Boost Your Brain Power By Simple Exercises

Boost Your Brain Power By Simple Exercises

Most of us incorporate some kind of physical exercise into our daily lives. We do this to improve our bodies and health and generally make us feel better. But physical exercise also benefits your brain.

Researchers are finding that just as physical exercise primes the body, exercise also primes the mind. The more you exercise your brain, the better it will perform and the better you will feel. 

You will be able to concentrate better, make decisions faster, solve problems more quickly and be more creative.

It seems that during exercise, brain cells release a chemical called Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor, or BDNF for short. This chemical is protein in nature and seems to act like “brain fertilizer”, promoting many beneficial health benefits to the brain. And no wonder that physical exercise is good for both mind and body: exercise increases the flow of oxygen to your brain, helping you to improve

your concentration and to think sharper and faster.

Double Your Brain Power! Tips Tricks and Techniques to Make your Brain Sharper Smarter and Faster

Simply walking sedately for half an hour three times a week can improve abilities such as learning, concentration and abstract reasoning by 15 per cent.

Dean Macadam, editor of “Science News”, states that “physical exercise

encourages healthy brains to function at their optimum levels. Exercise appears to prompt brain cells to multiply, strengthens their connections, and boosts their resilience against damage and disease. 

The Benefits also seem to extend to brains that are diseased or damaged”.

But did you know that you can perform “physical” exercises designed solely to improve brain function?

Research carried out by the BBC Television Channel in the United Kingdom suggests that doing ‘brain exercises’ can make a person up to 40 per cent cleverer within seven days!

So, there’s no reason why you cannot give your brain a workout all by itself – mental exercises that are designed just for the brain.

Paul and Gail Dennison, acclaimed for their “Brain Gym” exercises devised their series of exercises for School pupils prior to learning so that they could get the most out of their lessons.

Did you know….

Physical exercise promotes the growth of new

brain cells. Fred Gage from the Salk Institute

in La Jolla, California, demonstrated this in

the year 2000, when he showed that even

adults can grow new brain cells. He also found

that exercise is one of the best ways to achieve this.

However, there is no reason why their “Brain Gym” exercises cannot be

used by everyone, as their exercises are designed to improve concentration

and mental agility.

Brain Gym in Action

The following “Brain Gym” exercises are exerted from implemented ideas developed by Dr Carla Hannaford in her best selling book “Smart Moves”:

• "Brain Buttons"

This exercise helps improve blood flow to the brain to "switch on" the entire brain before a lesson begins. The increased blood flow helps improve concentration skills required for reading, writing, etc.

• ü   Put one hand so that there is as wide space as possible
• ü  between the thumb and index finger.
• ü  Place your index and thumb into the slight indentations below
• ü  the collar bone on each side of the sternum. Press lightly in a
• ü  pulsing manner.
• ü  At the same time put the other hand over the navel area of the
• ü  stomach. Gently press on these points for about 2 minutes.

• "Cross Crawl"

This exercise helps coordinate right and left brain by exercising the information flow between the two hemispheres. It is useful for spelling, writing, listening, reading and comprehension.

• ü  Stand or sit. Put the right hand across the body to the left knee
• ü  as you raise it, and then do the same thing for the left hand on
• ü  the right knee just as if you were marching.
• ü  Just do this either sitting or standing for about 2 minutes.

• "Hook Ups"

This works well for nerves before a test or special event such as making a speech. Any situation which will cause nervousness calls for a few "hook-ups" to calm the mind and improve concentration.

• ü  Stand or sit. Cross the right leg over the left at the ankles.
• ü  Take your right wrist and cross it over the left wrist and link up the fingers so that the right wrist is on top.
• ü  Bend the elbows out and gently turn the fingers in towards the body until they rest on the sternum (breast bone) in the centre of the chest. Stay in this position.
• ü  Keep the ankles crossed and the wrists crossed and then breathe evenly in this position for a few minutes. 
•      You will be noticeably calmer after that time.

The following are some exercises they also suggest to boost brain power….

Brain Buddies.

Think of the left and right cortex of your brain as two buddies working together to better your performance. Try to make time every day to write out two sentences with your non-dominant hand – the one you don’t normally write with. 

Note the time it takes to do this. The next day, do the same again – and every day after that. This workout strengthens the buddy who’s been lacking exercise and makes both cortices work more

productively.

Chiropractic Brain Improvement

Sit up straight and put one hand under your chin and one on the back of your neck. Now gently pull up on your head. Relax your neck as much as possible as you do this.

You may feel or hear a few clicks as your spine adjusts. Your ears may open up too. More to the point, you may find that you can think a bit more clearly.

(Apparently, the exercise has something to do with the adjusting of the

vertebrae that allow nerve impulses to travel through more easily.)

Thought Master

This exercise allows you to build your powers of concentration whilst making you aware of intrusive thoughts.

Concentrate on the second hand of your watch for one minute, silently repeating the number “one” as you do this. If a distracting thought comes into your head, maintain your concentration but move to “two”. If another distracting thought occurs to you, keep concentration but go on to “three”.

Record your score of intruding thoughts. With daily practice, you will reduce the number of intrusive thoughts – and improve your concentration.

Working Tools Vocabulary

Words are the working tools of your brain – you need a strong vocabulary to develop your mind.

Find a new word to add to your vocabulary each day. 

Write the word and its definition in your diary and start using it straight away. 

Over time, you will improve your communication abilities.

Whole Brain Pictures

Think of a different word every day – and create a “whole-brain picture” from it. For example, “ocean” is an evocative word. In your mind, see yourself walking on a beach and hear those crashing waves. 

Smell the ocean breeze as you taste the salty spray hitting your face. Touch the sand between

your toes.

Over time, this type of exercise will help develop your five senses.

Breathing Space Brain (BSB)

Your brain needs to rest occasionally. To relax effectively, you need to develop your “breathing space brain”.

Sit or lie on your back, relax your body and close your eyes. 

Begin breathing easily, and listen to its sound. If your attention drifts from your breath, bring it back.

Continue for several minutes.

Next, repeat the exercise but concentrate instead on a favorite word.

Examples: “calm” “peace” “wealth”.

Say the word silently to yourself each time you exhale.

Do this for several minutes.

The benefit of this exercise is that you can use BSB whenever you feel stressed out or want to boost your performance.

Sudoku

Believe me, absolutely nothing gives your brain as good a work out as a good Sudoku puzzle!

Sudoku puzzles were first published in America in the 1970s and are sometimes known as "Number Squares". They have been popular for many years in Japan, where the name "Sudoku" (meaning "single number") was coined. 

The current craze was started late in 2004 when a United Kingdom newspaper started publishing the puzzles. 

Within weeks the puzzles were picked up in other newspapers and Sudoku became the pastime of choice for everyone!

Sudoku has found millions of fans worldwide. 

They are fun to solve and are perfect for keeping your brain sharp all day long, as they help your brain to develop logic, reasoning skills and concentration.

You can get some very good free Sudoku puzzles from the following

website: www.websudoku.com

Nighty Night…..

And of course, don’t forget that adequate sleep is very important – between

6 and 8 hours each night will give optimum brainpower.

So there you are!  to make your brain sharper smarter and faster

“A healthy mind residing in a healthy body”

Source of Content - © Lynnee Davidson All Rights Reserved. www.doubleyourbrainpower.com