How to Exercise Your Brain

Whether you're trying to get your brain back into shape or you just want to keep it as strong as it is now, there are some things you can do to exercise your brain. You can use different strategies to enhance your thinking and word skills, play games, socialize, engage in life-long learning, and taking care of yourself. You probably won’t see results overnight, but after a few months of using these strategies you may notice a big difference in your memory skills.

Part One of Five:
Enhancing Your Thinking and Word Skills



1

Read as much as you can. Reading is great brain exercise. You can read newspapers, magazines or books but just keep in mind that the more challenging the text is, the more of a workout your brain will get. Like any exercise, start small and work your way up.

Try reading books that will teach you something new, such as books about history or another subject that interests you.



2

Increase your vocabulary. You can also learn new words from a word-a-day calendar or dictionary. This exercises the language portion of your brain.

Try writing a new word someplace where you will see it often, such as on a whiteboard in your kitchen or on a sticky note on your desk. Choose a word that is challenging to spell and use to get the most out of this daily exercise.



3

Write something. Writing requires loads of thinking! You can write made-up stories, write down the things that have happened to you, or write articles for wikiHow on the topics you know about and love!



4

Learn a new language. Learning a language is like a hack for your brain, opening up all sorts of pathways. This exercises the part of your brain that stores language information, even making you better at speaking your own language.

Languages are a great way to keep learning new things and challenging your brain.[1] Even if you only learn a few new words or phrases in a language, this will exercise your brain.



5

Post-problem solve. Consider the different possibilities of how something in your day could have gone, and explore the consequences. This improves creativity and makes you a better problem solver.



6

Turn off the television. Television tells you what to think and how to think it, basically putting your brain on autopilot. That's why it's so relaxing! If you want to keep your brain from stagnating, the first thing you have to do is turn off the TV. If you really want to watch, use your brain while you watch. Choose to watch educational programs and if you watch popular programs, choose ones with complex plot lines or character interactions. Think about these while you watch and try to analyze them or guess what happens next.

You may even consider cancelling your cable or satellite service and only watching things online that are educational. You can find many educational videos online and through subscription services.



7

Use your non-dominant hand. Use your left hand if you are right handed or your right hand if you are left handed. This will help to stimulate the parts of your brain that control your muscles.



8

Learn to play a musical instrument.Learning how to play a musical instrument or learning how to sing is a great way to challenge your brain because this will engage you in a long-term learning experience.[2] You can take lessons, use videos to teach yourself, or join a group such as choir to engage with music.

Try learning to play the ukulele. This is an easy instrument to learn and there are even clubs for people who play.