10 Brain Neurobic Exercises That Make You SMARTER
What Is Neurobics?
Neurobics is the science of mental exercises that helps the brain to stay fit.
Lawrence Katz, PhD and Manning Rubin, who coined the term “neurobics” stated that when you use all of your senses in new and unexpected ways, you will not only activate your brain but also stimulate the growth of new nerve pathways.
When you do physical exercises, you are maintaining the health of your body and just as you are able to train & toughen your body, you can also enhance and strengthen your mental abilities by practicing neurobic exercises.
“Just like aerobic exercises emphasizes different muscle groups to enhance coordination and flexibility, neurobic exercises involve activating many different brain areas to increase the range of mental motion”. - Lawrence Katz, Ph.D.
How Is Neurobics Different From Other Brain Exercises?
Neurobics are not quite the same as brain exercises that use logic, for example, crossword puzzles and Sudoku. For these types of exercises, you are just basically repeating something that you already know, thus only using the same brain neurons.
Neurobics is different because it requires you to do some things you may not be familiar with or something that you do not usually do on a regular basis. What happens in your brain when you do these exercises is that you stimulate and activate different, underused nerve pathways and connections.
The result is the production of a kind of natural brain fertilizer that strengthens nerve connections and fights off the effects of mental aging.
Examples of Brain Neurobics Exercises
You can do neurobic exercises any time of the day, it does not matter where you are, whether you are getting up, commuting, working, eating, shopping or even relaxing.
The key to getting it right is for you to involve all five senses and not just use the dominant ones which includes vision and hearing.
Here are some of the simple neurobic exercises that you can incorporate into your daily life.
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Smell new odorous in the morning. Instead of the usual tea or coffee smell that you usually wake up to in the morning, try putting a bottle of mint or vanilla extract that you could smell first thing in the morning.
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Use your non-dominant hand. This is one of the popular neurobic exercises. Try brushing your teeth or eating or even writing with your non-dominant hand. This may be difficult at first, and thus will require your full attention.
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Spend time in a new environment. If you are so used to the busy city life, you may want to consider going for a vacation or a short trip to mountainous areas, for example.
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Use a new route. Have you ever wondered if there is a different route to go to work? Who knows, you may find a faster way to get to your office, once you break your usual routine.
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Take up a new hobby. Hobbies that require the use of more than one sense eg. gardening or painting are the most neurobic. They make fine distinctions within one sensory system.
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Shower with your eyes closed. When you limit one sense, your other senses heighten and become more active.
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Learn new languages. Any discomfort or stress you may feel taking in new languages, sounds and sights are actually your brain kicking it up a notch!
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Spice up your fashion style. Ever notice how you feel like a different person when you wear different clothes? You may think differently as well. Why not give it a try.
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Change your shopping routine. Shop for your groceries from different stores or markets, or try going first to the aisle that you would usually go last and vice versa.
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Rearrange the stuff in your room. Repositioning the location of familiar items forces your visual and somatosensory areas to adjust your internal maps.
Medically reviewed by Ashwini Nair, MB BCh BAO.
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References:
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Das, P. (2017). Neurobic Exercises. [online] Physiotherapy-treatment.com. Available at: https://www.physiotherapy-treatment.com/neurobic-exercises.html
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Armstrong, L. (2013). How to exercise your brain. [online] SheKnows. Available at: https://www.sheknows.com/health-and-wellness/articles/1016375/neurobic-tips/
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Gillman, S. (2019). Neurobics. [online] Increasebrainpower.com. Available at: http://www.increasebrainpower.com/neurobics.html
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KEEP YOUR BRAIN ALIVE. (2014). KEEP YOUR BRAIN ALIVE. [online] Available at: http://www.keepyourbrainalive.com/
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Mindvalley (2016). How "Neurobics" Keeps Your Brain Young | Marisa Peer. [video] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UgAzFDC3oU
