Boosting your brainpower is actually easier than you might imagine. A lot of people believe that sharpening your mind consists of outlandish techniques. The truth is, sharpening your mind consists of things you can do every day. You might have even incorporated these things into your normal routine without even knowing it. Sharpening your mind can lead to a healthier you, improved memory and mental sharpness. Check out these 5 easy ways to sharpen your mind and improve your brain’s stamina!
Indulge in Antioxidants
Maintaining a balanced diet is vital to your body and brain. What we consume eventually affects the way we function throughout our day-to-day tasks. Keeping a low sugar diet is a great way to sharpen your mind. You must consume less sugar and incorporate more antioxidants into your daily diet.
Antioxidants are compounds that inhibit oxidation. Oxidation is a chemical reaction that can produce free radicals, thereby leading to chain reactions that may damage the cells of organisms. Read the article How Antioxidants Affect Your Body to learn more. There are plenty of foods that include antioxidants such as berries, dark chocolate, carrots, spinach, and red grapes. Drinks like red wine and green tea also have antioxidants.
Play with Puzzles
Puzzles can be such a great way to sharpen the mind. The connections made while working on jigsaw puzzles are not limited to our brain cells. Exercising both sides of the brain simultaneously also allows the brain to move from a “Beta” state, the wakeful mind, into an “Alpha” state, the same mental state experienced while dreaming.
It is fun and really gets the brain working. There have been multiple studies that show those that work on puzzles are less likely to develop certain types of mental illness, including memory loss, dementia, and even Alzheimer’s Disease.
Exercise
Exercise is one of the most important practices we as human beings should include in our daily activities. Exercise enhances the effects of helpful brain chemicals and reduces stress hormones. Perhaps most importantly, exercise plays an important role in neuroplasticity by boosting growth factors and stimulating new neuronal connections.
Physical activities that require hand-eye coordination or complex motor skills are particularly beneficial for brain building. Sometimes after a long day at work, our brain can just be very foggy. Mental fatigue is a sign that we need to reboot our brain. Aerobic exercise is particularly good for the brain, so choose activities that keep your blood pumping. A good rule of thumb when exercising is anything that is good for your heart is great for your brain.
Avoid Sugar
Countless times, we feel that our bodies need a pick me up, like a rush of energy and we reach for the most surgery item we can find. This only leads to giving us a small rush of energy that shortly leaves us feeling sluggish and back at square one. A person who consumes high amounts of sugar daily can result in inflammation, stress and poor insulin regulation.
Try substituting sugary foods with fish, some meat, a lot of vegetables, some nuts and seeds, some fruit and very little grains. Sugar only makes us more sluggish and let us not forget the number of calories that come with it.
Get rest
Getting rest is one of the key elements in sharpening one’s mind. During the body’s sleep cycles, it helps in flushing the toxic metabolites that also repair our DNA. Sleep also helps to sharpen the memory, and improves problem solving and decision-making skills. The body should at least have 6-8 hours of rest each night in order for the body to function. Read 7 Bad Habits Ruining Your Sleep to make sure you are getting the most of your sleep time.
Related: 6 Ways to Spark Inspiration
Sharpening the mind is something we should be cognitive of and implanting in our daily lives. Simple things such as picking up a puzzle every now and then or changing our diet can make all the difference. Have you tried sharpening your mind? What tips would you like to share with us to help us sharpen our minds? Definitely check out our Instagram and Twitter social media accounts @citygirlsavings. Also, join and like our City Girl Savings Facebook to stay connect with the CGS community.
