How To Keep Mind Sharp At Any Age!

Everyone has a tendency to be a little forgetful. We sometimes forget to pick up our car keys, an important file for work, or even someone’s name.

As we grow older, we tend to lose some of the gray matter in our brains which is responsible for memory, among other things. If you want to preserve this gray matter for longer (and who wouldn’t?) the following article will be extremely helpful.

Below are 7 exercises that will help keep your mind sharp at any age.

1. Use Your Non-Dominant Hand

If you’re a right-handed person, try using your left hand once in a while when eating, writing, and picking things up. It might sound difficult at first, but after some practice, you can do at least a couple of daily tasks this way. The idea is to use your non-active side of the brain. This helps to expand parts of the cortex that are responsible for processing tactile information.

2. Do Some of Your Daily Chores With Your Eyes Closed

What kind of things do you do every day without even thinking about it? How many steps do you take to get downstairs? How many plates are there in your kitchen cabinet? There is a reason why we don’t recall these answers right away – we do our regular, daily tasks inattentively. This is why it’s advised that we carry out some of our daily tasks with our eyes shut. This includes showering and moving from one room to another. You’ll touch an object and this will send signals to your brain about the object that you’re feeling.

3. Shuffle Your Morning Routine

We all have a set schedule that starts right from the moment we wake up. However, novelty is the key to a sharper brain. It’s important that you give your brain the newness of a fresh routine to keep it active and alert. You don’t have to do complicated things. All you have to do is shuffle your daily schedule. For example, get dressed after having breakfast, jog a different route, or even watch a cartoon instead of the morning news.

4. Read Aloud

Reading aloud isn’t always possible, but when it is, you must do it. It might take a couple of minutes longer than usual to finish what you’re reading, it’s totally worth it. In one of the demonstrations of brain imaging, 3 areas of the brain lit up whenever words were spoken aloud from a book. In other words, by reading aloud, we tend to use various circuits of our brain simultaneously.

5. Experiment with Different Foods

If you’re among those who always order the same cuisine or the same dish every time you go to a restaurant, it’s time for a change. Trying out a new dish will ask your brain to smell the new food and send signals to the nose to activate its receptors. This new odour will also give your brain new sensations and feelings. You should also try experimenting with your daily dishes at home. For example, use a different condiment or a new ingredient in one of your favourite meals.

6. Get Used to Mnemonic Devices

What is a mnemonic device? Well, it’s a creative way to remember lists. Do you remember the phrase that we used to learn the planets of our solar system when we were kids? “My Very Energetic Mother Jumps Skateboards Under Nana’s Patio.” The first letter of each word is the first letter of the corresponding planet. Mnemonic devices help to sharpen your key brain areas and increase your memory too.

7. Feed Your Brain

By “feed your brain”, we mean eating foods that are known to increase brain functionality. It’s important to include a decent amount of vitamins and fats in your diet to nourish your brain. Foods that are known to increase brain power are walnuts, turmeric, eggs, coconut oil, blueberries, avocado, and broccoli.