If you thought that watching TV was the best way to get your brain working, you are mistaken! Most of us spend so much time idly lazing on the couch we are letting our brains rot. If you’re concerned that, as you get older, your memory seems to be subsiding somewhat, you shouldn’t worry anymore! It’s actually all about getting the best hobbies. The fact is the right hobby can do so much for us in mind and body. But let’s focus on the best hobbies that can improve our mind.
Learning A Language
Learning a language has been shown to have stimulating effects on the brain. In fact, people that can speak more than one language have more gray matter in their brain than those that speak just the one. It’s, in many ways, a way of multitasking. And while you might think that learning a language is harder in life, you will still feel the same benefits that a child does. Just because a child is able to pick up a language easier, doesn’t mean that they have vastly improved brains! In fact, the topic of neuroplasticity shows how malleable our brains are, despite our age.
Picking Up A Musical Instrument
Musical instruments have been shown to have benefits in terms of cognitive functions, including problem-solving and pattern recognition. Music is a great way to engage both sides of the brain. And if you’re someone that hasn’t picked up an instrument before, it can feel like a very complex notion, like learning a new language, but there are sites like Piano in 21 Days that can guide you through the basics. It’s a very important thing to point out when you want to engage with a subject, but you’ll find it difficult, doing something that you enjoy, or something you have a deep connection to will help you to learn it better. Music is a very good example if you have a passion for music in the first place.
Playing Games
Not just any games, but specifically brain training games have been shown to improve our problem-solving abilities. We have to remember that games, in any form, can stretch our brain. Even physical ones. And while playing sports can involve a lot of physical exercise, which does benefit the brain, if you really want to challenge your mind, you’ve got to go for the brain training games and puzzles that are out there in abundance. From Sudoku to crosswords, and the many apps around, you can challenge your brain. In fact, there’s a game that comes recommended, Dual N Back, which challenges sequential learning, spatial awareness, and your memory functions. Remember, these things are difficult (and very frustrating) but because they are difficult this means you are stretching yourself.
Meditation
Have you ever sat down and trying to focus on nothing? It’s difficult! As a hobby, meditation isn’t just a fantastic way to aid concentration, but it has benefits for mind and body, calms you down, and giving you that ability to focus despite a whirlwind of distractions around you physically and mentally. Getting into the habit of meditating in the morning, or learning how to calm your body and mind down, just by focusing on the breath, will serve you well throughout your entire life.
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