28 Ways to improve brain power
1. Exercise:
Long-term exercise has been proven to increase brain power and even create new
neurons in the brain. Go out and get a natural high off of your own brain
chemistry through exercise!
2. Avoid
Junk Food: Junk food has been proven to decrease energy in the body and
promotes “brain fog.” Cut some junk food from your diet, and reap the benefits
of a more calm, focused brain chemistry.
3. Deep
Breathing: Deep breathing actually increases oxygen levels and blood-flow to
the brain. 10-15 minutes of daily deep breathing can make a huge difference in
the quality of your life and brain’s functioning potential.
4. Take
Fish Oil: Fish oil supplements are literally like membrane material for the
brain. The 2 primary components of EPA and DHA each act to strengthen both the
emotional center of the brain and boost focus. There is an increase in overall
brain activity after taking fish oil for awhile.
5. Meditate:
Meditation has been known to increase IQ, relieve stress, and promotes higher
levels of brain functioning. Meditation also activates the “prefrontal cortex”
of the brain, an area responsible for advanced thinking ability and
performance.
6. Laugh
It Up: Laughter causes a natural release of the brain’s endorphins — chemicals
that drown out pain and increase overall well being. Laughter is a well known,
natural stress reducer. Watch a comedy, crack a joke, and increase those
endorphin levels!
7. Take
A Multivitamin: Vitamins are great for the brain, and if it does not get enough
of a certain vitamin through daily diet, consider a multivitamin. Multivitamins
help facilitate the functioning of a healthy body and enriched brain. Start
popping a vitamin each morning for awhile and chances are good that you’ll
notice a difference!
8. Eat
Healthy: You know what ‘healthy’ is, so why not eat healthy and improve your
brain? The brain requires a certain amount of energy to reach it’s maximum
level of functioning. Eating chocolate cake and chips instead of fish and
legumes, well maybe that’s why you cannot think clearly.
9. Eat
Less: Eating too much food has the effect of decreasing blood-flow to the brain
and increasing blood-flow to the digestive system. Therefore, if you are able
to cut-back on the total amount of food you consume, you will have enhanced
brain functioning. In several lab studies, rats on a calorie-restricted diet
had increased blood flow to their brains.
10.
Change Your Environment: To keep your
brain properly stimulated, it is important to keep changing your environment.
Drive a new route to work, eat at a new restaurant on Friday night. Changing
the environment helps change the brain!
11.
Set Goals: Setting goals activates areas
of the brain associated with positive thinking and action. Setting goals is
great for achieving success and prosperity in life and boosting your brain.
12.
Be Empathetic: Being empathetic and
trying to understand the emotions of others is a skill that your brain can
learn. Being empathetic is definitely a powerful trait to have and allows your
brain to relate to the emotions of others.
13.
Avoid Stress: A little bit of stress
will never hurt anybody. Too much stress actually causes detrimental increases
in the hormone “cortisol” which in high levels, kills brain cells and
suppresses brain functioning.
14.
Think Positive: If you are currently
very good at thinking positively, chances are good that you already have a more
powerful brain than those “Negative Nellies.” Take 10 minutes daily to think
more positive and start noticing an improvement in thinking abilities and problem
solving skills.
15.
Brainstorm: A good brainstorming session
to think of new, stimulating ideas is a great way to boost your brains ability
to think creatively. Brainstorming is actually a different way of thinking that
will equip your brain with a quick creative boost.
16.
Ask Questions: Asking questions is a
phenomenal way to keep your brain in shape. Get in the habit of questioning
others and their thoughts. Questions can provoke new thoughts and ideas and
asking them is a great way to build up brain power!
17.
Re-Read This List: Want to boost your
brain power? Start by re-reading this list and highlighting several methods
that you can apply to your life. As a matter of fact, print this list out and
staple it up someplace that you will view every day. That way, when walking
past the list, you can take a glance and randomly choose an activity to boost
your brain power!
18.
Visualize: Visualization has been
associated with focus at a deeper level. Many successful athletes that are able
to play “in the zone” actually visualize their game at a deeper level.
Visualization has been linked to lowered stress, increased creativity, and peak
mind-body performance.
19.
Get Some Sleep: Be sure to always
fulfill your brain’s need for sleep. Sleep clears out mental clutter and
unimportant thoughts. Getting a good night’s sleep can also be the difference
between a sharp memory and feeling forgetful. Everyone has different sleep
requirements, be sure to fulfill yours! If you don’t get enough sleep — you may
want to take a nap…
20.
Do Self-Hypnosis: The power of hypnotic
suggestion is definitely real. You can change aspects of your thought process
and learn to shift your focus by taking the time to do some self-hypnosis. Hypnosis
research shows that by practicing hypnosis, an individual experiences lowered
stress, increased pain tolerance, and clear thinking. Try it out for yourself
if you haven’t already!
21.
Eat Nuts: Brazil and South American
University students swear by eating nuts before taking exams. They notice that
eating them is correlated with an increase in test scores. New studies are
beginning to prove nuts effectiveness at increasing brain power. If you do not
eat a lot of nuts, try it sometime and reap the brain related benefits!
22.
Go For A Walk: Exercise definitely benefits
the brain, and walking is a great form of exercise that is easy and very
effective for boosting brainpower. Walking puts your mind in a relaxed state of
clear thought and brain function. Walking gives your brain a chance to wander
and free itself from any troubling thoughts.
23.
Solve Puzzles: Solving puzzles is a
great way to stimulate your brains ability to critically think and process
information. Puzzles are thought provoking, challenging, and a fun activity.
The great thing about puzzles is that they require activity in the
left-hemisphere of the brain to work with, and transfer information to, the
right hemisphere’s visual center of the brain. Want a more integrated brain?
Solve a puzzle!
24.
Do Neurofeedback: Neurofeedback is a
great way to learn to consciously control your brain wave patterns.
Neurofeedback builds brain structure and helps promote flexibility within a
brain’s neural network. Though neurofeedback is somewhat costly, if you’ve got
enough money — it may very well be the best investment you can make for your
brain!
25.
Live A Drug-Free Lifestyle: Everyone
knows that drugs are bad for them. Drugs do not foster creativity, they kill
creativity and deplete brain cells. Depending on the drug, effects can range
from brain bleeding, to cell loss, to impairments in neural growth. Live drug
free and keep your brain more powerful!
26.
Drink Freshly Squeezed Juice: Drinking
fresh pressed vegetable juice revitalizes the brain and provides cells with a
refreshing jolt of nutrients. Most juices provide your brain with vital
nutrients which in turn, provide you with more mental energy and focus.
27.
Be Self-Aware: When you learn to let go
of ego-driven and emotional aspects of life, rational thinking kicks in.
Rational thinking will allow you to become self-aware, which in turn allows you
to make better future decisions to achieve optimal brain health. Activities
like meditation, self-hypnosis, and introspection allow us to increase our
self-awareness.
28.
Stay In School: If you are in school,
chances are good that you will boost your brain power more than the average
dropout! Keeping up with school work, means giving your brain a good workout in
areas of self-discipline, learning, and mental processing. Stay in school, or
do something to always be learning something new!