In this age of information, regular brain exercises have become a necessity to improving brainpower and maintaining good mental health. Exercise sounds like a chore, but brain tune-ups can be achieved by indulging in mentally challenging hobbies. Do you currently have one?
If you don’t, the year-end is the perfect time to pick up a new interest. Aside from expanding our capacity to think, discovering hobbies is one way of regularly bringing something fresh into our daily routine. To help you decide, here are 6 interesting hobbies that you can start exploring today:
Language learning
Speaking a second language is a popular brain booster. Studies have shown that learning a new language can improve your memory and capacity to absorb new concepts.
In addition, knowing how to speak more than one language makes you a more cultured person overall. It opens up world of different traditions, people to meet, and even unique job opportunities.
Trivia contests
Did you know that memory recall is an effective way to rebuild and strengthen our long-term memory? Digging deep into your stock knowledge during a pub trivia night can reduce your risk of suffering age-related memory loss when you’re older. Start by gathering a few friends with varied interests and look out for weekly trivia games hosted in your neighborhood.
Strategy games
If you consider yourself a gamer, you’d be thrilled to know that strategy games are considered a more animated version of chess – they train your logic and ability to think and plan under pressure.
Popular game apps like Clash Royale, Hearthstone, and Plants VS Zombies are free to download and are, surprisingly, productive ways to pass your time.
Making art
Creating any form of art is good for your brain. This study gathered and enrolled a group of young adults in a weekly art workshop where they were encouraged to create original art.
After 2 months, neurologists observed better brain functionality in the participating individuals. This simply means that parts of your brain responsible for your emotions and reactions work better together when you exercise it by painting, creating collages, or writing music.
Lock picking
Lock picking is one of the oldest pursuits in the world, even older than civilization. In 1777, this hobby gave rise to problem-solving contests that drew attention from the British government. Lock picking is a truly fun hobby to explore, and up to this day, it remains a useful skill that can be easily learned.
For starters, the best way to start is to choose a lock picking tool, depending on which locks you want to learn solving. Once you’ve picked your first lock, you’ll be itching to find newer and harder ones to unlock.
Assembling stuff
Ready-to-assemble furniture and toys are jigsaw puzzles for adults. The process of bringing a completed product to life improves our creative and spatial thinking abilities, which we use when remembering new people we meet or navigating maps. The next time you need to replace home essentials, purchase one at IKEA or any similar shop to enjoy the brain boost assembling gives.
