Five ways to stimulate your brain, whether you are an adult struggling with day to day drudgery, or whether the kids need a bit of focus time!
These tips for fitness performance are from Dr Andrea Furst, Sports Psychologist. Andrea works with British athletes and Olympians from a variety of sports, to enhance the mental side of their game
- Train your mind like a muscle: adopt the same approach to training your mind as you do your body’s muscles. Take the time to learn about yourself and your mental approach, to then enable the improvement to your mental skills.
- Shake up your clever, but lazy brain: our brains like patterns and trends to conserve energy – so to make behavioural change you will have to direct your brain to dedicate the effort and work required to achieve your goals.
- Thing. At. A. Time: slow your thoughts down by focusing and engaging on one task at a time, multi-tasking typically results in a very busy, exhausted brain!
- And breathe: learn how to breathe effectively as breathing techniques will give your mind something to focus on and in turn, relax your mind and body.
- Be present: find activities to be fully engaged in, such as jigsaw puzzles as they can help quieten the mind and be in the present moment. When your attention is on shapes and pieces, rather than split every which way, it creates a calming effect and can help reduce stress and anxiety.
A fantastic option for a brain training game is the new Puzzle of Positivity, a 1,000-piece jigsaw puzzle in the Gibsons contemporary, design-led White Logo Collection. Available from gibsonsgames.co.uk