Health Mind & Mood Memory 5 Ways to Train Your Brain for Lifelong Mental Fitness Can't find your keys? Don't worry—despite occasional glitches, it's possible to sharpen your mind, improve brain fitness, and maintain tip-top mental shape. By Sally Wadyka Sally Wadyka Sally Wadyka is a writer, editor, and content creator with over three decades of experience in print and digital publishing. Highlights: * Began her career in editing positions at Glamour, Vogue, Women's Sports & Fitness, and Mademoiselle * Spent two years as a contributing editor at Real Simple * Spent seven years as a contributing editor at Shape * Was a columnist and blogger for MSN Healthy Living * Content writer for the Aha! media group * Freelance writing has appeared in Real Simple, Martha Stewart Living, Prevention, The New York Times, and Consumer Reports, among other publications Real Simple's Editorial Guidelines and Maggie Seaver Maggie Seaver Maggie Seaver is the digital health and wellness editor at Real Simple, with seven years of experience writing lifestyle and wellness content. She spends her days writing and editing stories about sleep, mental health, fitness, preventive health, nutrition, personal development, relationships, healthy habits, and beyond. She loves demystifying complicated health topics, debunking wellness fads, and sharing practical, science-backed solutions for healthy living. Real Simple's Editorial Guidelines Updated on May 1, 2023 Medically reviewed by Samina Ahmed Jauregui, PsyD Medically reviewed by Samina Ahmed Jauregui, PsyD Samina Ahmed Jauregui is a specialty trained sleep psychologist with expertise in non-pharmaceutical, behavioral treatment of sleep disorders. Other areas of mental health expertise include chronic illness management, pain management, and mood and anxiety difficulties that impact physical health and wellness. Dr. Ahmed has five years of experience in the field of sleep psychology. Learn More Fact checked by Haley Mades Fact checked by Haley Mades Haley is a Wisconsin-based creative freelancer and recent graduate. She has worked as an editor, fact checker, and copywriter for various digital and print publications. Her most recent position was in academic publishing as a publicity and marketing assistant for the University of Wisconsin Press Our Fact-Checking Process Share Tweet Pin Email Ever find yourself staring into your closet, unable to recall why you're there or what you needed in the first place? Or do you sometimes jumble perfectly easy sentences or blank at a pivotal moment during a work meeting? If you're young and relatively healthy, what's the deal? Brain blips can be unnerving, but they're completely normal. The good news is they're rarely the sign of a declining mind. We tend to think of youth as a time of peak mental capacity and that once our child-prodigy days are gone, there's no hope left. But the human brain is most likely at its best during midlife, when life experiences combine with decades' worth of neural connections, resulting in peak intelligence and ability. "We may not learn or recall information quite as quickly as we did in our teens and 20s," says Sandra Bond Chapman, Ph.D., the founder and chief director of the Center for BrainHealth at the University of Texas at Dallas. "But during our 30s, 40s, and 50s, we get better at what matters most: making decisions, synthesizing information, and coming up with big ideas." That means, however old you are now, it's never too late to adopt healthy habits that will get your brain in good shape—and even improve with time. As we age, it's natural for neurons to fire more slowly, but stress and anxiety cause people to pathologize perfectly normal experiences—like forgetting an acquaintance's name (again). "You probably pay attention to the few things that go wrong, but don't give your brain credit for the thousands of things it did right," Chapman says. Instead of focusing on the occasional lapse, concentrate on daily habits. What you do today will play a significant role in whether you operate optimally in the present—and whether you develop more serious cognitive deterioration, like dementia, later in life. When it comes to brain function, everyday behavior matters as much as—if not more than—your DNA. Whether you're 23 or 63, here are five proven ways to gain a mental edge for years to come. Brain Games Aren't the Best Way to Keep Your Mind Fit—Here's What to Do Instead 01 of 05 Try a new hobby or skill. Listening to classical music and doing the crossword every week will bolster your brain, right? Unfortunately, not as much as you think. While these habits are certainly more stimulating than zoning out to another Friends marathon, research suggests that a great way to boost brainpower is through learning something entirely new—either mental (such as learning a new language) or physical (like signing up for a different yoga class or learning how to knit). As we cultivate an unfamiliar skill, our brains get more flexible and form new neural connections that get stronger over time. According to a 2015 study from the University of Texas at Dallas, older adults who learned cognitively demanding activities, like quilting and digital photography, improved their memories. On the other hand, those who listened to classical music, watched classic movies, or engaged in social activities, didn't have the same gains. Another study from 2020, published in The Journals of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, suggests that regularly deviating from a mundane routine and getting exposure to a diverse array of activities throughout adulthood can boost cognitive functioning and decelerate the signs of cognitive aging, such as memory loss and declines in information processing. 6 Creative Hobbies That Double as Stress-Busters 02 of 05 Take your knowledge further. Take your learning to the next level by using your brain for what it does best: fusing existing and new information. "It will repay you by strengthening its complex neural networks," explains Chapman. For example, you know how to read and love to read—but now take your favorite cerebral pastime one step further and get more mental bang for your buck (so to speak). Next time you finish a great book, spend a little extra time writing a Goodreads review, blog post, or digital journal entry for your eyes only (a Word or Google doc will do). You might be surprised at what you come up with while mulling it over again. Or reach for a pen and your journal: Studies show that writing by hand—rather than typing—improves information processing, as well as the ability to remember what you're writing about. Journaling Is Scientifically Linked to Happiness—Here Are 5 Easy Tips to Start Writing More 03 of 05 Eat for your mind, not just your body. The brain, as much as the body, is affected by what you eat and drink. Thankfully, good brain nutrition looks a lot like body nutrition. Notable research published in 2015 from Rush University and the Harvard School of Public Health found that middle-aged and older adults who adhered to an eating plan called the Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay (MIND) diet were able to decelerate cognitive decline. They scored the equivalent of seven and a half years younger on cognitive tests after one year of eating that way. As the name suggests, the MIND diet is a hybrid of the Mediterranean and DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diets. Like the Mediterranean diet, the MIND diet emphasizes nuts, beans, whole grains, poultry, and olive oil. But unlike the former plan, it calls for consuming leafy greens daily and at least two weekly servings of berries, as both are rich in brain-boosting antioxidants. 6 Nutrient-Packed Foods to Eat for Better Brain Health 04 of 05 Work up a sweat regularly—especially if you need an edge. It shouldn't be news that exercise is good for your mood and overall brain fitness. Researchers have identified exercise as one of the most critical factors in maintaining a healthy brain. Previous research has found that regular physical activity is linked with an increase in gray matter in the hippocampus, an area of the brain crucial to memory. Exercise can also reduce stress, boost creativity, and bolster self-esteem. 5 Things That Happen to Your Mental Health When You Don't Get Enough Exercise But working out on days when you have, say, a big presentation or a stressful test can give your mind the added sharpness it needs. Take this study, for example: Adults who did aerobic exercise regularly for four weeks—and exercised the morning that they took memory tests—scored higher than regular exercisers who skipped their workout on test day, according to a 2012 study from Dartmouth College. Exercise's stress-thwarting effects may be partially responsible: "Stress is toxic to the brain," Chapman explains. "It releases the hormone cortisol onto the hippocampus, where memories are stored." That can make you momentarily forgetful and may weaken neural connections over time, increasing the odds of dementia. All that said, don't miss out on regular sweat sessions when things aren't especially stressful. Along with its more talked-about physical health benefits, keeping up with a fitness routine is a lifelong way to boost mental well-being and focus. 05 of 05 Prioritize sleep. Fact: Adults need a solid seven to nine hours of sleep every night to reap the full mental and physical health benefits of sleep. Sleep is crucial for the brain—storing short-term and long-term memories, maintaining and improving cognitive dexterity, processing emotions, and strengthening and repairing neural connections—are a few things that happen upstairs while you snooze. "The brain processes information and consolidates ideas while you sleep," says Chapman. "And most of that appears to happen between the sixth and eighth hours." Short-change your sleep for just one night, and it can take several nights of solid slumber to return to your sparkling, coherent self. And chronically short-changed sleep, the effects of which can accumulate exponentially over the years, has been linked to mental health concerns from Alzheimer's disease to depression and anxiety. Do you have trouble falling asleep? Consult a doctor or sleep specialist before turning to sleep aids. Prescription sleeping pills, although safe for occasional use, contain active ingredients that can slow down brain waves, making you feel groggy the next day. Over-the-counter (OTC) sleep medications are dicey, too. Most contain diphenhydramine, an ingredient linked to short-term cognitive impairment (that hangover-esque feeling). Worse yet, people who used the OTC medications regularly for several years were at an increased risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease later in life, according to a 2015 study published in JAMA Internal Medicine. To avoid the downsides of sleep deprivation, see a sleep specialist if you struggle to catch enough Zzzs every night. 11 Healthy Habits That Can Help You Sleep Better Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit Sources Real Simple is committed to using high-quality, reputable sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts in our articles. 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