Science indicates that training the mind has great benefits for human beings since, on the one hand, new neural networks are developed and, with it, new learning. On the other hand, physiological and cognitive deterioration is stopped in the entire population in general and, more specifically, in the case of people with dementia. To train the mind there are different techniques and all of them seek to speed up and expand the functioning of the brain circuit.
In this Psychology-Online article, we are going to talk in more detail about mental training and explain how to train the mind with 10 exercises that will allow us to keep our mind active and awake.
Why it is good to train the mind
Training the mind does not only refer to developing the cognitive part. This is the classic view on mental training that has its origin in the supremacy that has been given to the eye, and sight over the rest of the human senses and capacities.
If we understand the mind as the “computer” that governs all our human functioning, training the mind can be understood as a training that improves and enriches the entire brain functioning of the person.
Benefits of training the mind
Mental training allows a better mental functioning of the person In all areas. Next, we will see what the benefits of training the mind are:
- It allows you to exercise the senses of touch, smell, hearing and taste. In this article, you will find more information about .
- Improves the sense of proprioception or body awareness, balance and motor or kinesthetic skills, etc.
- Improve skills and acquire new ones that have not been developed.
- It helps keep us awake and active.
- It promotes full brain functioning in the case of people with degenerative diseases or dementias, both cognitive and physical.
Once we have seen why it is good to train the mind, we will see a list of 10 exercises that promote this complete mental development.
Close your eyes and touch different objects
One of the exercises to train the mind consists of closing your eyes and touching different objects in the space you are in. This activity allows developing the sense of touch. To do it, it is recommended to do it in a quiet space where you feel comfortable.
Sniff different smells
In this activity you have to close your eyes and smell what surrounds us. In it works the sense of smell, developing all the subtle differences that this area covers. It is one of the exercises to train the mind that helps to more easily recognize the different smells in the environment.
Listen to music at different volumes, rhythms and speeds
If you are wondering how to train the mind, this exercise allows work on hearing sensitivity. To have the desired effect, use different rhythms, speeds and volumes of the melodies. This will serve to train this skill in depth.
Taste different foods
Another of the mental games to train the mind. Specifically, any element that has flavor is valid for this exercise, whether it is food or not, as long as it is not a toxic or harmful substance for the body. Closing our eyes and savoring the taste of the substance that we have in our mouth will allow us explore a whole world of flavors and sensations.
Body visualization and body stretching exercises
Psychomotor exercises
Any psychomotor exercise, both fine and gross, will allow us to work on the kinesthetic sense, delving into the great possibility of movements and postures that the body itself can adopt. These are exercises to train the mind that they allow us to know our own bodyour capabilities and limitations.
Breathing exercises
With this type of exercises to train the mind, in addition to continuing to work on body awareness and kinesthesia, we will deepen intereoception or ability to feel our body insidethat is, our heart rate, our breathing, etc.
These types of exercises quiet our rational mind and allow us to perceive this other type of stimulation. In this article, we give you a selection that you can practice.
Balance exercises
How to train the mind? Balance exercises work on this important sense which, like all the others, does not only imply this but also affects and benefits the development of other like-minded people and related. Therefore, it is important to do exercises to train it.
Practice expressive techniques
Another highly recommended exercise to train the mind is to practice any expressive technique, such as dancing and counting, through which a wide variety of senses, capacities and skills are trained, such as the auditory sense, touch, motor skills, balance, body. . Therefore, expressive techniques promote the brain development of the person.
Read and do mathematical exercises
Finally, if you still have doubts about how to train your mind, another exercise you can do to achieve this is to exercise your mind through reading, mathematical exercises, hieroglyphics, etc. With this activity, cognitive skills and abilities are worked onskills originally addressed with this type of psychological mental training work.
In reality, work with each of these senses, skills or abilities cannot be done in a unique and exclusive way, since it is a system made up of connected subsystems. Therefore, working on each of these aspects will involve the joint development of all those systems that are closely related to the one being worked on.
In this way, training the mind will allow a comprehensive development of cognitive, sensory and motor mental functioning of the person.
This article is merely informative, at Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.
Bibliography
- Amutio, A. (2002) Stress management strategies: the role of relaxation. C. Med. Psicosom, No. 62/63.
- González, A. and I Amigo, I. (2000), Immediate effects of progressive muscle relaxation training on cardiovascular indices. Psychothema, 12.