What we’re talking about today, is learning how to learn faster!
Improving your brain with #BrainHacks is something that can help you learn faster and improve yourself faster. And in this post, I'll be talking about 3 different Topics: Speed Reading, Brain Games and Brain Food.
So the first method is Speed Reading.
We are reading roughly 100,000 words everyday. Newspapers, Books, even text mesages and facebook posts. Think of all those steemit articles you’re reading alone!
So if there was an opportunity to read faster, and therefore get more time to do something else, that’s something you could try right ?
I remember how I first found out about Speed Reading: I was watching a really old YouTube video of a 13 year old , reading at an incredibly fast pace:
Old but Gold!I read a lot, I incorporate reading into my daily routine and try to finish roughly 1 book a week. So this was something I wanted to try out immediately!
Here are my tips for speed reading :
1 .
Use your finger or a pen to guide your eyes while reading. Most people don’t know this, but when reading, our eyes actually don’t read simply go from left to right. They jump back to the beginning of the sentence after each word. So by guiding your eyes, you force them to read strictly from left to right. Also when doing this, try to go faster than you would think is possible. You’ll be surprised how much you actually remembered from the text!
2 .
Try out the (free) App “speed reading”. It’s a very simple App that helps you improve your reading speed and memory with different tasks.
(I'm not affiliated with this App, nor is it my own. I have no connection at all to it)
3 .
Do not mutter the words you read to yourself. Also don't "read them to yourself" inside your head. Reading them as if you were reading aloud will slow down your speed drastically.
4 .
When starting a new book, make sure to read the back and also the table of contents. These are the most important points of the book, summarized. Your brain will memorize those aspects and look for them in the text while speed reading, which helps you understand the most important points of the book.
5 .
When reading a paragraph, only properly read the very first and very last sentence, as they often contain the most information and a conclusion. (This is not always the case though). Skim through the middle of the paragraph.
Now, our next topic is Brain Games.
I used to play Lumosity every day for several months. They claim to improve your cognitive abilities.
Afterwards I found several studies that showed: Playing brain training games doesn’t actually improve your brain capacity / your skills.
You just get better at the game, which makes you feel like you’re making real progress. So they’re basically selling HOPE. Watch this video if you want to see the exact scientific studies .
But I don’t regret falling into that trap, and I will continue playing these games on certain times. Why? Because these Brain Training Games might not improve your brain’s skills long term, but what they do is warm up your brain. They get you ready and focused.
It’s the same as doing a warm-up before your workout! If you play these concentration games for 15 minutes and start your task afterwards, you’re immediately focused and can start working more efficiently.
It’s the same like leaving the gym, your muscles are still pumped up, but the effect fades after a while.
I try to recommend things to you guys that are absolutely free, I’m not affiliated with any product/app I talk about here. I’m just trying to tell my own story and which tools I have used.
So the last aspect of this article will be: Brain Food ! What do I mean by that?
I’m talking about foods that contain certain transmitters that will trigger something in our brain.
Let me explain: Serotonin is also called the “Happiness Hormone”.
Serotonin is a Neurotransmitter that contributes to the feeling of happiness and general well-being. Of course, you’re working better (and faster) if you are in a good mood. So how can you eat in the best way possible, to give your brain the most “fuel” as possible?
Here are some foods that contain tryptophan, the ingredient that is needed for the body to produce serotonin: Quinoa, Amaranth, Eggs / Dairy products, bananas, kiwi, pineapple, broccoli, spinach, cauliflower, soy products, salmon, fresh tuna, sardines, seaweed, Spirulina, nuts and seeds (especially Cashew Nuts), legumes and beans are all high in tryptophan.
But simply eating lots of these foods won’t do the trick, because the tryptophan is in a constant battle with amino-acids to be absorbed through the brain. So there are several factors that need to be taken into consideration:
- Eat carbs in combination with it. Eating carbs results in insulin being released into your system, which promotes the absorption of amino-acids into the muscles and organs. The Tryptophan that’s left behind is now more likely to be absorbed into the brain.
- You would have to chew them a lot – back in the stone age, our ancestors were chewing every bite 100-150 times and our brain still expects the same.
- After the meal, exercise is needed! As you can see, it’s not as easy as simply taking serotonin pills or eating only foods that are high in tryptophan.
At the end of the day, all these groceries are very healthy anyway – Everybody has to decide for themselves! Trying it out dosn't cost you anything.
Other ways of boosting your serotonin levels are regular exercise and sunshine.
Generally, listening to classical music while reading/learning something helps you to get into that concentrated state and can relax you.
Ludovico Einaudi for example is one of my favorite artists of classical music:
If you have more tips or information on this topic, I’d be happy to read them in the comment section – I read every comment with respect.
I hope you enjoyed this educational post, and it helped you learn how to learn faster ;)
Disclaimer: I’m just trying to help people here and give them tips how to make their life a little easier. Maybe this method doesn’t work for you, but there are hundreds of ways to improve yourself and everyone is different. I’m just talking about my own experience and what has helped me. If you have any tips or more information about this, leave a comment below and I’d be very interested to read about it and learn more – I’m still a student and will always be!
Topics: #reading #SpeedReading #BrainGames #lumosity #health #brain #learn #tips #BrainHacks #education #motivation
Very good post! In fact, your information correlates with Dr. Daniel Amen, a renowned psychiatrist who specializes in brain health. He too says that certain foods improve brain health, and provides the list in this video. Too many people addicted to junk foods that deteriorates brain health and function over time.
thx :)
Awesome post filled with valuable content.
I play lumosity and like to beat my score everyday at least in 1 game, it's fun and work for your brain at the same time.
Your posts are varied, informative, classy and easy to read and understand. People would benefit themselves greatly by following your blog and using the many examples given to improve their life, health and outlook on life. In doing so, things might just fall into place. Also, your calm way of handling the nay-sayers is the right way. Inform, don't belittle. Keep your posts and comments coming! We will all benefit.
I tried lumosity as well, and I really had the feeling that I was improving lol
haha yes I know, because you are actually getting much better at the game.. But hey, nontheless, like I mentioned above I still don't regret spending time playing that!
that piano video is sooo beautiful!! I saw it go viral on FB but lost the link, thanks for making me find it again
you're welcome ;) my favorite classical artist
super interesting read about Brain Foods, I didn't know there were so many factors you have to consider if you actually want it to work :/
Yes, our brain is still programmed the same way as it was in the stone age. Our Brain still "expects" us to have the same lifestyle and same behaviour as the humans did back then, which is why serotonin is much harder for our bodies to produce in this modern world and lifestyle.
just followed you, your content is really helpful! Thanks for putting up the effort to write all of this stuff down!
thank you very much and I appreciate your comment. I'm just trying to help people here and I'm happy if I can improve their lives even a little bit.
that video with the numbers you memorized was impressive, I watched it like 3 times but couldn't memorize more than the first few numbers
it's all a matter of Training ;) Try the App for yourself and you will see that it starts much slower, challenging you by getting faster with each stage.
that first video with the reading demonstration is sooo cool! I can understand how it inspired you, I want to try it too now !
that kid is a genius :O
yes, the skill level really is amazing!
I guess I read more than those 100,000 words a day lol, studying law and I need to read textbooks all day every day.. I might give this speed reading thing a try ;)
So then this technique might help you save a lot of time everyday. let me know how it goes if you try it
Are all Brain Training Games like Lumosity? Or are there some which actually improve your long term skills ?
Most Brain Training Games function in the same way like Lumosity, yes. You can watch the marketplace documentation on youtube that I linked above. It explains the study in great detail
How do you know all this educational and science stuff, very interesting and thanks for writing it down to make it understandable for everyone (Y)
I just love to read, love to learn new things and want to share my knowledge with others to help people ;)
how long do you think did that kid in the first video train speed reading?
That depends a lot on the individual person, could be months, could be a few years.
Oh I remember those times of playing Lumosity together..
Thank you for taking the time to write all of this down.
I think especially the speed reading technique will help a lot of people, since reading is required so much nowadays! Especially if you have an office Job, you constantly read through emails, statistics, business proposals, reports etc.. If you could read twice as fast and therefore double your efficiency, that's awesome!
It's easy to learn but most people don't even know this method exists, so they are definitely missing out!
And the part with the Brain Foods was very interesting as well, I didn't actually know that you had to consider so many things if you want to have the effects on your brain. Definitely something worth trying out. If you can incorporate these foods into your diet without "forcing" yourself to eat them, I think this would be the best way
Thx for the comment and time to put all your thoughts into words. As you know, I'm only trying to help people with my knowledge and educate them, while writing about my own experience too!
Thank You @Sirwinchester
you're welcome :)
I just found this and read through your other posts as well, you know your stuff, keep on bringing education to steemit, this is much more quality work than some of the other content that gets on the trending page here
appreciate your feedback and thanks for the follow!
awesome information mr. winchester, thanks for educating all steem users ;)
No but seriously, seems like you really did your research with this, you're giving away your personal tips and what has worked for improving your personal life so i appreciate that. Hope everybody here is taking notes.
Yes I did a lot of research about this topic, I only want to help out others so of course I need to be informed. thanks for your comment!
still waiting / looking forward to your meditation post :D is it coming next?
i know great things take time so dont stress yourself, but I'm seriously interested in meditation and would like to hear your point of view about it.
don't worry, I'll write a post about meditation, stay tuned!
I think #health should seriously be a more trendy topic on steemit! This is much more informative than a lot of other popular posts out there, who get all the attention.
this quality work and especially ADVICE should be posted more, so more people could see it! upvoted + followed you!
Agreed, I think educational topics should be a more popular topic on here. but by contributing content like this, we're already starting the change!
Wow.. I always believed that stuff like peak and lumosity actually worked -.- but i watched that whole documentary that you linked, and seems like there's no way around it.. basically nothing changed before and after the month of lumosity training.. now I wonder though, how is lumosity backing up their statements? Which studies are THEY referring to, that claim to be so successful? Would love to know more info about that
yes I know, like I mentioned I played lumosity lots as well, but it's still a good tool to get you in the concentration mood!
that first video is some crazy stuff.. If I could read like that, I would finish all my homework in no time ^^ I didn't even know this was possible, guess you always learn something new about what humans can actually do
speed reading is 100% possible, many people have learned it so you can do it too! try it if you're interested. you can learn if you stick with it !
very helpful article thanks for sharing. i followed you + looking forward to more educational content! I wish I could speed read AND speed write though, would make my life soo much easier
thanks for your feedback, and yes, speed writing is very useful too ;)
I'm gonna try that app today, looked really hard though! And they even cover up half the numbers? they really try to challenge you.. but I'll give it a try. seems like a very useful skill. thx for the tip i'll check it out
awesome, let me know how it went. the app starts out slow and then gets more and more challenging!
nice to meet another fan of classical music! I love Ludovico Einaudi too!
;) perfect music for concentration!
I just tried speed reading online and it seems to be very hard.. maybe it just needs lots of practice :/ is that app for iphone users ?
the app is on iphone as well yes, and it actually starts off in a very slow pace. You can easily follow the tasks there, and slowly work your way up until it gets more challenging!
that video of you memorizing the number is awesome! wish I could do that too! I tried, but its just wayyyyyy too fast for me.
Guess I'll have to check out that app myself and train more.
anyway thank you for posting such awesome info. never knew that speedreading was even a thing. followed you & I'm looking forward to more posts like this from you. keep it up
If you get the App you start much slower, I'm already advanced that's why my speed is so high. so don't be discouraged, just try for yourself and you will see results! appreciate your comment, thank you!
Beth Jaffee is amazing. I was impressed when i saw her speed reading but i am shocked about your brain too ! How many numbers you keep in your mind while playing this game!!!!