Brain Training Blog

Most people think that they don’t need to do brain exercises or brain training. But the reality is that our brain function starts to deteriorate much earlier than we would care to believe!

The good news is, it’s never too early and never too late to start. Researchers now believe our brains can grow new neurons throughout our entire lives! Phew, that’s great news!

Here’s a little test to see how you are tracking…

Read this sentence and count every “F” in the text:

FINISHED FILES ARE THE RESULT OF YEARS OF SCIENTIFIC STUDY COMBINED WITH THE EXPERIENCE OF YEARS…

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………Don’t cheat - Scroll down when you have done this!…
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How many did you find?
Scroll Down for the Answer.
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The answer is 6! Seriously, if you didn’t find the 6 don’t panic, but go back now and see if you can find them….

This is one of those brain tricks that our grey matter likes to play on us! The brain cannot process “OF”. When we read we skip straight over it.

If you go back and look over it carefully you will see it.

Don’t despair if you found all 6 in the first reading you are a genius!
3 is normal and 4 is rare!

This was sent to me and they said it was an Alzheimer’s Eye Test - I am not sure that is true. Perhaps you can see the need for some brain exercises though!
Why not hone some of your visual spatial skills at Lumosity.com?

I’m going to try find some more of these great brain teasers - they give your brain some exercise and they highlight the need to keep it exercised! Let me know if you like them.
Cheers,
Hope

I recently received this brain teaser (see below).  It goes to show how adaptable and adaptive our brains really are.  This will give you some brain exercise just by reading it….

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O lny srmat poelpe can raed tihs.

I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty  uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig  to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn’t mttaer in waht oredr the  ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat  ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll  raed it wouthit a porbelm.

Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey  lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh? yaeh and I awlyas  tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt! if you can raed tihs psas it on  !!

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Why not pass on this brain teaser to your friends, see if they are smart enough to understand it.  You’ll be doing them a favor, getting them to exercise their brain!

Hvae a geart day,

Hpoe!

FitBrains.com have just released a whole bunch of new brain exercise games. I’m loving them, including the ability to do a week long cross-training session which guides you through a series of games and once you have reached level 5 the next game is revealed for you…. but…..

One of the new games on FitBrains.com has me in a spin! I just cannot seem to crack level 5 of SumSnap! I get tantalizingly close to the goal, but time runs out…. And I just don’t seem to be getting that much closer.

I know I am pretty good at most things, but this one has me almost obsessed to crack it - I sail through the other levels! Anyone out there tried it and have any hints or tips for me?

I’d really appreciate any help - it will probably save me an hour a day of frustration!!!

Hoping to hear from you,

Hope

What exercises you brain more..

The answer is they all do use different parts of the brain. For example:

But interestingly it is explaining that seems to generate widespread activity in several areas of the brain.

Thought for the day - try to find something to explain to someone else to exercise your brain or ask your children to explain something they have read, or learned at school today.

Hope

Brain exercises online are a great way to keep your mind active and your brain fit. What makes a good online brain exercise program?

For me I look for a mixture of variety, challenge, interest factor, ease of use and not taking too long. I am a firm believer it has to be short, fun and effective in order to make me keep coming back to regularly train my brain.

If I find I am not logging back in to train, then I cannot form a good habit. Once in a while just won’t do - it has to be regular exercise to reap the long term benefits of improved brain health.

Drumroll please……. without further ado it is now time to unveil my top 3 online brain exercises!

Don’t forget to let me know what your are too!

Hope

During my research into brain training and brain exercises I have come across quite a few different types and styles such as:

• Number based
• Word Based
• Visual
• Auditory
• Complex
• Simple
• Motor skills
• Improve Memory
• Problem Solving
• etc

Most training systems seem to focus on one or two areas and are either simple or complex, but rarely combine elements of both.

Therefore cross training brain exercises make a lot of sense. Pick out the skills you want to work on or improve, just like you would for physical training and then use programs that suit you and your requirements.

To get an all round body fitness you might walk, do yoga, and do a gym weights session. You Brain Exercise regime might include:

• Lumosity as an all round program
• FitBrains for words and complexity and
• MyBrainTrainer for simple, visual and motor skills

Just remember, whatever you do - do something or you’ll lose it!

Hope

Stop Press - I’ve just published my latest review on Happy Neuron brain training software.

Happy Neuron Inc offer a “cross-trainer” style online brain training program in contrast to Lumos Labs’ Lumosity Brain Training Program.

You’ll find information about the company - Happy Neuron Inc, plus my views after test driving the program for a week. Some of the positives and negatives of the program are highlighted too.

Hot off the press! Review - Happy Neuron

Don’t just read the review, TRY some of the games for yourself.

Hope

I was looking into how what you eat and how it affects the brain and I remembered my friend the dragonfruit or red pitaya.

It’s a very well kept secret - lean closer and I will tell you a bit more!

Whilst on holiday in Australia, I was introduced to the dragonfruit at Tropical Fruit World. During their farm tour and Miracle Fruit Show I learned about these dragonfruits. Dragonfruits aka Strawberry Pear or Red Pitaya grow on cacus plants and are originally from South America. The fruit has very bright red flesh with little black seeds, like the seeds in kiwifruit.

During the show they talked about how it is very high in anti-oxidants and has high levels of carotene (which is what makes it red) and how both those things help the brain. They also mentioned that it appears to open up the blood vessels and although they weren’t able to quote studies or research on it you could conclude that perhaps that would also benefit the brain.

At that time, I had been experiencing some severe headaches and I felt a kind of brain fog. I had tried many things to try to make me feel better and I had even gotten to the point where I couldn’t even use my cell phone.

I tried the dragonfruit or red pitaya, and within a few minutes I felt like my brain had cleared! I was hooked! I don’t know if it was auto suggestion, but it was almost like it opened up my brain and let the fresh air in!

Dragon fruit isn’t a fruit you are likely to get hooked on for its looks or taste. It isn’t a very appealing looking fruit and it is virtually tasteless. It tastes faintly like strawberries, it is hard to describe, it certainly doesn’t have a strong smell or taste.

That aside, for me it is a firm favorite because of how it made and continues to make me feel. I buy one whenever I see them.

If you ask the fruit barn guy he’s not likely to be able to tell you much about them - I know I have educated a few, but perhaps that would make them even harder to find or more expensive.

So ssshhh, don’t let the secret out - but why not try some and if I find any real research on them, I’ll let you know!

Hope

P.S. Tropical Fruit World is in northern New South Wales, near the boarder with Queensland in Australia. It is about an hour’s drive from the famous Gold Coast! If you are ever in the area, drop in there is so much more about tropical fruit - I could go on all day. Fascinating! Unfortunately, their website doesn’t tell you much about the properties of the amazing fruits they grow, but they tell you lots on the tours.

Here’s a simple tip to give your brain something to work on.

Try Something New.

Brains like variety - it helps to improve brain function by creating more pathways and increasing neural networks! That’s as technical as I am going to get.

Something as simple as putting your pen in your left hand (if you are right handed, or the opposite if you are left handed!) and trying to write with it, will actually challenge your brain and help improve brain function.

This challenge will cause your brain to lay down new pathways. This helps improve your brain function and memory.

If you prefer, you can be more adventurous and do something like visit a new place, try a new game, draw a picture from memory or learn to dance, especially if you have never done it before.

Whilst these are great to do for a bit of fun, the key to long term brain fitness is a regular overall brain health program. A good health program for your brain should encompasses aspects such as physical activity, mental activity, nutrition, hydration, sleep and stress management.

How are you going to challenge your brain today?

Hope

Physical exercise helps the brain by increasing blood flow which in turn helps build a healthier brain. But what kind of exercise helps the brain the most?

Did you know that walking is one of the best things you can do for your brain?

Have you ever felt that your mind was clearer after a walk? Perhaps the extra oxygen and energy boost from the glucose in your blood plus the removal of waste products helped.

There is evidence that walking is one of the best physical exercises that helps your brain combat the effects of aging. Best of all, the rest of your body benefits too!

Read my latest article on How Physical Exercise Helps The Brain.

See you on the walking track!

Hope