25 September 2020

Just like our bodies, our brains require regular exercise

2:00 Min

Just like our bodies, our brains require regular exercise. In 2019, Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, a journal on cognitive advancements, discovered that people who participate in brain training games may experience benefits such as memory improvements, quicker response times, and enhanced logic skills. Other studies have also shown that regular brain training may delay early-onset dementia. Take a break and have fun challenging your brainpower with the following exercises.

1 Today’s top three mind apps

Luminosity, a widely popular app, is designed to train our five cognitive functions: speed, memory, attention, flexibility, and problem-solving. Elevate is an app designed with an educational twist focusing on reading, writing, speaking, and maths skills. Peak is a third favourite, where the games are fun and more intuitive, making it easier to integrate into your daily routines.

2 The short-term memory game

If you are curious to find out your memory score, try this simple exercise. Jot down a list of ten unrelated words and spend precisely one minute studying them. Then distract yourself for 10 minutes by doing something else. Come back and write down as many words as you can remember, preferably in the correct order, and score out of 10. You could also play this game with kids using a tray of toys or stuffed animals placed in order. How well do you know how the memory works? Take this quiz and find out.

3 Brain training while commuting

For today’s stressful commutes, Cognifit offers practical and stimulating mind exercises to set you up for a successful workday ahead. Flow Free is another fun and entertaining app with brain puzzles that require you to think outside the box. The task is to connect the same coloured dots in a single, continuous line, without crossing any other lines. 

4 The reasoning test

Braingle is specially designed for those who love riddles. The game offers to improve your reasoning capability through trivia questions and “mentalaerobics”. The website tests your general knowledge on random topics such as “guess the celebrity” or “finish the famous painting”. You can also compete with your friends and family, working out the riddles.

 

5 Brain yoga

After all that cognitive testing, the brain is exhausted and needs rest. Brain yoga claims to recharge the senses and boost grey matter through controlled breathing and specific poses. Try these five easy-to-follow exercises aimed for better mental health.