A Health Club for Your Mind

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Published by Rachelle Disbennett-Lee
Thursday, January 24, 2002
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When we think of health clubs we think of places to go and give our bodies a workout. But as much as our body needs to be exercised, so does our mind. Research shows that our brain cells do not just die off, as we get older, as commonly thought, but actually regenerate. According to Katz and Manning in their book, Keep your Brain Alive, "in 1998 a team of American and Swedish scientist demonstrated for the first time that new brain cells are generated in adult humans."

What most often causes memory loss and other brain related challenges is the decline in the use of our brain and not getting older. What happens to our brains, as we get older, is that branches of nerve cells that receive and process information begin to thin out. What keeps the nerve cells healthy and working is to use them. In other words, use them or loose them.

Katz has even coined a phrase, "Neurobics," which is simply a way to increase mental fitness. It isn't really that difficult to exercise the brain and keep it active and healthy. Reading, playing memory games, learning something new, anything that will get us thinking, is all exercise for the brain.

Coaching

By staying active and constantly learning, we can keep our brainpower. According to the experts, loosing our memory or other brain functions doesn't have to be an inevitable part of getting older. We can delay or even restore our memories by keeping our brains fit and flexible.

Here are some suggestions for keeping your brain active:

Learn something new everyday. At the end of the year, you will know 365 new things. Keep a journal so you can track all the news things you are learning.

Do normal things differently. Try brushing your teeth with the opposite hand, putting your socks on starting with the foot that usually gets the second sock. Sleep on the other side of the bed. Do things that you normally do differently to keep your brain thinking.

Close your eyes. Try closing your eyes while you are eating, talking on the phone, or taking a shower. By closing your eyes you force yourself to use your other senses and to notice things you might not notice with your eyes open.

Play games. Work games, memory games and strategy games are great to get the old brain working and thinking.

What will you do today to exercise your brain?

Daily Success Formula

Exercise for the brain = Brain power

Quotes

"A good memory is one trained to forget the trivial." Clifton Fadiman

"A man of great memory without learning hath a rock and a spindle and no staff to spin." George Herbert

"Curiosity is as much the parent of attention, as attention is of memory." Richard Whately

Resources

Keep Your Brain Alive: 83 Neurobic Exercises by Lawrence Katz, Manning Rubin, David Suter

Improving Your Memory: How to Remember What You're Starting to Forget by Janet Fogler, Lynn Stern

Don't Forget!: Easy Exercises for a Better Memory by Danielle C. Lapp

12 Steps to a Better Memory by Carol A. Turkington