Although the brain is not a muscle it behaves as one.
Strictly speaking it is an organ, a very important one, but it is also capable of being trained to improve different cognitive functions like working memory or maths skills.
If you apply some of the techniques to improve your 'grey matter' provided by Bonitas Medical Fund outlined below you will be soon notice the difference in your recall and concentration.
1. Reduce stress levels
Being stressed floods our bodies with loads of dangerous compounds, while stress hormones such as adrenaline are important for survival, chronic stress means that those hormones are constantly in our body.
This can exhaust the brain and even cause damage to it.
For example, the stress hormone cortisol levels can negatively affect the hippocampus, the area of the brain responsible for short-term memory. In other words, if you're stressed, you won't be able to process and properly remember things in your day-to-day life!
2. Get moving
There is a definite link between physical activity and increasing your brain's processing power.
The endorphins released when you exercise can positively impact everything - from increasing blood flow to the organs to boosting energy levels - all of which combine to give your brain a boost. This effect is amplified for an hour after your workout.
3. Break out of your routine
If every day feels much like the day before, your brain will feel the same way - channelling energy and attention to the same regular topics, never exploring new ideas or concepts.
By breaking routines (try a different route to work or school, a new hobby on the weekend) you can keep your mind fresh and adaptive to new experiences.
4. Challenge your brain
Doing brain teasers, crossword puzzles and other challenging mental activities can stimulate the brain to access old memorials and pieces of knowledge that you have stored away.
By occasionally accessing these areas and promoting 'outside the box' thinking, brain teasers and word puzzles can help to bulk up your brain power.
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5. Stay hydrated
Drinking enough water and staying hydrated is a key aspect of good health and wellness.
It encourages property metabolic function and allows for balanced energy distribution throughout your body's cells and organs. This helps your brain to work a full capacity.
To stay hydrated, eat at least five portions of fruit and vegetables daily and drink at least six glasses of water.
6. Try something new
Forming new cognitive pathways is one of the best ways to prevent cognitive decline and can delays conditions such as Alzheimer's disease and dementia.
When plaque and free radicals attack the brain, they shut down the mental pathways, but trying new things, pursuing new activities, topics and areas of interest force your brain to adapt and 'think' in new ways.
This can strengthen the network of neuron connections and keep your mind strong.
7. Get enough sleep
Your mind, like your body, needs rest. This is particularly true after mentally stressful activities such as writing an exam or debating a complex topic.
This is because your brain needs time to recuperate and recharge.
Studies have shown that concentrating, focusing, recalling and remembering information is much stronger when an individual is well rested.
8. Reach for a book
The popularity of reading appears to be in decline but it remains one of the best ways to expose yourself to new ideas, retain new knowledge and sharpen your concentration skills.
Pick up a book once or twice a week to make sure your brain is still firing on all cylinders.
9. Have a laugh
Laughter is the best medicine - they say.
It is certainly a wonderful way to release endorphins into the body and studies show that laughter stimulates creativity.
If you're feeling particularly groggy or brain-dead, let out a chuckle and let the normal chemical pathways in your body boost your brain power!
10. Turn up the tunes
Listening to music is one of the simplest and most effective ways to stimulate brainpower. Music affects unique parts of your brain and listening to music while you are doing other activities focuses your brain to multi-task and remain engaged in both activities, which challenges it even further.
11. Write it down
With computers, tablets and cell phones, writing by hand seems outdated and obsolete but there is no denying that writing something down helps to cement it into your brain and memory.
That's why writing notes by hand has been shown to help students retain information, as they are hearing it, writing it and seeing it, which provides various types of cognition engagements at the same time.