Brainstorming Methods

Poll

	|   |

Author:
Steve Gillman

Can you boost brain power with exercise? Several relevant studies were reported on at the annual Meeting Of The Society Of Psychophysiological Research in Montreal recently. The findings showed both immediate benefits from exercise, as well as long-term effects. Exercise seems to help your brain work more efficiently and actually make you smarter.

In one study, the thinking ability of subjects was tested. After the tests, they ran on a treadmill for thirty minutes. Then, when their hearts returned to normal resting levels they took the follow-up tests. For all tests the subjects were connected to an elctroencephalogram (EEG), in order to track their brainwaves.

The first thing researchers noted was that exercising had sped up the speed of their decision-making. It was a significant difference. Upon scoring the tests, it was also found that the subjects answered more accurately after the exercise than before.

The study participants were between 18 and 24 years old, but researchers think the findings will hold true for other age groups as well. Another study showed that just ten minutes of moderate exercise each day can improve mood and reduce fatigue. Brainpower specifically wasn't tested, but it seems likely that less fatigue means better brain power.

Best Exercise For Brain Power?

Most research has focused more on the duration of exercise more than on the specific type. Aerobic exercise seems to be the common element in the studies that have shown improvements in brainpower, however. It seems likely that running, bicycling, swimming, dancing and any other aerobic exercises will have the same effect.

Ten minutes of exercise is apparently enough to have effects on the brain. It's not clear how much more benefit there may be with longer exercise sessions. Interestingly, while most scientists probably expected to find brain power benefits from long-term exercise programs, the study using treadmills showed an immediate effect as well. In other words, get up and run around, and you can be smarter ten minutes from now.

Many people find that walking is one of the best ways to boost brain power. Apart from the aerobic benefits that are now being explained by recent studies, there seems to be something more. Perhaps it has something to do with the rythmic and relaxing nature of the exercise, but many people report that their clearest and most creative thinking happens when walking.

The benefits of exercise include better sleep, a healthier immune system, weight control, and a lower risk of heart disease, cancer and diabetes. Now you can add better brain power to that list. Why not take a walk today?

About the Author
Steve Gillman has been studying brainpower enhancement, creative problem solving, and related topics for years. Learn more, and subscribe to his free Mind Power Course, at: http://www.IncreaseBrainPower.com

A Quick Note From The Publisher... If you like the article above, you may be interested in the following article which is also related to Brainpower... Random Word Brainstorming When I was first exposed to this method, I was somewhat skeptical. The occasion was a brainstorming evening to generate new ideas for my book's title. As our group gathered, A hypnotherapist colleague of mine, suggested this innovative brainstorming approach. With the topic identified beforehand, the process began with a member of the group being asked to open a dictionary to any page. He then randomly selected a common noun, which was written on a flip chart. Each person was asked for a single word that he or she associated with that noun. The group was then asked to suggest associations between each of these words and the topic, accelerated learning. The words flowed in amazing quantity. We repeated this process a few times. Why did this technique work so well? It's really quite simple. In a typical brainstorming session, when members of a group are asked to come up with ideas or solutions to a problem, their minds access their memory banks and download what is already known about the issue. Introducing the random word method forces the mind to find a link between dissimilar things. Because of the gap between the random word and the topic, ideas may be quite unusual, or even off-the-wall. As the group members build on each other's ideas, they generate more creative solutions. This method is fast and simple, and usually leads to ideas that are more creative than those generated from the classic brainstorming format. International speaker, Dr. Brian E. Walsh, is the bestselling author of Unleashing Your Brilliance. For much of his 30-year corporate career he was involved in human resources, specifically training. While living in the arctic, Brian studied anthropology and Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP), which prepared him for working with other...