to exercise your brain. Here are some quick thoughts: Learn another language, develop your social networks, do volunteer work, read more widely, or try a new hobby. More include: Get creative and learn to write, draw, or paint; learn photography, change careers, or learn to fly! All of these contribute to good mental fitness, so long as you keep a positive mental attitude while doing them.