|
 |
> Features > Pg 2 Feature Stories > It's not too late to get your brain in shape
It's not too late to get your brain in shape |
|
|
| |
|
Image created by Leo Pilares
|
Jan. 18, 2010
By Courtney Llewellyn
Reminder Assistant Editor
How's that New Year's resolution going for you? I bet I know. I bet you went to the gym on Jan. 2, signed up for a membership, got some sweet gym swag (like that T-shirt you'll never wear and some stickers you won't stick anywhere) and you've been working out like a maniac for the past two weeks.
I bet this is draining for you, but I'm proud of you, Pioneer Valley. You've made a resolution to get your bodies in shape and live healthier lives.
But what about your brain? Did you make a resolution to keep that in shape too?
We tend to forget about that mass of gray matter in our heads because we can't physically see it. And, there's no machine at the gym that targets that particular muscle.
You can prevent muscle loss with exercise, and the same could be said of your brain. But how can you do that once you're out of school (other than watching "Jeopardy!" every night)?
Trivia is Not Trivial
Every Sunday night, the Mick (inside the Delaney House in Holyoke) hosts a trivia competition from 6 to 8 p.m. The contests are led by Marx Entertainment.
"Trivia is a really great thing," Mark Ashe, owner of Marx Entertainment, said. "It exercises everybody's brains. It's fun and competitive."
A DJ asks guests at the Mick questions from a variety of categories, from history and sports to geography and pop culture, and teams work together to answer the questions.
"We've had a lot of fun with the trivia," Peter Rosskothen, co-owner of the Log Cabin and the Delaney House, said. "We usually see between 20 and 40 people for the contests."
The winners of the competition each week receive a gift certificate to the restaurant, but Rosskothen believes there's more to the contests than food and prizes.
"What I learned from my parents and my grandparents was that you have to keep your brain active," he stated. "Trivia, puzzles, any kind of mental activity can keep your brain strong."
Rosskothen said his areas of expertise include food and geography, but he tends to get his mental workout by reading often.
"I think getting your brain in shape is a great resolution," Ashe said. "People do tend to focus on their bodies and not their brains."
For more information on the Mick's Sunday Night Trivia, visit www.logcabin-delaney.com and click on What's New/Upcoming Events.
Don't Slow Down
Thomas Tutko, Ph.D., of the Lifelong Fitness Alliance, has written that "Brain exercise ... refers to consistently using the brain in challenging activities." He recommends this especially for those age 50 and over.
Tutko said one way of keeping the mental edge is to undertake a totally new area of mental activity, like learning to play a musical instrument, studying a new language, filling out crossword puzzles and more.
"These may seem like odd tasks and yet individuals who regularly practice these activities at a later age appear to be the 'sharper' set," Tutko wrote on the Lifelong Fitness Alliance's Web site, www.50plus.org. "Not that you will master these activities, but you keep your brain in a continual state of being challenged and thus being exercised. Being a 'couch potato' is not a recommended way of exercising the brain!"
East Village Place in East Longmeadow offers a way for seniors to get their mental exercise a variety of ways with their Watermark University program, developed by Watermark Communities.
"Stimulating the mind has benefits at any age," Jessica Szczepanek, marketing director of East Village Place, said. "It can even slow the process of memory loss. That's why this program was developed."
Szczepanek said the course catalog for Watermark University is similar to one offered by a college. It offers everything from scrapbooking and trivia to drama and "armchair travel." And the classes are open to everyone, not just those living at East Village Place.
"We encourage people to try something new or to pick up the things they once did," Szczepanek said.
Doris Messenger, an 83-year-old resident of East Village Place, took up that advice. She takes writing classes, focusing on her memoirs, and trivia classes.
"I believe the only way you can be happy is to be active, in both your brain and your body," Messenger told Reminder Publications. "I can't imagine what it would be like without keeping my mind in shape. You have to use your brain and you have to use your body every day."
To learn more about Watermark University, log on to www.watermarkcommunities.com.
Begin Your Regimen
One of the wonders of working out your brain is how easy it is. Start with this newspaper - just by reading this, you're completing your warm up. When you're done with this article, flip to the crossword puzzle. That'll be your 5K run.
It's still January. You can still make mental fitness a resolution for 2010. Pick up a book. Play some Scrabble. Go ahead, watch "Jeopardy!" - but turn the TV off before "Jersey Shore" comes on. I'm pretty sure that show kills brain cells.
These are the basics, though. These suggestions are like taking a walk around the block. Push yourself a little harder and sign up for some classes. Learn conversational Italian. Take a cooking class. Keep your gray matter busy. It will definitely help you in the long run.
Oh, and don't forget to have fun.
|
Comments From Our Readers:
|
|
|
|
