BY: LIZ FLEMING
are endless memory-based games
available online but you can create
one yourself using a simple deck of
cards. Choose eight pairs (queens,
jacks, kings, tens etc.), shuffle and lay
the cards out in four rows of four. Set
a timer and see how quickly you can
match up the pairs by turning over
two cards at a time. Keep a record
and try to improve your time each day
– then add more pairs to the layout.
STEP?
TWO: FOCUS
Focus, focus, focus…yep…attention flutters in at number two on the
brain strain list. If you’re like me and
have the attention span of a gnat,
you’re to be excused. Life is filled with
stimulation and we’re bombarded
on every sensory level. Radios blare,
cell phones hum, televisions squawk,
laptops vibrate with work demanding
to be done. The task faced by your
brain is to sort and separate all the
various competing stimuli so you can
focus on important elements one by
one. Again, you can easily find an
array of online games that will challenge you to sort and separate but
to strengthen that cerebral muscle,
all you really need is the timer on
your microwave and a dishwasher
full of clean dishes. Set the timer
for four minutes and start emptying. See how quickly you can get
things into their proper places (with
a minimum of breakage!) and then
strive for quicker scores each day.
STEP?
THREE:?COMMUNICATE
The third major task for your brain
is language – strong communication
is key to almost everything we do.
Sadly, email and twitter are eroding
our written skills while cell phones
and text messages are making it all
too easy to communicate in monosyllables a chimpanzee could manage. To
battle back to strong language skills,
try reading more, choosing topics
with which you’re unfamiliar. If the
headlines are usually all you scan, try
something indepth in the business or
science section. Look up words you
don’t recognize and then bore your
spouse to death by offering a recap
of what you’ve read over dinner. Set
a moratorium on texting for a day
and insist that you and your family
communicate only verbally, either in
person or on the phone. Your kids will
hate you, but your brain will benefit.
STEP?
FOUR: PRACTICE
Visual-spatial skills are the fourth
boxcar on the brain train and they’re
the ones all you White Oaks members
probably value most. People with
strong visual-spatial skills are killers on the squash and tennis courts
because they know where the ball’s
going to be before it gets there. Practicing sports that rely on hand-eye coordination is a great way to train your
brain but there are other methods that
involve only mental sweat. Try this:
close your eyes and try to visualize
the layout of the Pen Centre. Try to remember which stores are beside one
another. Where are the kiosks and
what are they selling? Next, try to visualize your best friend’s living room.
What’s on the coffee table? How
many table lamps are there and on
which tables do they sit? Going crazy
now, wondering how accurate you’ve
been? Call your friend and check.
STEP?
FIVE: PLAY
The final task on the brain’s to-do list
is what scientists refer to as ‘executive functions’. Whether you’re a
high-powered legal eagle or a happy
retiree, you still make logical, strategic decisions all the time so those
particular brain muscles need to stay
fit. (Your kids are going to love this
bit…) One of the best challenges you
can set yourself, according to brain fitness experts, is a daily dose of video
gaming. Choose a game that involves
working your way through various
levels by solving challenges, finding
lost items and (take a deep breath)
battling nasty opponents whose
nefarious plans for you must be
discovered and foiled. Yes, you’ll feel
like a bit of an idiot begging the kids
to let you have a turn at the controllers, but your brain will thank you!
LIZ FLEMING
IN ADDITION TO EDITING WO, LIZ FLEMING IS ALSO THE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
OF CRUISE & TRAVEL LIFESTYLES MAGAZINE, THE MANAGING EDITOR
OF NATURALLYINNIAGARA.CA AND A REGULAR CONTRIBUTOR TO THE
TORONTO STAR, AND TORONTO SUN. SHE’S THE AUTHOR OF TWO AMAZON EBOOKS “SINCE YOU’RE HERE, WE MIGHT AS WELL SHAG” AND “207
TRAVEL TIPS BECAUSE 101 JUST WOULDN’T HAVE BEEN ENOUGH.
fall 2013 | wo magazine | 49