Here’s how to live a long awesome life:
- Socialize: Instead of staring into the soulless eyes of your smartphone, spend more time with friends. And play mentor to people who see the early 2000s as “vintage.”
- Exercise And Sleep: Avoid the sweet, seductive embrace of the couch. Hit the gym and get 8 hours of sleep. This is the path to cerebral salvation.
- Diet: Health does not reside in the ludicrous promises of anti-aging creams that cost more than your first car or in the meditation apps that gently coax you into a panic about not being calm enough. Give the principles of the Mediterranean diet a shot.
- Cognitive Challenge: You want “productive engagement.” Reading smart books is like mental yoga. It stretches you. It strengthens you. And you may find yourself in some uncomfortable positions. Or have polite disagreements -- which is more like mental MMA.
So what can you expect if you actually do all of this? Researchers performed a two-year study with older folks. Subjects ate a Mediterranean-style diet. They did 2-3 hour-long sessions per week of aerobics or strength training. They played a variety of games to challenge their minds. What happened?
At the end, memory scores were 40% better than those who didn’t participate. Executive function – brainpower – was 83% better. Processing speed shot up 150%. Meanwhile, overall cognitive performance of the control group got 30% worse over the two years.
In many ways, this handful of changes made people feel like they were younger again – and that, in itself, is a very powerful tip. Studies show people who feel younger perform better on cognitive tests. The magic number is twelve. People who feel 12 years younger than they really are crush it on tests of brainpower.
The next time someone tells you to act your age, tell them to stuff it. Think back to your younger years and relive them. Nostalgia, that warm, fuzzy blanket woven from the threads of "back in my day" is actually useful. Numerous studies demonstrate its power. When you reminisce with romantic partners, the two of you grow emotionally closer. Nostalgia makes us more generous, more tolerant of outsiders and more connected to others.
So feel younger, act younger and be a little nostalgic today. I’ll help you get started: remember mixtapes? Those were like the original Spotify playlists, except making one for someone was the equivalent of saying, "I'm willing to spend three hours in front of my stereo, risking carpal tunnel to express my feelings for you." And now, science says reminiscing about that painstaking process is akin to giving your brain a big ol' hug.
Who's up for a mixtape exchange party?
(I'll bring the pencils for when the tapes inevitably unravel.)
***If you are one of those lovely people who bought "Plays Well With Others" please leave a review on Amazon here. Thanks!***
