improve your memory

Two Magic Words for Overcoming Absentmindedness and Forgetfulness

by Joi

Overcome forgetfulness and absentmindedness Have you had a problem with absentmindedness or forgetfulness lately? Maybe you find yourself searching through your thoughts more often than you do your sock drawer! Before we determine if you need a little mental “touch up,” ask yourself the following questions:

  • Have you had a recent loss, such as the loss of a loved one (which of course includes pets)?  Periods of grief affect our minds to a great extent. Our entire body is in the process of addressing the tragedy at hand when we’re grieving. Our minds have little time left for sifting through details.  During the months following a great loss, it’s natural to have trouble remembering things – from where you set your cellphone to what your friend’s phone number is.  Give yourself time to process the loss and relax.  Everything will eventually get back to normal.
  • Have you been ill? Illnesses, and the stress that goes with them, will mess with your mind and thought processes.
  • Is it around the holidays? When we get busy with Thanksgiving and/or Christmas menu planning, shopping, decorating, and so on, it’s natural for some things to get away from us.
  • Have you been under stress lately? Stress can make it difficult to think clearly.
  • Have you been losing sleep? A lack of sleep (like stress) messes with your mind.
  • Are you taking any new medications?

If any of the above situations apply to you, take heart. Normal is just around the corner. Take a deep breath and try not to add any stress to what’s already on your plate.

If these situations DO NOT apply to you, don’t hit the panic button just yet. In fact, your personal memory monster may be easier to slay!  You may need to arm yourself with a mere two words: Pay Attention.

We live in a very, very, very fast-paced society.  We’re often, literally, headed in two different directions at once.  If we’re PHYSICALLY this active, can you imagine the extra strain on our minds, just trying to keep up?  Somewhere along the way, someone placed a particular word on the mantel and gave it godlike status.  The word is “Multitask” and it, honestly doesn’t deserve the fame.

When we try to multitask, we’re basically splitting our mind in half.  We tell the halves, “YOU go this way and YOU go that way. Divide and conquer!”

Does that not leave us operating as halfwits?!  And we wonder why we forget things or lose our train of thought.  Isn’t that what halfwits do?  Obviously, we have to find a way to stop multitasking, start really living in the moment, and start paying attention to everything and everyone around us. I’m possibly the world’s biggest advocate of “In the Moment Living.” Just look at the words I’ve always used in my signature on this particular blog:  “Make each moment count double.”  I’ve been signing off and leading my life with these words for years.  My primary infatuation with the words was this: Life is too precious not to slow down and bear hug even a tiny moment.  After a while, I realized that this approach is as important to our health as it is to our happiness.  What’s more, it’s as vital to our brain’s MOOD as it is to its MODE.

The person who regularly multitasks is just begging for absentmindedness and forgetfulness.

Think about this scenario:  If I’m in the kitchen, baking my world-famous (well, they’re famous in my house anyway) buttermilk biscuits, which of the following will yield the tastiest biscuits:

  1. I stay in the kitchen, ever-mindful of the timer. I check on the biscuits a few minutes before the timer goes off.
  2. I try to squeeze everything I can out of the time by putting in a load of laundry, checking the mail, and feeding my cats.

Obviously, number 1 will lead to buttermilk biscuits that beg to be eaten.  Number 2 would lead to buttermilk biscuits that beg to be thrown out to the birds.

If you are, honestly, so busy and covered up with work that you feel multitasking is the only way you’ll get everything done – reexamine your approach, your schedule, and the things you think are so necessary. If you take an honest look at how you spend your time, you’ll realize that there are a lot of things you could cut out.

Don’t look now, but a new year is upon us.  Make a vow to start really and truly living in the moment and giving each task at hand your undivided attention – whether it’s reading the newspaper or brushing your teeth.  I think you’ll be amazed at how fast your absentmindedness clears up.

Make each moment count double,
~ Joi

The Ultimate List! 100 Ways to Keep Your Mind Sharp and Healthy

by Joi

How are pets beneficial when it comes to mental fitness and brain health? Read on to find out!

Mental fitness and brain health are… excuse the pun…. on everyone’s mind these days.  Not only are baby boomers actively searching for ways to keep their minds sharp and their brains healthy, other generations are seeking the fountain of youth for their minds as well.  You’re just as apt to see a 65 year old in the store, loading up on crossword puzzles as you are a 22 year old buying brain games.  I absolutely love that more and more people are waking up to the importance of good mental health and to the urgency of staying mentally fit.

Remember when we all believed that losing your memory was a part of aging. Thank goodness we know better now!

The time to start getting really serious about strengthening brain is today. Right now.  People with strong minds live healthier, happier, and more fulfilling lives.  What’s more, they retain their memories and abilities to process information much, much longer.

The following list, in no particular order, gives you our mental fitness blog‘s 10 favorite ways to keep your mind sharp and healthy.

Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. – Henry Ford

Get Plenty of Mental Exercise: 

Like any muscle, the brain can suffer atrophy.  If you keep that thought in the front of your mind, you’ll no doubt seek out ways to “work out” your brain each day.  Below are a few ways to sneak in fun workouts for your mind. Please remember to do one or more of these daily.

  • Crossword Puzzles.  Never underestimate just how mentally stimulating a crossword puzzle is.  The ones that run in newspapers are pretty challenging – and they make the cost of the newspaper EVEN more worth it.
  • Jumble Puzzles.  These often appear in newspapers as well, allowing you to get even more bang for your buck.
  • If you don’t buy or subscribe to the newspaper (something I urge you to do for many reasons, including supporting local businesses and neighbors), you can find many puzzles online.
  • Start calculating mentally rather than using pen and paper or a calculator. Whether you’re adding up bills or shopping, go as far as you can mentally before resorting to extra help.
  • Grocery Store Game: Mentally keep a running tab (rounding to the nearest dollar) of the amount of money you’re spending.  At the cash register, it’s fun to see how close you actually come.
  • Subscribe to National Geographic Magazine.  Each magazine provides amazing, exciting, and beautiful lessons.  Bonus Mental Work: After reading each article, mentally “pull out” 5  facts and memorize them. Throughout the week, quiz yourself on the facts from each article.
  • If you’re more of a visual learner, use the above advice with the National Geographic channel (as well as NatGeo, Animal Planet, Discovery Channel, The Travel Channel, etc.)
  • This goes back to newspapers (and is another excellent reason to subscribe or buy a local newspaper daily): Stay on top of local news.  Sadly, more people currently know more about celebrity news than they do world events. I recently overheard a conversation between two women in Starbucks. They were discussing the Kardashians and seemed to know more about them than most members of the infamous family does!  Then one literally said, “By the way, do you have any idea who Michele Bachmann is? My daughter asked me this morning and I was like, I dunno…“  They then proceeded to move their conversation back to Kim Kardashian and I was never more happy than the moment the barista called my name and handed me my Chai Tea Latte. I could escape!  Staying on top of current stimulates the mind.  At the very least, know who the players are!  You can’t really avoid celebrity or pop culture news and events. We’re surrounded by it, everywhere we look. But if your idea of current events is who the last pair was to leave Dancing With the Stars, you need to re-evaluate and stop, mentally, eating only junk food!
  • READ, READ, READ. Read books, magazines, shampoo bottles, blog posts, brochures, etc. Your brain LOVES to read and process information. Never deny it this delight.  Remember, bonus points are racked up when you read informational, educational, and “deep” content.
  • Play video games.  That’s right, I said it!  Did you know that many experts believe that video games can help keep you mentally active, keep your reflexes, reactions, and responses sharp, and (get this) can even help prevent Alzheimer’s Disease!  Now that doesn’t give you free range to play video games for hours on end each day. That would leave no time for other activities like reading, socializing, or stretching your mind in other ways.

We learn more by looking for the answer to a question and not finding it than we do from learning the answer itself. – Lloyd Alexander

Stay Creative

A strong and healthy mind is a well-rounded and creative mind. Never get stuck in a rut where you think about, talk about, or participate in the same things over and over again. Growth doesn’t happen in ruts. What’s more, creativity dies a slow death in ruts.

  • Write!  Buy a journal or even a great notebook and simply record your thoughts and feelings each day.  Bonus points: Every now and then, put your feelings in the form of a poem.
  • If you have family that lives far away, write to them often. Everyone, young or old, loves to get a letter in the mail.
  • Consider setting up a personal blog. You’ll learn something new (how to run your own blog) and you’ll have a wonderful place to let your creativity flow.
  • Head to a local crafts store or the craft section in your favorite department store. Buy a project that interests  you and let your creativity flow!
  • If you have small children around, don’t just read them stories, TELL them stories. When my girls were younger, they actually preferred the stories I made up to the ones I read.
  • Don’t read the same types of books or the same authors all the time. Mix things up!
  • On your next trip to the library or bookstore, grab a magazine about a subject you know nothing about.  If you don’t cook, grab a cooking magazine and read different recipes, tips, and cooking terms. If you aren’t familiar with birds, grab a magazine about birds and learn about the different beauties. Travel magazines are also fascinating.  Expose yourself to different subjects – when you do, you take your brain on fascinating  journeys.
  • Take up cooking. If you already cook, learn a new style or type of cooking each month.  One month you may specialize in Chinese cooking, the next month you may move on to authentic Mexican cooking or Amish recipes.  Mix things up and avoid the dreaded rut.  If you’re new to cooking, tune in often to the Food Network, visit food blogs, and buy popular cookbooks.
  • Listen to Classical Music. It’s relaxing, beautiful, and helps clear your head from thought overload. Bonus: Learn about the composers!
  • Do things differently.  Take different routes to regular destinations, eat with your opposite hand, use chopsticks in Japanese restaurants, etc. When you mix things up, you perk up regions of your mind that might otherwise be lulled to sleep. Do I even have to tell you how dangerous it is when these regions doze?!?!

Learning is like rowing upstream: not to advance is to drop back. – Chinese Proverb

Your Emotional State Matters Greatly

Everything is tied together in your body – your mind, emotions, heart, health, etc.  Each one affects the other greatly, so each one must be taken into consideration.

  • Breath. Practice deep breathing. It allows oxygen to reach every corner of your being – and since oxygen is our lifeline, this is essential.  However, it’s more than that. Deep breathing helps us remain calm and keeps us on an even keel.  Throughout the day, take random “checks” on your breathing. You’ll be surprised at the number of times you’re pretty much holding your breath!  Breath deeper and the rewards will pile up.
  • Laugh more! Find opportunities for laughter and approach them daily.  Whether it’s reruns of I Love Lucy, Sanford and Son, or Friends – find what makes you laugh and enjoy it as often as you possibly can. Laughter truly is the best medicine and it’s an excellent stress reducer.
  • Find ways that work for you when it comes to managing stressful moments. When something stressful happens or a disappointment pops up, deal with it immediately. It’s when we allow these to pile up on one another that we get into trouble.  Spring into action right away.  Some people swear by long hot baths while others love to escape with a great book or their favorite music. Personally? It may sound strange, but I like to soak my feet in a scented, warm, bubbly bath.  After they soak for 5 – 10 minutes, I use an exfoliating brush on my heels, dry them off, and top it all off with my favorite foot lotion and a soft pair of aloe vera socks.  I do all of this while playing relaxing sounds with an iPod app (my favorite is rain… maybe because I’m from Kentucky and Kentucky rain is infamous!).  At the end of the 10 minutes, whatever annoyed me is long gone and my feet and I feel marvelous.
  • Don’t overwhelm yourself or overload your plate. Some people try to do too much and it takes a toll with their emotional, physical, and mental health. If you feel overwhelmed by life, you need to take a good look at your life and prioritize what you need to do.   Never extend yourself further than you’re capable of stretching. If you do, you’ll snap.
  • Get plenty of sleep and rest. Everyone needs their own personal amount of sleep each night – some people require 8 hours or more while others feel best after about 6 or 7 hours of sleep. Your body will let you know when you need more.  Also, remember to rest during the day as well.  Sit back, put your feet up, and let your body and mind unwind.
  • Keep a positive attitude. When you feel yourself having negative thoughts, push them out of the way. Negativity never produces anything worthwhile.
  • Get pets! Having at least one pet is SO rewarding in so many ways. It’s impossible to feel lonely or sad when a precious pair of eyes are lovingly looking at you.  If you can’t have pets, take up squirrel and bird watching. Buy bird feeders, squirrel feeders, and bird houses and invite more pets into your life than you ever imagined!
  • Unwind with gentle stretching and even yoga. Put relaxing music on and unwind from your head to your toes.
  • Don’t try to take care of everyone. Never try to live other people’s lives or do other people’s jobs for them.  When we take care of our self, we soon realize that it’s such a full time job, we don’t have time for anyone else. Allow others to live their lives, make their choices, and find their way.  As you’re able to live your life, allow them to live their life.  They aren’t the only ones who benefit – you reduce SO much stress, anxiety, and worry from your life when you just concentrate on you.
  • Meditation and prayer don’t just work wonders for reducing stress, they are invaluable when it comes to staying focused.

Your Physical Health Affects Your Mental Health

Making healthy decisions rewards you with improved physical health and mental health.  The heart and mind are so closely tied together, it’s actually amazing. What’s good for one is good for the other.

Man’s mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimensions. – Oliver Wendell Holmes

  • Get plenty of physical activity. Whether you walk daily, practice yoga, or workout to an exercise video – be certain to get your blood pumping daily.
  • Take part in your favorite sports and activities. The funner an activity is for us, the more often we’ll do it.
  • Jump on the Wii Fitness craze. It’s incredibly fun and more of a workout than you’re probably already getting.
  • If you’re overweight, lose the extra pounds. Your heart and mind will both thank you for your efforts.
  • Move more. It’s that simple. In stores, walk the longest possible route to what you need.  Go out of your way to take more steps during the day.  Find even simple ways to add more steps like putting the laundry up one item at a time. Any and every way you can add more steps is vital – they all add up.
  • Get fresh air. Even in winter, get outside each day. Find reasons to do so – whether it’s feeding birds, walking a dog, playing with cats, gardening, raking, shoveling, walking, or jogging.
  • Be safe!  Always wear seat belts and use common sense when driving or playing sports. Brain injuries should be avoided at all costs – yes, even if it means wearing a bicycle helmet. Think about it, is it worth the risk?
  • Absolutely, positively avoid illegal drugs of any kind. If it isn’t legal, don’t make excuses for it. Avoid it and you’ll protect your body and mind.  Again, nothing is worth your brain’s health or safety.
  • Avoid alcohol.  Heavy drinking is linked directly to memory loss. Personally, I plan on avoiding anything that poses a risk to my memories!
  • Don’t smoke.   Smoking, obviously, robs your body of precious oxygen. Oxygen is essential for a healthy brain. Essential!  Furthermore, studies show that Alzheimer’s Disease is twice as likely to occur in smokers than non-smokers.  Bonus: Avoid secondhand smoke for these same reasons.

Eat and Drink a Healthy Diet

You are what you eat and it’s never more true than when it comes to brain health. Eating is one of those things we do, often, without even thinking. It’s time to be more mindful about what we put into our mouths.

  • Eat and drink antioxidant-rich drinks and foods.  Drink tea rather than soft drinks for a simple and fast way to up your antioxidant count. Also, eat more fruits and vegetables, which are packed with antioxidants. Bonus: Green tea is PACKED with antioxidants.
  • When it comes to brain health, fish is a super hero.  Eat fish several times a week.  However, avoid mercury-laden fish.  Salmon is one of the best friends your brain could have.
  • Avocados are another delicious way to improve your brain’s health. Avocados increase blood flow, causing more blood flow to the brain. Obviously this is a glorious thing!
  • Two and a half servings of whole grains, daily, reduce your chance of having a stroke.  Strokes are devastating for the victim’s brain, so we should do all we can to prevent them. Look for whole grain cereals, bread, and even pasta.
  • Something I have in my kitchen, at all times, is Olive Oil. This healthy alternative to other oils has been shown to break up clots in capillaries. It also helps with blood flow in general.  Replace other oils, and often butter, with olive oil. I use mine for frying eggs and haven’t missed butter in the least.  When making “French bread” or “Italian bread,” instead of buttering the bread, simply bake it THEN serve it on a platter with a dipping bowl filled with olive oil. Grind black pepper on top of the olive oil and/or sprinkle fresh herbs (thyme, rosemary, basil, or chives) on top.  I also like to slice tomatoes and mozzarella onto plates, then drizzle olive oil on top. Healthy and delicious!
  • Buy organic when possible. Organic means that you’ll have fewer toxins joining you and your food at the table.
  • Blueberries and Goji berries are ninjas  in the battle for brain health. Eat them as often as possible.
  • Drink coffee! Coffee drinkers are less likely to develop dementia or Alzheimer’s than non-coffee drinkers. However, you have to have quite a few cups a day.  Most experts say about 8 cups are the minimum.  In addition to my morning cups of coffee, I also enjoy iced coffee throughout the day.
  • Did you know that breakfast is considered to be the most important meal for your brain?  Another reason to start your day off with a good, healthy breakfast. Oatmeal, eggs, fruit, whole grain cereal, and (of course!) coffee will give you a great start.
  • Drink lots of water to keep your body and mind detoxified and oxygenated.
  • Avoid as much as possible: Fast food, white sugar, overly processed food, hydrogenated vegetable oils (higher cholesterol leads to less blood flow to the brain), high fructose corn syrup (even worse for you than white sugar),

Be Social and Involved in Life Around You

Even homebodies can become more social and involved by taking simple steps. The main objective is to realize that there’s more to life than just you and the space in which you live. Studies show that being more involved and socially active benefit your brain in ways you couldn’t imagine.

  • Develop and nurture e-mail relationships. If you haven’t heard from someone in a while, contact them with a warm, friendly e-mail.
  • Get a Twitter account and take part regularly. It’s easier to set up a Twitter account than it is to comment on most blogs!  (I’m on Twitter HERE!)  Twitter’s a great way to keep up with what’s happening in the world and the perfect opportunity to expose yourself to other people’s thoughts and opinions. After all, we already know our own, right?!
  • Take a class that interests you at your community college.
  • Go through “human” lines in stores rather than the ones where you check yourself out.
  • Don’t monopolize conversations – really listen to what others are saying. People can tell when you’re really interested in them and in their words.
  • Leave comments on blogs you visit.
  • Take part in forums devoted to subjects that interest you.  Google your subject (cats, fashion, bird watching, baseball, cooking, books, etc) + forum. Individual sport’s teams have lively and entertaining forums and cat lover’s forum are always a warm and wonderful place to visit and make friends.

Challenge Your Brain More Than You Are Today

Each day, be mindful of REALLY challenging your brain… BEYOND crossword puzzles, brain games, and reading. Yes, these things are essential, but for optimum brain health and fitness, you need to go further. You don’t have to do each of the things below, of course. They’re simply ideas to use and build upon.

  • Subscribe to a Word a Day e-mail service. You’ll learn a new word each day. Bonus: Learn and remember each word. Study and be able to define each at the end of the week, then at the end of the month.
  • Learn a new language, or at least enough to identify a great range of objects and carry on a casual conversation.  Actually, learning a little bit of several different languages can be one of the best mental workouts of all.
  • Take up a musical instrument such as piano, guitar, or even drums.
  • Learn to do something you always wished you knew how to do. You’re the only one stopping you. Learn to knit, read music, paint, cook, build computers, design websites, write, groom dogs, garden, do yoga, or anything that interests you.
  • Take up a fascinating hobby such as candle-making, pottery, crochet, or soap making.
  • Learn photography and really hone your craft. Read every book and magazine you can get your hands on and become the best photographer you can be.
  • Take a class at your local college in something such as cake decorating, computer repair, first aid, child care, etc.
  • Learn how to paint.
  • Buy paint by number kits.
  • Learn to identify all the different birds in your region (and even beyond).
  • Learn to identify all the different trees, plants, and flowers in your region and beyond.
  • Learn to identify all the different insects in your region and beyond.
  • Learn to play chess.
  • Become the best checkers player in your family.
  • Travel to different places. If you have certain places you always go, venture off in other directions. It’s only “so fun” to see the same sights over and over again. Broaden your boundaries.
  • Become an expert on the Civil War (or Revolutionary War, World War I, World War II, etc.)
  • Get a degree online.
  • Learn Feng Shui.
  • Learn everything there is to know about vitamins and minerals. Become a walking encyclopedia of healthy information.
  • Learn about the healing power of herbs.
  • Take a subject you feel extremely weak in (for me, it’s definitely math) and hit it head on. Go to tutorial websites, buy workbooks, and really push yourself until you no longer feel weak!
  • Here’s a mantra to keep in mind: If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always know what you’ve always known.

 

A Few Extras Brain Healthy Tips

  • Gardening is excellent for stress reduction PLUS learning new gardening techniques increases your knowledge. Bonus: Read every gardening book and magazine you can get your hands on. Bonus #2: Take part on gardening forums and blogs!
  • Take an Omega-3 supplement. Omega-3 amino acids are one of the best brain supplements you could possibly take. They’re also incredibly healthy for your heart.
  • Another supplement you should consider is B Vitamins. Vitamin B complex supplements are known to be incredible brain boosters!
  • If you have a breathing disorder, be certain to do all you can to keep your airways open. The more oxygen your brain gets, the better your brain will function.
  • Get plenty of Vitamin C in your diet. Vitamin C can help prevent Alzheimer’s Disease. It’ll also help keep colds at arm’s length.
  • Nuts are great for the brain. Walnuts, pecans, and pistachios… they’re healthy, delicious, and your brain loves them.
  • Matcha is a powdered form of green tea. It’s like green tea on steroids! It is beyond excellent for mental health.
  • Learn to visualize for quick stress reduction and to quickly release anxiety.  Think of a place that defines peace and contentment for you.  When you’re stressed, annoyed, anxious, or down, close your eyes (if possible) and visualize this place. What sounds do you hear, what can you see, are there any particular smells, how do you feel when you’re here…. If you can’t close your eyes, simply think about the setting and ask yourself the same questions.  (Warning: If you’re driving or at work, please pay attention to what’s going on around you for your safety as well as the safety of others.  If possible, wait until you’re elsewhere to “escape.”)
  • Grape Seed Extract has been shown to prevent the onset of dementia.
  • A great way to keep your memories alive is to think about them often.  If you’re one of the lucky ones, you’ve kept journals over the years and can go back and re-live what happened. If not, consult old pictures.
  • Smells often conjure up memories more than anything else.  Make a habit of smelling different perfumes, foods, flowers, etc – ask yourself what the scent reminds you of and “where the scent takes you.” There’s a particular perfume (Sand and Sable) that takes me back to the first years of my marriage, when my husband was in the military.  Enjoying the scent allows me to relive a lot of beautiful memories.
  • It’s worth repeating, eat more fish! Researchers from Purdue University have proven that those who consume baked or broiled fish at least once weekly have more gray matter in areas of the brain that are at risk for Alzheimer’s disease. Brain health is associated with volume of gray matter in the brain; the more gray matter one has in the brain, the healthier one’s brain is.
  • If you have an iPhone or iPod, find educational and mentally challenging apps. A few of my favorites are Scrabble, Brain Trainer (from Lumosity), Brain2 Free, Math Ninja, Scramble CE, and Word Search, sudoku2, and Crossword.
  • Name Quiz (State Capitals) is a fun app – a great way to remind yourself of the state capitals.
  • Visit eHow often and venture off in different directions each time. The articles read fast and you’ll learn a lot of different cool things.
  • When working puzzles or solving problems, don’t worry about coming up with the correct answer and don’t sweat it when you don’t get something “right.”  The brain is benefited by the challenge, itself. When we ponder over a problem or spend time THINKING, we challenge our brain.  THIS is where the growth occurs – a correct answer is simply icing on the cake.
  • Your brain does not want to be in a rut. There’s no challenge or growth for it there. Remember to take it in different directions, show it different things, and expose it to different challenges and thoughts.  Throw different subjects into the mix, it positively loves it when you catch it by surprise!
  • You HAVE to check out Marbles the Brain Store. The website, the design, the information, the products, the blog… there’s nothing about this site I don’t love and highly, highly recommend.
  • Lumosity is a wonderful, inexpensive, and highly effective way to improve Your Memory. Click here for a Free Trial.


Brain Games

Improve Your Memory and Prevent Alzheimer’s Disease One Bite at a Time

by Joi

What’s something we do every day, without fail? In fact, woe be unto the person who tries to stand between us and this activity?!

Unless we have a stomach virus from Hell, we eat and drink each and every day. Without fail. In fact, we eat and drink pretty much throughout the day. If you were to count the number of bites and sips over the course of a day, it’d be pretty amazing. Then if you counted them all up at the end of the week, you’d be astounded.

That’s a lot of bites and drinks! What’s really worth spending a little time thinking about is this: Each of these bites and each of these drinks is either ADDING to your overall health and well-being or they’re TAKING AWAY from your overall health and well being. If we’re going to allow so many foods and drinks to pass our lips, doesn’t it make sense to choose wisely?

I spend a great deal of time researching healthy foods for the body and mind. Not only do I do research for this mental fitness blog, I also do research for my food blog and self help blog. The same super foods turn up again and again. I’ve often said that what’s good for your heart is also good for your brain and when it comes to food, this is abundantly true. Did you know that the foods that are unhealthy for your heart (such as salt) are even unhealthy for your brain?

For example, Omega 3 Fatty Acids (cold water fish) help protect your brain from dementia and improve your memory. If you don’t typically eat a lot of salmon, trout, and mackerel – the time to start is now. Make a point of having these amazingly delicious and healthy fish several times a week.  Your brain will thank you for it, as will the rest of your body.

The following are just some of the foods that are known to improve your memory, protect your brain, and help prevent dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease:

  • Walnuts
  • Avocados
  • Peanuts
  • Olive Oil
  • Salmon
  • Trout
  • Vitamin E
  • Vitamin C
  • Vitamin B12
  • Whole Grains
  • Blueberries
  • Cherries
  • Plums
  • Broccoli
  • Eggplant
  • Corn
  • Asparagus
  • Onions
  • Strawberries
  • Bell Peppers

From Everyday Health:

Give yourself a memory boost with dark berries that help keep blood vessels in the brain clear and protect brain cells from damage. Eat fruits like blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, and blueberries. Blueberries and similar foods have been shown to actually reverse age-related memory shortfalls in humans and animals. Oranges, cherries, plums, and red grapes are also great memory food. – Everyday Health

Make each moment count double,

~ Joi

Brain Games and Puzzles: Your Brain Craves These Challenges!

by Joi

Brain Games

I buy each and every booklet and book Brain Games comes out with.  They’re fun, challenging, mentally stimulating, and downright addictive.  You can find their booklets in just about any store for less than $4.00 – they’re usually up front near the registers or in the magazine aisle.

Brain Games also has OUTSTANDING lines of books on the market. My advice? My approach?  Keep an eye on Amazon and consistently buy each book you see that you don’t already have.

Yes, as a matter of fact, they’re that good.

To keep your mind sharp, your memory sound, and to do all that you can to prevent Alzheimer’s or Dementia, provide your mind with as much stimulation and with as many challenges as possible.  Having plenty of workbooks and books around will provide you with the easiest way of ensuring you’re doing all you can for your mind.  In addition to physical exercise, a good, healthy diet (remember, anything good for your heart is good for your brain), stress management, and healthy sleep, brain puzzles are fuel your brain needs and even craves.

Below is a brain challenge from the most recent issue of Brain Games (shown above with my trusty pen):

Say What?
Below are a group of words that, when properly arranged in the blanks, reveal a quote from Virginia Woolf.

  • details
  • passionate
  • solitude
  • our
  • lives

“In __________ we give __________ attention to our __________, to __________ memories, to the __________ around us.”


 

Click below for the answer…. after you’ve worked on it sufficiently!

[click to continue…]

How to Strengthen Your Mind and Avoid Brain Atrophy

by Joi

Stretch and strengthen your mind with reading!

Stretch and strengthen your mind with reading – just be sure to read different books in different genres!

This morning I read a great article on Everyday Health (one of my favorite websites, and one that I visit daily, sometimes several times a day!).  The article was called “Longevity: 10 Ways to Add Years to Your Life.” After finishing here, I hope you’ll go read the entire article – there’s a wealth of information.

One of the 10 ways involved mental fitness, and as a mental fitness evangelista (I totally just made that word up… evangelist just sounded so “male”) I perked right up.  I actually haven’t even finished all 10 yet, I was THAT anxious to share this great advice and information with you.

A study funded by the National Institute on Aging (NIA) found that people who most often participated in information-processing activities, such as listening to the radio, reading newspapers, playing puzzle games, and visiting museums were 47% less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease than those who participated least often in these same activities. The reason? “If you sit around and don’t exercise a muscle, it atrophies — and the same goes for the brain,” says Dr. Kimford Meador, MD, fellow with the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) and professor of neurology at the University of Florida. So get your brain working by engaging in mental stimuli that you enjoy. Mind exercises can be anything from reading a good novel to playing cards to working through crossword or Sudoku puzzles.  – From Everyday Health

If I were to condense all of this wonderful advice into a sentence, I’d go with, “Be an active participant in the world around you, always in tune with and in touch with what’s going on.”  When people cut themselves off from other’s and shut out the outside world, they put themselves in grave mental danger. If you don’t use a muscle, you lose a muscle.  Use your brain in many and varied ways each and every day.

  • If you think you’re social enough, become MORE social.
  • If you think you read enough, read MORE.
  • If you think you seek out fresh, new information often enough, learn MORE.
  • If you think you challenge your brain enough, challenge it MORE.

If you want to keep your mind strong and your brain fit, you have to be a proactive participant. PLEASE don’t just read mental fitness advice, heed mental fitness advice.

A final reminder: Don’t keep reading the same types of things over and over. Don’t keep seeing the same genres of movies over and over.  Growth never occurs in ruts and ruts never occur in growth. They’re enemies!  Branch out, spread your mental wings, and challenge yourself in new ways. Pick a subject this week that you know ZERO about and read everything you can get your hands on about it.  Google the subject and/or go to the library.  Make your goal to know as much as you  possibly can about this subject within 7 days.

Here are a few ideas:

If you’re feeling particularly feisty (I like that), choose more than one area of interest. Twice the fun, twice the benefit.  Stretch your mind and challenge it on a daily basis.

Make each moment count double,

~ Joi

Dig in the past! Challenge your mind by reading older books. Reading Shakespeare, the Bible, and books written prior to 1960 will strengthen your mind in ways you never dreamed possible. Your mind will work double-time as it’s challenged to bring the words and meanings of the past into the present. The Bible and Shakespeare are positively beautiful and I’d recommend them even if I didn’t know they were great for you mentally.

Learning a Second Language May Delay Alzheimer’s Disease

by Joi

Learn to speak Spanish

As we’ve always known, learning a second language is great for your brain.  However, its benefits seem to surpass anything we ever hoped for.

New studies show that learning a second language can pump up your brain in ways that seem to delay getting Alzheimer’s disease.

While the study focused primarily on individuals who mastered a second language previously (and have kept their skills sharp – as opposed to forgetting everything you ever learned in your high school Spanish class), experts tell us that even people who take up a second language later in life will benefit.

Naturally, the more proficient you become, the better, but “every little bit helps,” said Ellen Bialystok, a psychology professor at York University in Toronto.

As far as scientists know now, learning a second language does nothing to actually prevent Alzheimer’s disease. But once the disease does begin to rear its ugly head, the mental benefits of tackling a second language cushion the individual so that symptoms don’t become apparent as quickly, Bialystok said.

Even if you take Alzheimer’s out of the picture, learning a second language (or, for that matter, anything NEW and CHALLENGING) stimulates your brain cells in fresh, new ways.  The process keeps you sharp, prevents memory loss, and boosts your confidence.   The brain loves to be stimulated and challenged and will reward you in many wonderful ways, including strengthening and improving your memory.

Give it a try!  Pick a language that interests you and begin your own home study course.  Of course, if you have the time and inclination, you could always take a college class.  You’ll want a program that provides audio and/or video, so you can hear the words being properly pronounced.  Just remember to keep studying and never give up.  Your brain will absolutely love the challenge. Think of all you have to gain!

Drink This to Improve Your Memory

by Joi

Few things are more frustrating than trying to pull up an elusive name, date, or detail from the depths of your memory.  Personally, I think many people needlessly panic when this happens.  Baby Boomers, for example tend to push the panic button so quickly that I suspect some live right next to the infamous button… with their finger hovering over it.

Don’t get me wrong, protecting your mind is serious business.  HOWEVER, every little misplaced name and every song title you can’t come up with do not signal despair, memory loss, or (most certainly!) symptoms of Alzheimer’s.  More times than not they signal:

  • A full life that is so packed with information some of it gets misplaced from time to time
  • A period of your life that is incredibly busy – physically and emotionally: Often caring for aging parents, worrying (Heaven help us all!) about children who are in or entering adulthood, paying off cars and houses – all while working full time.  It’d be a miracle if names, places, and things didn’t get misplaced in the midst of all of that.

To stay mentally sharp and improve your memory, remember this mantra:  Prepare, don’t panic. Strengthen your mind with crossword puzzles, Brain Games (Try the Lumosity Brain Training Program for Only $6.60 a month.), plenty of sleep and relaxation, and a healthy mental diet.

You might want to start that diet off with a juice that’s wonderful for your memory: Blueberry juice.

Scientists at the University of Cincinnati have evidence that blueberry juice actually enhances memory. In a study reported in Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 16 study participants in their seventies (and older) who were having memory lapses were given either 20 ounces of blueberry juice daily or 20 ounces of a placebo.

The placebo didn’t contain any sort of fruit juice at all.

After 12 weeks, the participants were tested on memory function, including word association and list learning. Here’s the exciting part – The blueberry-juice drinkers showed a significant increase in memory and recall abilities. The study also suggested that the juice drinkers experienced a reduction in symptoms of depression and may even have lowered their glucose levels!

So, what are you waiting for? Go buy your blueberry juice today!

Toast to Your Brain’s Health With Apple Juice

by Joi

We’ve always heard that eating an apple a day keeps the doctor away – and with all the nutrients in apples, we have every reason to believe the claim. This old wives tale has feet to stand on.

Research shows that apples can be very beneficial to our brain’s health.

In Jean Carper’s excellent book, 100 Simple Things You Can Do to Prevent Alzheimer’s and Age-Related Memory Loss, we’re told that apple juice aids in the production of acetylcholine, referred to as the “memory chemical.” In fact, according to Thomas Shea, Ph.D. of the University of Massachusetts, apple juice “pushs” production of this memory chemical in a way that’s similar to the popular Alzheimer’s drug Aricept.

In research with apple juice and its effect on memory and brain function, old mice who were given apple juice did better on learning and memory tests than mice that received water.

Experts recommend that we (humans!) aim for 16 ounces of apple juice daily or 2 -3 apples a day. Sounds like a delicious way to help the health of your body and your mind.

Tips for Absentmindedness and Forgetfulness

by Joi

If you’re like me, on most days you have a great relationship with your mind.  If you want to remember a favorite song from the ’80s, you can conjure up the title, band, and possibly even relive the video within minutes.

Then. There.  Are. THOSE. Days. You know the ones – the days when you can’t remember the song, let alone anything else.  Some people call these slips “senior moments,” but unless you’re over the age of 70, you don’t want to be saddled with this term.  Those of us who aren’t even 50 certainly have no use for such a term.  A better term might be “absentmindedness” because it cuts right to the chase… your mind, at least for this “call to action” is pretty much absent.

I also like the fact that the term implies EXACTLY what it should imply, that the condition is temporary and 9 times out of 10, certainly no big deal.

I hate (to the point of cringing) when people panic over absentmindedness.  Some worry that it’s a sign of a loss of memory, dementia, old age, or even Alzheimer’s disease.  To make it even more bizarre, some of the people who express these concerns haven’t even seen their 40th birthday.  To think these thoughts creates a negative environment and robs the individual of self confidence.  It also creates an air of, “Well, there’s nothing I can do.  May as well fade out…”

See why I cringe?

Everyone, even people with extremely good memories and razor sharp minds, experiences absentmindedness.  My husband (Michael) is the brightest person I’ve ever met.  Sharp as a tack.  Honestly, the way his mind works reminds me of a computer as opposed to a mind. He has a goofy, hilarious, life-of-the-party, good-ol-boy personality and approach to life so you’d never really know just how smart he is until you see the mind in action.

Anyway, it kind of makes me smile when he squares off against absentmindedness.  He’ll take off out the back door and have to come back in for this or that – he used to get so mad at himself, but now he just kind of chuckles (along with the rest of us who nod and think, “Welcome to the human race.”).

I think of absentmindedness as a chipper sign in a shop window “Closed for Lunch. Back in an Hour!”

There are several causes of absentmindedness and, when you think about it, it’s a wonder we don’t have MORE mental lunch breaks.  Consider all that we have going on when birthday number 40 has come and gone:

  • Many baby boomers have aging parents to care for, or to at least keep an eye or two on!
  • Baby boomers have children of all ages. Some of these children are still school-age, some have gone off to college, some have gotten married, and some baby boomers have babies still in diapers.  Irregardless of the age, children require a great deal of thought, worry, time, and care.  Don’t ever think any of this slows down when the child hits 16.  Many say this is when the REAL parenting begins!  As well as the sleepless nights, phone calls, financial help, late night talks, parental advice, wringing of hands…
  • Baby boomers are often at the height of their career. Hard work and expertise has paid off and they are enjoying the fruits of their labor – more clients, more responsibilities, more customers, more headaches, more assignments, and longer to do lists.
  • Many people, now, have several jobs. Some may work odd jobs on the weekend, some may work outside the home while running a home business.
  • Add bills, a mortgage, an irritable economy, depressing news (oil spills, hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, war…) – is it any wonder people of all ages often feel that their minds are over taxed?!
  • Something else that many people don’t take into consideration is this: The longer you’ve lived, the more memories you have… the more information you have stored on your hard drive, if you will. A 20 year old will be able to recall and recite the entire roster for a baseball team 2 years ago more easily than a 45 year old could.  It doesn’t have so much to do with age as it does the pure fact that the 50 year old has a lot more baseball seasons under his or her ball cap.  There’s more information to sort through – more names, numbers, and faces.  They say that young minds are like sponges – able to soak up information easily. No, kidding, their sponge is fresh and nearly empty!

So, there you have it.  Now don’t you agree that it’s a wonder we don’t experience absentmindedness more often?!?!   Even people between the ages of 20 and 40 are busier than ever before.  The economy has everyone working at a frantic pace, just trying to keep up – and, Heaven help the ones who actually want to get ahead!

Busy, busy, busy = Absentmindedness.

I know, it doesn’t make it any funner or any less frustrating, but hopefully you’ll be able to keep from panicking the next time it happens.

Fortunately, there are some tips that can help you handle absentmindedness and forgetfulness.  Here they are – write them down… just be sure you remember where you put the list!

  • Keep the items you use the most in a consistent place. Your car keys by the front door, your cellphone on a particular table, your reading glasses beside your favorite chair, and so on.  Searching around for things isn’t any fun and having your daughter call your cellphone, so you can find it, makes her giggle a little too much.
  • Organize everything around you. I cook a great deal (I guess daily counts as a great deal, wouldn’t you say?), so I keep my measuring cups, spoons, rolling pin, blender, mixer, etc. all in appointed spots.  If I need a particular spice or kitchen gadget, I know where it lives and can put it to work within seconds.  My home office should be as organized as my kitchen!
  • Don’t listen to the time management gurus who say that multi-tasking is the be all and end all (although mulit-tasking could be the end of it all!). Give your full attention to what’s at hand – even if it’s watching a ballgame (besides, 2 years down the road, some smarty pants 20 year old may challenge you to name the roster).  Multi-tasking basically says that you’ll devote half of your brain to a particular thing and half of your brain to the other.  Now how is any part of that a good thing?
  • Write notes and to do lists – then use them. I’m one of those people who draws little boxes in front of the to do list so that I can joyfully check it off when I’ve completed the task.  You’ll never find lovelier check marks than mine.  Works of art.
  • Do not procrastinate. Do it the minute you realize it needs to be done.  Procrastination leads to a traffic jam in your mind – the ideal spot for absentmindedness and forgetfulness.
  • Keep a calendar near your work area and one in the kitchen. At the beginning of each month, write in big letters, key dates, assignments, appointments, birthdays, anniversaries, etc.
  • Keep a notebook with you at all times. When you lead a busy lifestyle, you’re apt to hear new names, dates, and bits of information. Never trust yourself to recall any of these later – Heaven only knows what’s going to go on between NOW and THEN.  Write it down, even if you’re certain you’ll remember.  What’s the worst that could happen, you got a little extra penmanship practice?

Finally, the best advice (dealing with this subject) I’ve ever read came from author Richard Leviton. His advice was this:  Periodically, throughout the day, repeat this positive affirmation, “I am paying attention.“  Say it firmly, with conviction, and aloud when possible.  This affirmation reminds you to fight off distractions and to pay attention to what’s going on around you.  It keeps you in the moment and sharpens your mental cutlery.

Stay positive, stay focused, and stay in the moment.  And speaking of moments…..

Make each moment count double!
~ Joi

What is Your Mental Attitude?

by Joi

“Ability is what you’re capable of doing.  Motivation determines what you do.  Attitude determines how well you do it.” - Lou Holtz

The quote above, by one of the greatest football coaches and motivators to ever open their mouth, is one of my favorite all-time quotes.  And for someone who has collected and rejoiced over quotes her whole life, that’s saying something!  What I appreciate so much about this quote by Lou Holtz is the fact that it shows us how VERY much in control we are of our lives.

Our ability may be limited in certain areas, our motivation may wane, but our attitude can carry us home.  You could say that our attitude determines our position at the bird feeder station.   My husband knows what an avid bird (and butterfly) watcher I am.  So he set my computer workstation up near a window in our home.  In my view from the window, he set up a mack-daddy bird feeding station – hummingbird feeder, finch feeder, songbird feeder, water dishes… the whole 9 yards.  I’ve placed beautiful potted plants and flowers around the area, too, so it’s a beautiful relaxing “eye vacation” as work online.

The birds like to “position” for the top perch on the black iron frame.  Mockingbirds, doves, blackbirds, and cardinals desire this perch most of all.  One would think that the blackbirds or the doves (the largest) would win every time.

Not so.

The bird that I see perched at the top more often than not is a tiny little hummingbird, looking around, guarding the red nectar…. something the other birds don’t even want!  The attitude of these tiny birds makes them a gazillion times their actual size.  By the same token, our attitude can make us a gazillion times our actual size.

Have you ever thought about your mental attitude?

Think of Mental Fitness as one of Life’s Majors.  Physical Fitness is another one of life’s majors – as well as relationships, self growth, physical health, etc.

The challenging thing is we have to major in each of these areas – the wonderful thing is we have our entire lives to complete the courses.

If Mental Fitness is a Major, guess what Mental Fitness 101 is…..  Mental Attitude.  That’s where it all begins, which is why I think this post is way, way, way past due.  What have i been doing? If you say “Watching birds,” I’m just going to be hurt.  Irregardless, if this were a perfect world, this would be the first post on this entire site.

If you desire a stronger mind, an improved memory, sharper reasoning skills, and more confidence, you can’t just jump into brain games and motivational articles and expect big wonders.  That’s putting the cart before the horse, which is worthless – especially if the cart has apples, he’ll just eat them…

Think about your mental attitude.  During the course of a day, which of these “affirmations” do you tell yourself most often?

  • I can figure this out.
  • I’m a complete idiot.
  • My memory is getting so bad.
  • I’m too old to figure that out.
  • I can figure anything out.
  • I don’t have nearly enough schooling for this.
  • I have a lot of confidence in my mental abilities.
  • I’m a ditz.
  • I’m smart.
  • I’m the sharpest knife in this drawer!

Hopefully you don’t spend a great deal of time beating yourself up, but unfortunately many people do.  Sadly, they’re undermining their abilities to live up to their potential.  They’re selling themselves short and standing in their own way of learning more, doing more, and living more.

If you recognize your own mental voice in any of the negative affirmations, I want you to realize something:  The things we say to ourselves over and over again create a worn path in our minds and on our lives.  In the way that the most frequently-traveled path in the woods will be the most worn, the most frequently-used thoughts will create the widest path in our minds.

Can you see how dangerous this could be if the path leads to the wrong place?!?!  Can you see how amazing this could be if the path leads to the right place??!?!

That’s why we have to do all we can to watch which path our thoughts are paving.  They’re more than just pathfinders, they’re pioneers.  Please watch where they’re leading you and take the upper hand if you don’t like where they’re headed.

When it comes to our mental attitude, a lot has to do with our past.  If any of the negative affirmations regularly play out in your own mind, I have great news for you… you can put an end to them!  Simply find their source -  where the negativity originated from.  Below are a few of the main sources.

  1. Bad experiences in school. Many people allow poor grades, discouraging teachers, or bad test scores to set up a poor mental attitude.  First of all, a great percentage of schooling and test success is simply memorization.  The so-called mental aptitude tests aren’t nearly as accurate as their proponents would like you to believe and (thankfully!) you CANNOT judge an individual’s mental powers by any number of math tests.  Besides, when we were in school, few of us gave as much attention to our studies as we did the opposite sex, our clothes, television, music, our cars, our hair, ballgames, pep rallys, and extra-curricular activities.   I’ll be honest, improving my mind and learning were the furthest things from my teen-aged mind.  Clothes, jewelry, my baby blue Ford Granada, and John Cougar Mellencamp were just about as far as my mind cared to go.  Put your school history behind you – along with grades, tests, and dirty looks from the teachers.  Banish them to the past along with the out-dated hairstyles!
  2. Negative words from others. This one has the potential to be the most destructive force in an individual’s life. We all have certain individuals in our lives who’s words carry an incredible amount of weight for us.  Whether they’re parents, spouses, or other family members or friends.  We all have people who we (mistakenly) use as mirrors.  We THINK we are how they SEE us.  For better or worse, that’s just not accurate… not even close!  Even the people who are the closest to us don’t know all that we’re capable of.  Sometimes they overestimate, sometimes they underestimate.  They’re human beings, they aren’t mirrors.  If someone who means the world to you – who’s opinion you hang the moon and stars on – has ever called you stupid, ditzy, air-headed, dumb, or uses you often as the butt of jokes (even if they honestly mean no malice with the jokes), they have the potential to destroy your mental attitude.  Flat out destroy it.

If a parent or other loved one has left scars on your mental attitude with their words, the time has come to heal the wounds. Whether they’re in the room or not, say out loud, “You’re wrong about me!“  Many times, people say things in anger that they honestly don’t mean.  Unfortunately, when adults are mad, they resort to playground tactics and name-calling ensues.

Remember:  Just because someone calls you a name doesn’t mean you have to wear it and just because they give you a label doesn’t mean you have to wear it.

If someone stuck a piece of paper to your back that said STUPID and told you to wear it for a whole day – unless there were $1,000,000 attached to the situation, you’d yank the label off and tell them where they could stick it…. for longer than just a day.  Yet many of us will wear a negative, condescending “verbal” label for a lifetime.  Why?!

Take off any and all labels that are negative and REFUSE to ever put them on again. Create your own labels and wear them instead.  I don’t care if a parent or even a spouse has given you negative labels – I promise you you don’t have to wear them.

Another situation that can undermine a mental attitude is a financially challenged childhood.  It’s my belief that children who are unusually poor tend to carry their share of issues into adulthood. Many of these kids grow up with an attitude of “I have to prove myself to everyone” – and they set off to do just that.  These determined little guys and gals often grow into workaholics and, if they don’t ever feel “satisfied” that they’ve outgrown their childhood circumstances, they’ll often push themselves too hard and they’ll one day deal with stress problems, anxiety, and a host of other health problems.

Children who live through poverty often feel that they aren’t quite as smart as other kids.  I know that’s outrageous. You know that’s outrageous.  But children are very sensitive to feeling different – and the feelings that we have, even as very young children, tend to follow us all of our lives.

Adults who have had their mental attitude “bruised” by these sorts of lingering insecurities can, figuratively, set their child self down and have a good talk with them!  When you realize how far you’ve come, the things you’ve accomplished (things that, at 7 years old no one would have given you a shot to be able to do), you’ll be able to see that your childhood didn’t weaken you at all – it gave you strength that you might not have had otherwise.

No matter what has caused your mental attitude to be less than best, take heart that it doesn’t have to stay like this. You can turn things around, starting today.  This very premise is the foundation that this website (The Mental Fitness Center) and this blog (Out of Bounds) were built upon.

From Brain Builders by Richard Leviton:

Your brain, or what scientists like to call the 3-pound universe is the next frontier in human development.  Your brain contains an estimated 100 billion neurons, or nerve cells, and is capable of outstanding feats of computation and information processing.  Despite this wealth of potential brain power, most people use no more than about 4 – 10 percent of their possible brain capacity.  The good news is that this is easily changed.

The truth of the mater is, you can increase your brain power… but you can’t put the cart before the horse.  On this site, we talk at length about foods for brain health, overcoming anxiety, mental fitness, brain games, and a  host of other self growth topics.  I want you to realize, however, that none of these will benefit you until you have a healthy mental attitude.

You have to KNOW that you are capable of learning and capable of growing.  You have to KNOW that you are worth it.  Rip off the labels and never allow anyone or anything to ever “label” you again. If you allow negative labels to “stick” to you, it’ll be nearly impossible to grow out of their shadow.

Take them off. Bury them in the yard. Take that, name-callers and circumstances.

I have countless articles, exercises, and resources planned for Out of Bounds and The Mental Fitness Center, and I’m excited about the site’s growth.

Needless to say, I’m even more excited about our growth.  So, what do you say? Let’s grow!

Make each moment count double,
~ Joi

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