Keep Your Mind Sharp
Staying sharp doesn’t have to be that hard, but you have to put in the effort. The brain is a very fragile organ and it is much more sensitive than you might think.
It’s not just the passage of time that affects the brain. Anxiety and negative emotions can also do quite a bit of damage. That’s why you can sometimes be more easily distracted, forget words or dates and have trouble concentrating.
To prevent this from happening and to keep your mind fit, it would be wise to make time to take care of your brain. Take care of your brain just like you take care of your body.
If you don’t know exactly how to do this, don’t worry. We give you some tips to keep your brain in the best shape for your busy daily life.
No matter how challenging your life is right now, these tips will at least make it a little easier to get through your days.
Stay sharp with some handy tips
1. Oily fish, fruits and vegetables – the perfect combination
Salmon, sardines and tuna are rich in fatty acids, especially omega-3 fatty acids.
As you may know, it is very important to eat foods that contain omega 3 fatty acids. Your body is not able to produce this substance itself.
Omega 3 fatty acids enhance the effect of antioxidants. Antioxidants are important to prevent body cells from deteriorating and thus to ensure that neurons remain active.
That is why we recommend increasing your consumption of fruits and vegetables in addition to eating omega-3 fatty acids . These are almost all packed with antioxidants. The combination of these two elements will therefore help you to keep your mind sharp.
2. Take a different route daily to stay sharp
Living on autopilot is the worst thing you can do for your brain.
When you do things without thinking, your brain has to pay less attention to them. This means that they can perform the actions with as little effort as possible.
What happens then is exactly the same as what happens to our bodies when we don’t move. So it’s not surprising that rigid routines can cause problems with our ability to concentrate or memory.
That is why we recommend that you regularly adjust your route to school or work or anywhere else. When you walk or drive a lesser-known route, your brain wakes up.
3. Read more than one book at a time
It’s true that reading in itself is a great way to train your mind. Each genre appeals to our memory and our concentration. Otherwise it would be impossible to follow the story or understand a discussion.
But if you’re also reading more than one book at a time, you’ll really sharpen these skills. Your brain is then put to work not only to understand the book, but also to distinguish one book from another.
This is all going on in your brain when you read a good book. Also keep in mind that having fun with something also makes your brain work harder and better.
4. Try meditating
Does meditation seem contradictory to the previous suggestions?
Then think about it like this. After any intense exercise it is essential to let your muscles relax.
Meditation has much the same benefit, except for one small difference: it also offers you a moment of complete self-awareness. It involves looking within yourself to let go of all that is stressful, while at the same time embracing what brings you inner peace.
When your brain is full of cortisol after you’ve done everything you were supposed to do, it’s practically impossible to perform well. That is why it is important to make time every day to get rid of this cortisol.
5. Keep your mind sharp by dancing
Going to dance classes is a great way to release energy. In addition, it helps to improve your coordination. In fact, if you replace spontaneous dancing with dancing a choreography, you also improve your memory and concentration.
People who dance usually do this because they love it. In other words, it makes you happy, keeping your brain focused and efficient.
These five tips will definitely help you stay sharp. This will make you ready to take on any challenge. If you plan on putting these tips into practice, let us know what you think!
