5 Techniques to Increasing Mental Efficiency and Mood
(Because who has time for 10 techniques, ya bunch of lazies)
The Daily Friz
Getting Started
Do you feel depressed, low energy, or just have a hard time concentrating on a project? If so, these 5 techniques for sharpening your mental focus may be for you. Who doesn't want to feel more attentive and focused on the world around them? Perhaps you need to increase your memory retention while studying for a big exam or you need better memory recall for reciting those lines in that big play? Try these 5 simple methods for just one week and feel the difference. You can thank me later.
#1. Brighten things up in your environment.
Nature versus Nurture has been debated since the philosophical infancy of psychological studies. However while your biology may make you more predisposed towards symptoms of things like depression and addiction, your environment impacts your behavior by influence and availability of options. Being in a darkened environment during waking hours has been shown to decrease productivity and even the overall mood of individuals. Try being in the sun for a few hours a day or if your inside, stay in a well lit area that either encourages natural lighting or mimics daylight as much as possible.
#2. Have a regular sleep cycle.
I hate to break it to you; you most likely do not have any clinical reason for not being able to sleep at night. It actually tends to be the activities you pursue because you can't sleep that are keeping you awake. Telling yourself that after you beat this level in a video game, finish that episode of your new favorite show, or make it through the last chapter in your book then you'll go to sleep is only conditioning your body to stay awake longer. You need a steady wake sleep cycle in order to regulate the production of serotonin and melatonin in your body. These hormones regulate such things from mood to even appetite. Having regular levels of serotonin for example have been shown to increase feelings of well being to cognitive effectiveness.
#3. Trick your brain into thinking you are happy.
Studies had shown that there may be a valid link between outward appearance and internal mood. The brain-body relationship has been developing behavioral associations since you were born. Because of this, most likely you tend to associate the physical act of smiling with the mental mood of happiness. Trying fake smiling or even fake laughing for 15 seconds next time you begin to feel overwhelmed or stressed. This tricks your brain into thinking it is happy and will reward you chemically as such.
#4 Synchronize your cerebral hemispheres
The human brain has many different quadrants and functions relating to its individual sections; however the most generalized are the left and right sides of your brain. Help sync up both sides of your brain by doing a few exorcises. Toss a ball up and catch it a few times with your less dominate hand while looking with only the opposite side's eye a couple of times a day. This will increase coordinative adaptation, so you can tackle new physical challenges easier. Before sitting down to study, increase neural displacement by crossing your arms over your chest and having each hand grab it's opposite's ear. Do this while doing about 5 to 10 small squats. This will sync up the sides of your brain allowing for better communication and information storage between the two halves.
#5 Eat foods your brain likes.
This one may seem like common sense but few actually go out of their way to eat for their brain. Like how rust on metal decreases a machine's functionality, so too does cellular aging occur by oxidation. When this happens in the brain memory, judgment, physical coordination, and other aspects are affected. Perhaps the easiest to acquire and most powerful antioxidant rich food you can eat are blueberries. Cooked and/or processed blueberries won't yield as much benefits as fresh or frozen whole blueberries. This super food is even being studied for treatment of Alzheimer's disease because of its antioxidant qualities. Try eating just one 1/2 cup of blueberries a day for a week and see how you feel. Other brain foods include avocados, nuts, and deep-water fish for their brain needed fats as well as simple things like oatmeal, brown rice, and other whole grains to increase blood flow.
Pro Tip:
If you are trying to learn a new language, begin practicing a new musical instrument (or vise versa) around the same time. The areas of the brain involved with learning these skills complement each other and it may increase your success by learning them together rather than doing each separate.
5 Techniques in Short Review:
1. Stay in well light areas.
2. Go to bed and wake up around the same time each day.
3. Fake smiling more often.
4. Use your less dominate hand more often.
5. Eat blueberries!
Tags: Mental, Alertness, Focus, Brain, Memory, Mood, Depression, Happiness, Smarter, Study, Attention, Frizbeen, The Daily Friz
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