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It may sound a little weird, but humans also hold an internal clock that maintains your body's biological and neurological rhythm over each daily 24 hour cycle. This rotates among sleeping at night and being awake during the day. This is commonly known as the circadian rhythm. This internal clock is situated at the base of the brain, known as the hypothalamus, which responds to all kinds of sensory stimuli, and manages your overall pattern of sleep.

Reasons like late-night shifts, jet lag, traveling through time zones, or even late sleeping patterns, can disturb the circadian rhythm. But that doesn't mean you cannot improve it. You can reset your sleeping cycle with the following six tips and tricks.

1. Avoid Napping

If your sleeping routine is already out of a track, skip napping specifically during the daytime as it doesn't restore the sleep that your body needs during the night. As a result, you will end up sleeping late at night.

Studies have indicated that napping is related to less night-time sleep and creates a disturbance in your sleeping cycle. But if you must nap, keep the nap between 10 to 20 minutes maximum.

2. Try Organic Supplements

Nowadays, people are pretty much aware of the importance of quality sleep. But sleep deficiencies can be harmful and affect the mind and the body. The ideal options are CBD, essential oils, and lavender oils to experience calming effects that help in inducing sleep.

CBD is a cannabinoid compound found in the Cannabis plant and is linked with numerous health benefits like:

• Reducing pain

• Improving mental health

• Lowering down the blood pressure

• Improving sleep, mood, and stress

The online market offers numerous varieties of CBD products from dedicated vendors like weedsmart.co, including CBD oil, creams, and CBD gummies UK. These organic supplements have the ability to reduce sleeping disabilities and enhance sleep quality. Lots of research indicates calming effects on the nervous system, leading to better quality sleep.

3. Avoid Eating Before Just Before Bedtime

Circadian rhythm is also connected to your eating habits, which means a late-night meal can disturb your sleeping pattern. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology confirms that delay evening meals is not suitable for health and can lead to unnecessary weight gain.

Try to eat dinner two to three hours before shut-eye. This way, your body will have enough time to digest food. Also, it's advisable to avoid caffeine as it has stimulant effects that result in the reduction of total sleep time.

4. Setup Your Bedroom for Sleep

While quality sleep requires ideal sleeping arrangements, which means setting your bedroom into a comfortable sleeping environment that leads to good sleep. So, try to design your bedroom with the help of warmer colors on the walls along with a well-placed bed to evade the cramped feeling.

Experts recommend changing your mattress every year to save yourself from the discomfort of saggy mattresses and lumpy pillows.

5. Avoid Noisy Environments

A peaceful environment plays an essential role in getting adequate sleep. Since a brain continuously processes sound, even a tiny snooze can lead to sleep distraction, making the sleeping process uneasy.

It is advisable to sleep in a calm environment. In addition to this, if you have a noisy neighborhood, white noise can help maintain an even tone and volume, helping to reduce the chances of abrupt sound changes causing you to wake up.

The following are some ideas to create white noise:

• Fan

• Air conditioner

• Air purifier

• Humidifier

6. Consult a Doctor

Sleep is a vital component that enables the body and mind to rejuvenate and offer you the feel-good energy that you need all day long. Everyone experiences occasional sleeping issues, and sometimes introducing minor changes in the routine helps resolve these issues and restore the sleeping cycle. But if you are constantly struggling with sleeping, you need to see a doctor immediately.

In addition to this, not getting enough sleep frequently can cause severe damages like:

• High blood pressure

• Obesity

• Diabetes

• Heart diseases

• Impaired memory

• Lack of alertness

• Excessive daytime sleeping

Poor oral health has also been found to cause disturbed sleep, as well as impact sleep quality and quantity. If you suspect you have dental issues and you have sleep problems, it's recommended to see a dental specialist for treatment.

You may also seek the help of a sleeping specialist, who can help if you are suffering from sleep disorders that need immediate treatment.

The Takeaway

Sleep is one of the most important factors in our daily quality of life, throughout our whole lives. While it's easy to fall into poor sleep habits, paying a little attention to your circadian rhythm and optimizing your sleep environment can get you back into the habit of high quality sleep.

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Health is something that many people start to notice the importance of when they’re older. It tends to be the case that good health is only really appreciated once it is in decline. This commonly leads to neglecting simple wellness habits that go along way to avoiding such decline in the first place. As the saying goes, 'prevention is better than cure'.

Typically speaking, most serious health concerns are related to, or are directly caused by lifestyle choices or poor wellness habits. The digital age has brought new challenges for health, such as increasing the likelihood of being physically sedentary, as well as factors like social media impacting our sleep quality. Added to this, the pandemic has made it even more challenging for individuals to take care of their health, psychologically, socially and physically. The rapid trend to move workplace practices into the home may also be taking it's toll in terms of bringing deadline pressures and work stress into the home place.

All this goes to say that being mindful of our wellness and consciously practicing good health habits is going to be more important than ever before in 2022. The first step is to know how to take care of yourself, even if it's through simple changes to your daily routines. Here are five easy-to-follow self-care tips to help you find your path to wellness.

1. Consume CBD

CBD products have remained highly controversial for a long time. Some people dislike the substance, while some have known for many years that it provides a plethora of medicinal benefits. Now that many countries have legalized the production and sale of CBD, it has become a growing wellness practice for millions of people.

Due to the integration of technology into the CBD industry, there is now an array of CBD products you can choose from, and each of them is equally capable of providing you with medical benefits like its ability to reduce anxiety and depression, improve heart health, and even help to suppress many types of pain. This makes CBD a great go-to supplement for all-round health needs.

If you want to get your hands on some CBD there are many online stores you can order from, such as CBD Oil UK stores, that will deliver to your doorstep. If you are looking for help in choosing from the many different CBD products available, checkout this introductory guide.

2. Understand Your Emotions

Without understanding your emotions, maintaining a sound quality is very difficult. Your feelings can range from happiness to sadness to anger and or other emotional states, and a lack understanding why can leave you like a dog chasing it's tail. Practicing mindfulness and even meditation has been shown in lots of research to be extremely helpful in learning to balance emotional states.

The most important thing is to be consciously self-aware of your emotional state, in order to realize what internal or external factors trigger emotional changes. This awareness allows your to self-regulate to avoid negative feelings happening before they occur. Or if circumstances make negative feelings somewhat inevitable, you can still internally analyze and regulate these emotions so they are much less impactful on your day-to-day wellbeing. Once you can can understand your emotions as they happen, acting appropriately and calmly starts to become second nature. You can also do this by introspection, talking to others about your feelings, or going to therapy.

3. Keep Learning New Things

One of the costliest mistakes you can make is to stop learning. Learning is part of what makes us human. If you stop learning, you’re shooting yourself in the foot. Neuroscience shows that our brains thrive when acquiring new knowledge or skills, boosting your neuroplasticity and neurogenesis.

Learning can happen in many ways, the simplest and most common being learning from social interactions with others. In fact being socially active, especially in terms of having strong relationships with family and close friends, is a very strong predictor of how long you will live.

Learning is also significantly triggered through simply engaging in new types of experiences, even if it is from small changes in your daily life. For example, if you engage in sports for exercise, trying a new type of sport will challenge your mind and body to adapt through knowledge and skill acquisition, which in turn improves your overall adaptability and wellness.

4. Include Regular Exercise in Your Schedule

It’s understandable how today’s world, filled with endless work hours and fierce consumerism, has left little free time for many people. They are made to sit down for extended periods typing away at a computer. However, lower activity levels and a sedentary lifestyle could lead to many health problems. Some of these health problems include heart complications, high blood pressure, diabetes, etc.

That’s why you need to figure out ways to input fitness into your schedule. Doing this would allow you to stay on top of your health and keep your wellness journey on track. You don't have to run a marathon to reap the benefits of exercise - simple things like working a standing desk or taking an occasional 30-minute break to take a walk outside still go a long way.

5. Stay Financially Responsible

Financial responsibility is the last but perhaps least obvious way to maintain self-care on your wellness journey. Sadly, many people don’t take care of their finances, which leads them to make unhealthy choices. In particular, spending habits which choose materialistic or status symbol purchases (e.g. a new car or smartphone), tend to having only superficial and short-term influences on your well-being. In contrast, choosing to invest in a high-quality diet and meaningful experiences, such as travel or social activities, has been shown to reap far more benefits with longer lasting effects.

Staying financially responsible is about investing in your health and wellness, and generally being less impulsive. The simple rule of thumb is to spend your money on experiences before possessions, which will help you afford better lifestyle choices overall.

The Verdict

Trying to stay on a wellness journey can be pretty challenging. These five self-care tips are some of the simplest ways to help keep your lifestyle on a positive track. Although it’s normal to derail sometimes, getting back on track is mostly about be aware of how important your ongoing health is, and what habits help promote your day-to-day wellness.

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It's easy to forget that the basic concepts of health and exercise remain the most effective in an age with fast tracks, hacks, and shortcuts. This is because "science maybe like an echo chamber." You'd have one truly next-level athlete if you combined all the elements of fitness-strength, power, speed, mobility, coordination, and agility into one package. Even if you don't achieve elite status, each of these characteristics can assist make everyday life simpler.

If you are not a professional athlete, it may not be easy to train like them. The key reason is that you have to do the work you're paid for on top of all your training, whereas pros get to sleep and eat as much as they want during their non-training time. Now let's look at 7 tips to train like an athlete and other vital areas that you need to focus on.

1. Know Your Limits

Although exercise is beneficial to your physical and emotional health, too much of anything can be bad. Excessive activity may lead to tiredness, injury, and even worse mental health. It's crucial to know your physical boundaries. Although pushing oneself to new heights can be exciting, it's critical to do so in a way that protects your health, preferably with the help of a professional. Also, keep in mind that taking drugs to boost competitive sports performance, is often prevented through regular drug testing, though some athletes try to get around this by using stores that sell synthetic urine.

2. Relax and Release

Myofascial release is a deep-tissue technique for deactivating unpleasant muscular knots and improving body flexibility. You may use a softball, golf ball, foam roller, lacrosse ball, or massage stick to perform this. Make smooth passes, and when you notice tightness or knots, roll out that region to help it relax. Bending, squatting, and jumping will be difficult if you have tight glutes. Before and after exercises, do tissue work to prepare for action and recovery.

3. Warm-Up Properly

Athletes have learned that they must first prepare their bodies for their careers to perform at their best. Most people think of a warm-up as a couple of static stretches, a little cardio, and maybe a little foam rolling. Still, if muscles and tendons aren't prepared for the motions ahead, they won't be able to perform to their full potential, limiting the movement's efficiency and effect. In other words, if you don't prepare, you're setting yourself up to fail.

4. Train More Than Once or Twice a Week

Of course, athletes have the advantage of training every day because it is their job. Still, you can learn from them that exercise regularly establishes good habits for continued training and allows you to challenge different body parts while providing adequate rest and recovery time. It's tough to develop bodily adjustments when you only train once or twice a week, whether your goal is cosmetic or performance.

5. Proper Nutrition Is Must

One of the most important aspects of any training program is athlete nutrition. At its most basic level, the food we consume offers the energy we need to operate at our best. Sports nutrition is a different industry, which may make things complicated. There are, however, techniques to ensure that your nutrition corresponds to your training:

Understanding food

Understanding food and how it affects your body is the first step in ensuring you're eating the proper stuff. You may learn about the connection between food, exercise, and the stomach in one of our courses and how to enhance mental health via nutrition. Understanding how nutrition and wellness are related will assist you in making smart food choices while training.

Adjusting Your Diet

As you better understand what an athlete eats, you may begin to alter your diet to fit your training schedule. This might include learning about healthy cooking or delving into the myths and realities of superfoods. Remember that there are a plethora of diet fads out there that promise various outcomes. However, eating in a way that will complement your training requires knowledge and effort.

6. Workout Your Brain

To get an advantage over the competition, professional athletes train their minds. However, you might be wondering how these professional athletes develop their minds. They employ a cognitive training tool to develop essential skills in athletics.

Awareness, attentiveness, and decision-making are among these qualities. They can help you recognize critical play possibilities, filter out distractions, respond to plays faster, and anticipate your opponent's moves. Fortunately, you can do some cognitive training from the comfort of your own home to find out your mental fitness.

NeuroTracker is an example of cognitive training that is both scientifically validated and adopted at the highest levels of professional sports, yet is available to use in the in your own home.

7. Drink More Water

It's critical to drink enough Water while training so that your muscles can perform at their best. Water makes up the most connective tissue that connects and encloses your muscles. As a result, becoming dehydrated might negatively influence your performance.

The sliding surfaces between these tissue sheets and other structures get "glued" together. As a result, you may get cramping when working out, jeopardizing your workout.

Takeaways

Finally, it would help if you changed your focus. If you want your training to be sustainable, it needs to be about more than just avoiding a bad body image; it has to be about training for the right reasons. Take some pride in your physical abilities. The blessings of strength and movement do not stay indefinitely. To make the most of what you have today and preserve your body's condition in the future, develop effective workout habits.

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The reality many athletes know is that when you get injured, not only does everything stop, but your physical and mental performance abilities start to drop day by day. That’s why it’s crucial to maintain your cognitive abilities, in order to keep your competitive sharpness in terms of mental abilities. It’s also a way for you to return to training with more confidence. Let’s learn more about why keeping your mental edge is the key to successful recovery from sports injuries.

The Psychological Impacts of Sports Injuries

Injuries are often sudden, coming hand-in-hand with loss of motivation and focus, along with worries appearing on the scene, and in some cases even depression. In professional sports you are only as good as your last competition, and even the biggest sports celebrities become quickly forgotten. More significant though, also less well-know, is the impact on cognitive abilities.

The Cognitive Impacts of Sports Injuries

During rehabilitation your attention is often over focused towards your physical injury, consequently shifting your self-awareness away from changes in your mental capacities. However, you can be the fittest or most skillful athlete in the world, but in most sports, if your situational awareness and decision-making skills are poor, your performance will be the same.

When athletes recover physically from a serious injury, they may be physically back to game shape, but more often than not they aren’t mentally ready for peak competition performance. This is because injuries typically lower your cognitive abilities. The number one reason is that neuroplasticity rules the brain, which simply means ‘use it, or lose it’. Let’s dig into this concept a little more.

Impacts on the Brain

In biological terms, the human brain is a very expensive organ to run. Athletes typically need 2,000 to 3,000 calories per day, however professional chess players can burn up to 6,000 calories per day in competition, while just sitting. This is one reason our brains evolved to be very lean and efficient. Accordingly, when your grey matter suddenly lacks the stimulation it is used to from frequent training and competitions, it essentially starts to atrophy it’s neural networks.

This is similar to how you lose muscle mass when inactive. However, for the brain it happens more quickly, and this process can be further impacted by factors like stress and depression, that often come with serious injuries.

Lastly, the brain and body are closely interrelated, so sports injuries can actually directly impact the brain. For example, the latest sports science research shows that ACL injuries can also be considered brain injuries, because they damage areas involved with motor-control, which then further delays physiological recovery. On the flipside, brain injuries like concussions actually increase the risk of ACL injuries, and likewise, cognitive assessments can even predict the likelihood of an ACL injury occurring.

Losing Cognitive Game Shape is Normal

The big point here is that physical injuries can take their toll on brain performance in many different ways. Accordingly, losing your cognitive sharpness during an injury is simply a normal thing that happens.

Yet is also something that most athletes and coaches overlook, even though it is a critical factor when it comes to performance over a season. But what if I told you that you can keep training your mind to retain peak performance?

Maintaining Cognitive Game Shape

These days professional athletes at the highest levels strive to take care of all aspects of their performance, including the cognitive dimension. This helps them to maintain their level and be the best version of themselves the moment they are physically ready to return-to-play.

They key thing here, is that if you keep training visually, perceptually and cognitively, you’ll stay sharp. You may even be cognitively better prepared post-injury. One upside to this is that injuries will rarely ever prevent you from training between the ears. In fact, downtime during injury gives you a great opportunity to raise your mental game to the next level.

Mental Rehab Training at the International Center

At my training center in Madrid we specialize in maximizing the advantages of cognitive training on the road to recovery. In particular it can be useful to help guide the crucial timing of when an athlete is really ready to return to full training or competition.

This video is an example of a complex balance task with low physical risks, yet tests skills essential for performing well in martial arts.

With this approach we can use cognitive overload with NeuroTracker to detect motor-skill weaknesses not fully recovered. Then we can accurately and safely determine if more cognitive or physical rehab is needed before progressing to the next level.

This is really helpful, because in high level sports, the biggest mistake athletes and coaches make is coming back too soon and getting reinjured. Avoiding having to start rehab all over again is just worth its weight in gold.

Another advantage that we leverage is home training. One of the challenges for sports men and women suddenly out of action, is simply having nothing productive they can do at home, other than just rest. Here is an example of one of my athlete’s honing her mental focus under our home training program.

When athletes see their speed thresholds improving rapidly with this form of training, it brings a well needed motivational boost. This helps set up positive rather than negative expectations, and keeps their sights set on success after recovery. Additionally, they are one step ahead in their progress when we do our next in-center training session.

Boosting Confidence

When you start training again after traumatic injury experiences, you will inevitably feel some level of insecurity. Without noticing, you’ll be eager to get back and begin overloading your physical capacity to its limits, which brings additional psychological pressure. Loss of confidence is one of the most immediate ways your athletic ability can be lowered.

However, when you keep stimulating your brain to train and adapt it to different complex situations, you turn insecurity into feelings of mental certainty and confidence. The higher your level of attention, the more awareness and control you will have over your sports performance.

Imagine the difference between an athlete returning to competition feeling like they are not mentally ready to perform, compared to an athlete who knows they have trained their cognitive abilities to a level higher than ever before. I’ve seen this first-hand, and those two athletes will be worlds apart in their confidence to comeback.

Takeaway

Will inevitable sports injuries cause you to lose, maintain or actually increase your mental focus?  Believe it or not the choice is in your own hands - its simply a case of engaging in high-quality cognitive training. If there's one thing to remember here, it's that this makes a big difference in successful recovery from injuries.

At the International Center we strive to perfect the whole athlete during rehabilitation using the latest neurotechnologies and training methodologies. If you would like to learn more, checkout our website.

The International Center

You can also read the first blog in this 6-part series here.

The Secrets to Dominating in Your Sport Part 1 - Execution

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Alors que les méthodologies d’entraînements modernes évoluent à grands pas, aussi bien dans les dimensions énergétiques, physiques que stratégiques ou tactiques, les fonctions exécutives apparaissent aujourd’hui comme un élément essentiel de la performance. Le nombre de séances d’entraînements augmente. Les exigences deviennent de plus en plus complexes. Elles deviennent également de plus en plus éprouvantes, et la fréquence des compétitions participe à limiter considérablement le temps consacré à la récupération. Dans ces conditions, le sportif est soumis à des niveaux de stress jamais atteints. La dépression, le surentraînement, la blessure et la contre performance s’invitent au plus haut niveau et à des fréquences qui alertent les instances du sport, au point de diligenter des enquêtes et d’imposer des politiques visant à protéger l’intégrité physique et mentale de nos sportifs.

Nous avons atteint des limites physiologiques dans les domaines liés à la force, à la puissance ou à la vitesse. Le geste technique est répété tellement souvent qu’il est lui aussi parfaitement intégré. Malgré ce constat, la majorité des sportifs, ultra-entraînés, ne performent pas davantage, alors que d’autres, « des exceptions », pourtant moins forts ou moins rapides, semblent déjouer tous les pronostics et interrogent les spécialistes. Leur faculté à se défaire des situations complexes dans un contexte émotionnel favorable, leur niveau d’adaptabilité ainsi que leur incroyable capacité à trouver presque systématiquement des solutions à haute vitesse et même en situation de stress ou de fatigue intense, pose question.

Qu’ont ils de plus que les autres?

La spécificité du génome peut être? Il n’est pas question ici de penser que pour être un sportif de haut niveau il faut être « bien né ». Tous les sportifs de haut niveau font partie de cet environnement très sélectif. Alors pourquoi certains d'entre eux sortent-ils du lot ? Daphnée Bavelier, (Professeur en sciences cognitives) expliquait, en parlant des joueurs de Esport: « Lorsque les joueurs de FPS doivent chercher une cible, ils se fatiguent moins vite que la normale et sont moins distraits par d’autres événements liés à leur environnement. Ils agissent plus vite et parviennent également plus rapidement à recentrer leur attention à la recherche d’une nouvelle cible ».

Que doit-on comprendre?

Pour répondre à cette question j’aime me référer à cet exemple tiré du prochain livre de Philippe RODIER quand il veut nous faire comprendre la relation entre l’intuition et la performance: Dan Carter expliquait à son tour : « L’instinct, c’est le plus important et c’est aussi le plus difficile à laisser exister. Il m’arrive d’entendre quelque chose, une annonce d’un coéquipier ou l’ordre d’un adversaire, mais mes yeux me disent autre chose, alors je suis mon intuition ». Puis il ajoute: « Les choses bougent tellement vite sur le terrain que je ne sais même pas ce que je vais faire dans les secondes qui suivent » Elle est peut être ici la réponse. Les joueurs d’exceptions perçoivent mieux leur environnement que les autres. Dans toute ma carrière d’entraîneur auprès des sportifs de haut niveau, j’avais fait ce constat que la dimension physique avait atteint des limites. Je regardais les vidéos de matchs et mes analyses de jeu mettaient en évidence que celles et ceux qui se démarquent le plus, n'étaient pas toujours les plus grands, les plus forts ou les plus puissants mais ils savaient se jouer de toutes les situations complexes et contre toute attente. Ils savaient lire, mieux que les autres, leur environnement.

J’ai donc naturellement imaginé que s’il nous était permis de développer cette qualité perceptivo-cognitive chez tous les joueurs, et pas seulement chez ceux dont la vocation est de diriger le jeu, peut-être pourrions nous changer le cours des choses, les modalités d’entraînement, les charges de travail ainsi que la vision du jeu et de la performance. Au regard des études épidémiologiques des statistiques des traumatologies enregistrées dans le sport de haut niveau, il est apparu que la blessure survenait le plus souvent sous fatigue, dans le 3eme quart temps du jeu ou en hiver quand les conditions sont plus délicates ou en fin de championnat. Il n' en fallait pas moins pour me convaincre que la dimension perceptive, et bien évidemment cognitive, jouaient un rôle très important dans ce contexte. En effet, quand il n’est plus possible de prendre la bonne la bonne décision, le sportif se trompe de choix, il s’enferme dans des contraintes de déplacements inappropriés et génère de plus en plus de fatigue, de doutes et finit par conscientiser sa tâche. La contre performance et la blessure, dans ce contexte, ne sont plus liées qu’à une question de temps. C’est inéluctable.

Le NeuroTracker: La solution!

Jocelyn Faubert m’a contacté il y a plus de 10 ans pour me proposer son nouveau système d’entraînement de la vision périphérique et centrale. Le NeuroTracker. J' ai été immédiatement emballé à l’idée de me voir proposer une solution et un outil qui allaient enfin me permettre d’explorer cet environnement et d’aborder la performance sous un nouvel angle. J' avais besoin d’entraîner la vision périphérique, d’inconscientiser le traitement et la prise de décision et de proposer ce mode d’entraînement à tous mes sportifs. J’ai développé cette méthode auprès de plusieurs sportifs de haut niveau en préparation de compétitions nationales, internationales ou en préparation des jeux olympiques de Pékin, de Londres ou de Rio avec des résultats dont je n'imaginais pas encore la portée.

La particularité du sportif de haut niveau, réside dans le fait qu’il « va là où les autres ne vont pas et continue là où les autres s’arrêtent ». C’est en tout cas ma vison des choses. Ils sont donc liés à des processus mnémoniques qui en font des particularités. Prendre des décisions à haute vitesse et en situation de stress, comme toute chose, ça s’apprend. N’oublions pas que toute décision, qu’elle soit motrice, visuelle, ou cognitive, n’est dépendante que d’un seul acteur : Le Cerveau. C’est lui qui décide. Et pour prendre les décisions, il s’approvisionne presque exclusivement par la vision. C’est donc à lui qu’il faut s’adresser. La particularité de cette méthode réside dans son concept. Elle s’adresse à la vision, mais pas seulement. L’adaptation cellulaire est dépendante de l’intensité, de la variabilité et de la réitération de la charge. Autrement dit, développer une capacité musculaire ou nerveuse dépend de la capacité à proposer une sollicitation individuelle et ajustée dans l’intensité, de pouvoir créer un environnement que le cerveau percevra ensuite comme une norme, et de pouvoir également évaluer et incrémenter la charge en temps réel. (à condition que la réitération soit elle aussi ajustée et suffisante).

Le système propose de solliciter les muscles oculomoteurs à des vitesses maximales (liées à la fonction) et corrélées aux capacités du sportif au moment T. En plus de cet entraînement musculaire et nerveux, il a la particularité de mobiliser la stéréoscopie dont tout sportif dépend dans le cadre de sa pratique. Un autre avantage du principe proposé réside dans son temps d’action : 8’’. Qui est le Temps Limite pendant lequel le système nerveux peut mobiliser son pic de vitesse. Répété sur 20 séquences et sur plusieurs sessions, plus que ce pic, c’est aussi son temps de soutien qui est entraîné. 15 à 30’ de travail répété sur plusieurs séances et en situation progressive de double ou triple tâche, permet aussi de construire un environnement spécifique au traitement de l’information et à son entraînement. Le cerveau comprend ici que cette qualité devient essentielle et qu’elle prendra dorénavant davantage de place.

Au-delà de ces aspects, le travail sur NeuroTracker permet d’augmenter la mémoire de travail, mais pas seulement. Puisqu’il est question de s’adresser au système nerveux, sa sollicitation à haute vitesse adaptée, permet à l’information d’accéder à la mémoire séquentielle beaucoup plus tôt. La réponse cognitive ou motrice sont alors plus rapides et plus ajustées. Le sportif perçoit l’information plus rapidement. Il a l’impression de bénéficier de davantage de temps pour prendre sa décision (C’est le cas), il comprend plus vite son environnement. Enfin, il développe ses qualités de concentration et de vigilance, de focus attentionnel et d’attention divisée.

Ce procédé devient donc un atout indissociable de la formation et de la performance du sportif. Il est aussi devenu un moyen de prédire la performance.

La Fédération Française de Football l’a bien compris. L’ensemble de ses salariés lui a décerné le premier prix de l’innovation lors des journées de l’nnovation dans son centre d’entraînement à Clairefontaine. La direction technique de l’arbitrage (DTA) en avait déjà fait un outil de formation et de performance dans le cadre de la formation des arbitres de ligue1. D’autres clubs Français comme l’Olympique Lyonnais ou l’Olympique de Marseille l’on intégré dans leur prise en charge et l’intègrent aussi bien dans le cadre de la performance, que de la formation ou de la rhéabilitation.

La prise de décision à haute vitesse est une des qualités requises pour prétendre exister dans le sport de haut niveau. Il est donc essentiel de développer cette capacité et au plus tôt dans un projet individuel de haut niveau.

Hélène DEFRANCE, championne du monde Voile et médaillée de Bronze aux Jeux Olympiques de Rio a suivi cet entraînent perceptivo-cognitif durant toute sa préparation. Nous avions établi ensemble le besoin de garder un niveau de concentration le plus élevé possible pendant toute la durée de la compétition et de pouvoir être en capacité de lire les mouvements d’eau, de voile, ou la trajectoire des adversaires dans un contexte de stress permanent. (Les fréquences cardiaques des équipières en 470 avoisinent leurs maximaux théoriques pendant presque toute la durée de la compétition). Le NeuroTracker était donc tout indiqué et les résultats obtenus à la hauteur de nos attentes.

Vidéo d’Hélène de France lors de sa phase de consolidation sur NeuroTracker.

Un autre exemple de prise en charge mais cette fois ci dans le Tennis de Haut niveau avec Tan Harmony (Joueuse internationale Française).

Le tennis est aussi un sport dans lequel la prise de décision, l’anticipation et l’intuition sont des atouts incontournables de la performance. Les balles peuvent atteindre des vitesses avoisinant les 200 Km/h et la durée des matchs oblige ces sportifs à garder un haut niveau d’attention et de focus attentionnel sur quelque fois plusieurs heures.

Ici sur cet exemple la double tache consiste à reproduire le geste spécifique de compétition.

Outre le développent des capacités perceptives, ce mode d’entraînement est aussi devenu un mode d’évaluation des aptitudes à traiter les informations aussi bien sur le revers que sur le coup droit. Pour exemple, quand cette prise de décision est moins efficace sur le revers que sur le coup droit, le positionnement sur le cours en situation de jeu ne peut être optimisé. Le sportif compense et perd ainsi un temps considérable à capter et à traiter l’information. L’action motrice est alors retardée dans son exécution et il lui devient plus complexe de se positionner correctement sur la frappe suivante.

Exemple de Triple tache associant le geste technique au traitement visuel et moteur d’une autre information perceptive.

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While modern training methodologies are evolving rapidly, whether in the energetic, physical, strategic or tactical dimensions, executive functions are now appearing as an essential element of performance.

The number of training sessions is increasing. The demands are becoming more and more complex. They are also becoming more and more demanding, and the frequency of competitions contributes to considerably limit the time devoted to recovery.

Under these conditions, the athlete is subjected to unprecedented levels of stress. Depression, overtraining, injury and counter-performance occur at the highest level and with such frequency that the sport authorities have been alerted to the need to investigate and impose policies to protect the physical and mental integrity of our athletes.

We have reached physiological limits in the areas related to strength, power or speed. The technical gesture is repeated so often that it is also perfectly integrated. In spite of this, the majority of athletes, who are highly trained, do not perform any better, while others, "exceptions", who are not as strong or as fast, seem to thwart all predictions and question the specialists. Their ability to get out of complex situations in a favorable emotional context, their level of adaptability as well as their incredible capacity to almost systematically find solutions at high speed and even in situations of stress or intense fatigue, raises questions.

What Do They Have More Than the Others?

The specificity of the genome perhaps? It is not a question here of thinking that to be a high level athlete one must be "well born". All top athletes are part of this very selective environment. So why do some of them stand out from the crowd?

Daphnée Bavelier, (Professor in cognitive sciences) explained, talking about E-sport players: "When FPS players have to search for a target, they get tired less quickly than normal and are less distracted by other events linked to their environment. They act faster and are also able to refocus their attention more quickly in search of a new target".

What Should We Understand?

To answer this question I like to refer to this example from Philippe RODIER's upcoming book when he wants us to understand the relationship between intuition and performance:

Dan Carter explained in April 2016, (4 World Cup appearances (2003, 2007, 2011, 2015) "Instinct is the most important and it's also the hardest to let exist. Sometimes I hear something, an announcement from a teammate or an order from an opponent, but my eyes tell me something else, so I follow my intuition. Then he adds: "Things move so fast on the field that I don't even know what I'm going to do in the next few seconds.''

This may be the answer. Exceptional players perceive their environment better than others. Throughout my career as a coach of high-level athletes, I had made the observation that the physical dimension had reached its limits. I watched videos of matches and my analysis of the game showed that those who stood out were not always the biggest, the strongest or the most powerful, but they knew how to play in all complex situations and against all odds. They knew how to read their environment better than the others.

I therefore naturally imagined that if we were allowed to develop this perceptive-cognitive quality in all players, and not only in those whose vocation is to lead the game, perhaps we could change the course of things, the training methods, the workloads as well as the vision of the game and of performance.

In the light of epidemiological studies of trauma statistics recorded in high-level sport, it appeared that the injury most often occurred under fatigue, in the third quarter of the game or in winter when conditions are more delicate or at the end of the championship. It did not take much to convince me that the perceptive dimension, and of course the cognitive dimension, played a very important role in this context. Indeed, when it is no longer possible to make the right decision, the athlete makes the wrong choice, he locks himself into inappropriate movement constraints and generates more and more fatigue, doubts and ends up making his task conscious. The counter-performance and the injury, in this context, are no longer linked to a question of time. It is inescapable.

The NeuroTracker: The Solution!

Jocelyn Faubert contacted me more than 10 years ago to propose his new training system for peripheral and central vision. The NeuroTracker.

I was immediately excited at the idea of being offered a solution and a tool that would finally allow me to explore this environment and approach performance from a new angle.

I needed to train peripheral vision, to unconsciously process and make decisions and to propose this training method to all my athletes.

I have developed this method with several high level athletes in preparation for national and international competitions or in preparation for the Olympic Games in Beijing, London or Rio with results that I could not yet imagine.

The particularity of the high level athlete lies in the fact that he "goes where others do not go and continues where others stop". This is my vision of things.

They are therefore linked to mnemonic processes that make them special. Making decisions at high speed and under stress, like anything else, can be learned. Let's not forget that any decision, whether motor, visual or cognitive, depends on only one actor: the brain. It is the brain that decides. And to make decisions, it is supplied almost exclusively by vision. It is therefore to him that we must address ourselves and through the vision that we must enter.

The particularity of this method lies in its concept. It is aimed at mink but not only. Cellular adaptation is dependent on the intensity, variability and repetition of the load. In other words, developing a muscular or nervous capacity depends on the ability to propose an individual and adjusted solicitation in the intensity, to be able to create an environment that the brain will then perceive as a standard, and to be able to evaluate and increment the load in real time. (provided that the reiteration is also adjusted and sufficient).

The NeuroTracker system proposes to train the oculomotor muscles at maximum speeds (linked to the function) and correlated to the athlete's capacities at the time. In addition to this muscular and nervous training, it has the particularity of mobilizing the stereoscopy on which all athletes depend in the context of their practice.

Another advantage of the proposed principle lies in its action time: 8 seconds. This is the Time Limit during which the nervous system can mobilize its peak speed. Repeated over 20 sequences and several sessions, more than this peak, it is also its support time that is trained. 15 to 30' of work repeated over several sessions and in a progressive situation of double or triple task, thus makes it possible to build an environment specific to the processing of information and its training. The brain understands here that this quality becomes essential and that it will henceforth take on more importance.

Beyond these aspects, the work on NeuroTracker allows to increase the working memory. Since it is a question of addressing the nervous system, its high speed solicitation allows the information to access the sequential memory much earlier. The cognitive or motor response is then faster and more adjusted.

The athlete perceives the information more quickly. He has the impression that he has more time to make his decision (This is the case), he understands his environment more quickly. Finally, he develops his qualities of concentration and vigilance, attentional focus and divided attention, which are essential to sports performance.

This process has therefore become an indisputable asset in the training and performance of the athlete. It has also become a means of predicting performance.

The French Football Federation has understood this. All its employees awarded it the first prize for innovation during the innovation days at its training center in Clairefontaine. The technical direction of refereeing (DTA) had already made it a tool for training and performance in the context of the training of referees of league 1. Other French clubs such as Olympique Lyonnais and

Olympique de Marseille have integrated it into their training and are using it for performance, training and rehabilitation. High speed decision making is one of the qualities required to exist in high level sport. It is therefore essential to develop this capacity as early as possible in an individual high level project.

Hélène DEFRANCE, world sailing champion and bronze medalist at the Rio Olympic Games, followed this perceptive-cognitive training throughout her preparation. We had established together the need to keep a level of concentration as high as possible throughout the competition and to be able to read the movements of the water, the sail, or the trajectory of the opponents in a context of permanent stress. (The heart rates of the 470 team members are close to their theoretical maximums during most of the competition). ) The NeuroTracker was therefore the ideal tool and the results obtained were just what we expected. Here is a video of Hélène de France during her consolidation phase on NeuroTracker.

Another example of training, but this time in high level tennis with Tan Harmony (French international player).

Tennis is also a sport in which decision making, anticipation and intuition are essential assets for performance. Balls can reach speeds of up to 200 km/h and the duration of matches requires athletes to maintain a high level of attention and focus for several hours. In this example the dual-task reproduces specific gestures of competition.

In addition to developing perceptual abilities, this training method has also become a way to evaluate the ability to process information on both the backhand and the forehand. For example, when this decision making is less efficient on the backhand than on the forehand, the positioning on the court in a game situation cannot be optimized. The athlete compensates and thus loses a considerable amount of time to capture and process information. The motor action is then delayed in its execution and it becomes more complex to position oneself correctly on the next shot.

Here is an example of a triple-task associating the technical gestures with the visual and motor processing of other perceptive information.

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Since I created my blog Grieving Maman, I've been writing mostly on grief, trauma and PTSD that we experienced following our tragic accident. This article is the first in a series of posts about how ADHD is adding additional challenges to our family.

Last week, we received the results of an assessment done by a neuropsychologist to see if my son Maxandre has Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). The result; Mixed ADHD with hyperactivity/impulsivity and oppositional disorder. These were the results we expected; we would have been surprised to receive a different diagnosis. Here I will share my perspective to hopefully help other families in similar situations.

Diagnosis Can Be a Positive

The neuropsychologist took the time to explain to, us over the phone, why Maxandre’s diagnosis is ADHD with impulsiveness and opposition. We are happy to receive a professional diagnosis which will help us to better support Maxandre. All in all, for us, this is good news! Over the next week, we should receive the final written detailed report from the neuropsychologist.

Over the past year, I’ve read a lot on the subject. I also got a firsthand look at what ADHD really looks like since the children were mostly at home due to the pandemic and virtual school. Supervising and encouraging an ADHD child for virtual learning comes with its share of challenges. This experience gave me 99% certainty that Maxandre had ADHD. I was able to see, right in front of me, the differences compared to other students.

There's Nothing to Be Ashamed About

One of the biggest misconceptions some people have about ADHD is the idea that it is related to the way parents raise their children (“badly brought up kids” in other words). This is not true. We lived it with our two boys. Raised in the same environment, they were the polar opposites of each other, even though both were active boys!

Studies show that ADHD is a neurodevelopmental disorder that causes differences in the brain, meaning that the brains of people with ADHD work differently. Since it is a neurological disorder, the symptoms are beyond a child’s control. As such, there is no shame in having a child with ADHD and talking about it. We must support the child and not be discouraged by their actions!

Understanding the Challenges

Below is an infographic that I created with reasons why managing ADHD can just be so hard. I chose the subject of “challenges” because identifying the symptoms is the first step for parents. The infographic lists some of the common difficulties within families, especially before a diagnosis. It is important that all of us, parents, grandparents, or others around us, be on the lookout for signs. It is even more crucial that parents feel less alone in their frustration.

Most of the challenges that occur below are more likely to happen during the day-to-day routine and at school. By contrast, in happier situations (e.g. visiting friends or grandparents), these issues are less likely to be apparent. As such, we must look beneath the surface and avoid making quick judgments, especially if we aren’t part of day-to-day life of the child!

Not all behaviours listed below will necessarily be present for all families and children with ADHD. The situations listed in the infographic are just more likely to happen with a child with ADHD. Each child is unique. A list of references that I consulted before I created the infographic can be found below.

If you found this helpful, please kindly share it with any other families it might help. Also, if you are a parent with an ADHD child, don’t hesitate to share it with you family or friends, they might understand your situation better after!

Lastly, please feel free to visit my blog site Grieving Maman. On my blog, I share our experience with ADHD, but also my personal perspectives on special needs families, grief, trauma and depression; while supporting each other through difficult times.

References

1. ADHD 101 - Why Kids With ADHD Need Different Parenting Strategies

2. Socio-demographic and clinical correlates of parenting style among parents having ADHD children

3. Kids With ADHD Suffer More Injuries

4. The Messy Bedroom (and Backpack and Locker) Cure for Kids with ADHD

5. ADHD: Expecting More from Chores

6. Hyperactive and clumsy: the same battle

7. ODD vs. ADHD: The Facts About Oppositional Defiant Disorder and Attention Deficit

8. Oppositional Defiant Disorder

9. Oppositional defiance disorder: When your kid isn’t just “difficult”

10. ADHD and the Epidemic of Shame

11. ADHD Parent Burnout Solutions

12. Growing Up With ADHD

13. Developmental ADHD

14. Coping with Shame When You Have ADHD

15. ADHD With or Without Hyperactivity

16. Data and Statistics About ADHD

17. Hyperactivity and conduct disorders: controversial diagnoses

18. Working Together To Better SUPPORT Young People

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As National Coach of the Royal Spanish Taekwondo Federation and Director of the International Taekwondo & Mental Coaching Center, I've dedicated my career to unlocking the secrets to sporting success. In this 6 part blog series, I'll cover the essential components of athlete development and that are also key challenges for most athletes. I believe these 6 factors are critical to achieving exceptional levels of performance. We'll cover mastery of execution, overcoming injuries, coping with pressure, competition preparation, optimizing concentration and efficient information processing.

In this first part we'll discover why athletes who excel, anticipate and execute the best decisions with the greatest speed.

Make the Best Decisions to Win

The biggest difference between performing poorly and being the best athlete is simply making the best decisions. This allows you to control the play and your opponents. The best athletes dominate the competition whenever there are moments that are pivotal to winning outcomes - it's everything or nothing. When you watch highlights of competitions closely, you'll notice that top athletes players have the ability to make crucial decisions when it matters the most.

You'll also notice that the MVP of the match is always someone who seemed to thrive in the most challenging moments of a game, and can transform a potential loss into a win in a single moment. For example Michael Jordan could face defeat, yet take the ball with 5 seconds left on the clock, and the world would seem to stop as he would snatch a seemingly impossible win. Indeed, it's these clutch moments that define truly great athletes.

Anticipate The Best Decisions

The best decisions always come from those who are able to anticipate optimal solutions in any situation. This is very important. In the crucial gameplay moments we just discussed, you'll also notice that great athletes always seem to expect an opportunity to arise, regardless of how surprising the situation may seem to other players. Similarly MVPs will not only review key matches and learn from them for future games, they'll also prepare themselves mentally, visualizing as many potential outcomes as they can, before a competition begins.

This gives them an edge over their peers, because prepared anticipation is a great ally against the huge pressures that come with professional sports. Athletes know that when representing their team, city or country, that how they perform under pressure will decide whether they are remembered as heroes or villains.

It's not knowing what to expect which amplifies the pressure when it happens. This negatively impacts attention and concentration, ultimately leading to decision-making errors.  Everything needs to start with a proper mental clarity - when you can anticipate well, your mind will be less distracted and more sharply focused on what it takes to achieve success.

Execute Faster in Competition

It's not just about how you act, but also the timing of when you act. If you think of athletes that you are most inspired by, then the chances are they are also extremely fast in their ability to execute plays and in their reaction times. This is because they have worked extremely hard developing speed of execution. To execute faster, it's essential to process information more rapidly, in order to be able to choose the best option almost instantly.

When everything is decided the pressure is higher, that's when you need to process, prioritize, and execute your chosen option. As such it's important to always strive to make plays rapidly, especially in critical moments when it makes all the difference. The context of competition needs a higher level of attention, because pressure is always a threat of distraction, ready to block your performance.

Putting it Altogether

Acting like a winner IS mastering the timing of the game, choosing the best play, making the decisive play - or as I like to say: MAKING THE DIFFERENCE. At the International Center we dedicate our training programs to unlocking potential for many different types of athletes. We do this by systematically conditioning these key cognitive skillsets under pressure, using the latest training methodologies.

Here is an example of our training methods using NeuroTracker 3D multiple object tracking with Optic Flow (visual tunnel), in order to build-up cycling awareness while under high neurophysical loads.

By conditioning attention and processing speed, then simulating the mental demands of competition, we turn good athletes into great athletes. With faster, more accurate, and better anticipated decisions, they become ready to excel. Learn more about our techniques on the International Center website.

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PTSD or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is a disorder that is categorically characterized by the inability to recover after witnessing a terrifying event. Although most commonly associated with war veterans, PTSD often results from; sexual abuse, road accidents, physical assaults, terrorist attacks, and any nerve-wracking event that leaves one in severe shock. Some victims of these unfortunate events might be able to heal and get along just fine with their lives. Still, some other individuals might fail to recover and become irrationally sensitive to everything around them.

How It Affects Individuals?

In the US PTSD is much more common among ethnic groups like Latinos, African Americans and American Indians. It is also around three times more prevalent in female adults compared to males.

Post-traumatic stress and PTSD are pathological because they are deviations from the normal neuronal pathway. Typically, endocrine chemicals like cortisol and adrenalin are released in mass into the neural system when an unpleasant event occurs. These hormones prepare the body for flight and fight response. After the situation is controlled, the individual ought to return to his normal physiological state, but when this "reset" fails to happen, the problem can be judged to be PTSD.

This disorder affects the nervous system and can linger on for months or even years, causing the sufferer to recall pictures and memories from the incident when triggered. PTSD also interplays with the sufferer's emotions, causing extreme physical and emotional reactions. Hence, it is not uncommon to find sufferers of PTSD in severe stress, fear, and excessive worry. They are also characterized by sleep deprivation, moodiness, frequent flashbacks to unpleasant events, etc. And, according to the ADAA (Anxiety and Depression Association of America), about 7.7 million adults in the United States suffer from this condition. As a result, since PTSD is a prevalent health challenge, it would help to know some tips to employ when it is needed.

Now we've covered the fundamentals, lets explore five tips that can be helpful for managing PTSD successfully.

Use CBD

CBD is the all-powerful multi-purpose component of the hemp plant that has been shown to help relieve various forms of health conditions. Previous research showed that cannabis could eliminate anxiety or prevent heightened concern altogether.

A study carried out on cannabis in 2019 showed that this plant helps combat PTSD, and although scientists are still not clear on the mechanism of action of CBD, they presume that CBD acts on the amygdala and hippocampus.

Another group of researchers believes that CBD can completely extinguish terrifying memories. Whichever is the case, it is confirmed that CBD brings relief to PTSD. So, you can try CBD for reducing PTSD symptoms, and there is also a wide range of CBD products to sample. There are CBD oils, gummies, sprays, pills, etc.

Mindfulness Meditation

It is a fact that relaxation and meditation help relieve a wide range of medical conditions, so this concept of mindful meditation seems to be very promising as a cure for PTSD. It is non-invasive but entails mindful-based cognitive therapy. Meditation works for hand in hand with relaxation techniques, so firstly, get in the habit of pampering your body.

Get sufficient sleep, eat rightly, and perform some physical stunts. You might not be the type to languish in a spa but indulge in what works for you. Perform any activity that gives you happiness; swim, walk, stretch, listen to songs, jog, dance, cycle, etc. Engage in these activities to enforce an explicit awareness of your present reality on your consciousness centers.

Art Therapy

This PTSD therapy has gradually begun to pick up magnitude over the years. This therapy aims to help people with PTSD externalize and learn to handle their deep-seated emotional hurts.

They encourage PTSD patients to relieve themselves of the painful memories by channeling their emotional energies into art. So, these patients get to paint, draw and create sculptures. By so doing, the people living with PTSD find some relief from their aches and anxieties.

Regain Focus Through Physical Activity

It is a testimony from the lips of confirmed PTSD sufferers that engaging in pleasurable physical activities provides them with strength and helps alleviate their stress levels. These physical activities are not only meant to whisk you away from your problems temporarily, but they also help you to recall how great your life was before the trauma. In similitude to the relaxation techniques, the best thing to do here is to comply with what is most suitable for you, and there are tons of hobbies you could pick from.

Engaging in these activities would also provide the much-needed boost you need to sleep properly. Get a trusted friend or partner to carry out these activities with, and not only would you have strengthened your muscles, but your mind would also be made healthier.

Pets for PTSD

One of the least exploited methods of combating PTSD is employing pets' help. Of course, pets are susceptible to becoming additional burdens but, some trained pets can help people living with PTSD cope with their condition. By purchasing one of these highly trained pets, you can be assured of short-term help managing your anxiety level.

These 'super pets' are trained to sense when a person living with PTSD begins to drift into anxiety. On perceiving this, the pets try to gain the attention of their owners and help them snap out of their invisible illness.

Conclusion

PTSD is a menace that might not be visible to the eyes, but can have dire long-term consequences if left to roam free. Therefore, if you have a loved one who suffers from this condition, it's recommended to share the tips highlighted in this article.

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Virtual experiences have come a long way in recent times. VR technologies that would have literally cost hundreds of thousands of dollars just a decade ago, can be bought by anyone today for just a few hundred bucks. Due to Moore’s Law, technology is becoming more efficient, smaller, and cheaper, at an accelerating rate. This pace of progress is skyrocketing the development of VR, with the hype of the metaverse now looming eagerly on the horizon. But if you’re as confused as alphabetti spaghetti over the differences between VR, AR, MR, XR and the metaverse, then worry not, we’ll cover each in a nutshell here.  

VR (Virtual Reality)

Technically speaking any kind of realistic simulation of reality constitutes a form of virtual reality. For example, stereo headphones provide a high-fidelity virtual experience that we’re all familiar with. However, whenever the term VR is used today, it pretty much relates to two specific aspects of virtual experiences that create an exceptionally strong immersive experience.

The first aspect is the use of stereoscopic 3D view from a 1st person perspective across a wide field of view.

The second is a little more nuanced, but equally powerful. It involves the perceived environment being seamlessly adjusted to accommodate changes in your viewing direction and location. Going a step further this can also include adaptive virtual representations of your own body (typically hands).

Together this means that you will experience the virtual world in a very similar way to how we perceive real-world experiences. Along with stereo sound, this convinces the brain that the virtual is actually surprisingly realistic – sometimes almost too realistic!

An example of a VR product on the market today is the Meta Quest (formally called Oculus Quest), made by META (the company formally called Facebook!).

AR (Augmented Reality)

With VR the emphasis is very much on ‘virtual’, as you are completely cut-off visually from the real-world around you. With AR, the goal is to use virtual reality to enhance or morph actual reality, by blending both into a singular experience. Here the emphasis is on ‘augmented’, meaning you perceive reality in a way that goes beyond normal experiences. A simple example would be going to play laser tag, but when you see your opponents, you see realistic looking aliens, instead of the humans that are actually there.

Much the same as VR, stereo 3D and adaptive viewpoints are essential ingredients of AR. In terms of commercial products, AR is still very much in its infancy. Microsoft’s Hololens has been leading the way, but is still very much a limited form of what this type of experience promises to become.

One common misunderstanding is that devices like ‘smartglasses’ (e.g. Google Glass), are also AR. In fact, this form of tech only delivers flat displays that do not adapt to changes in view. Neither AR nor VR, these are known as yet another acronym – HUD (Heads-Up Display).

MR (Mixed Reality)

Fortunately, our third acronym on the list is now very easy to explain. MR is simply a marketing spin on AR. This was largely driven by Hololens and Magic Leap. Hence AR and MR are both used interchangeably. Although AR has been around for over a decade, the term mixed reality is likely simpler for the everyday person to understand.

A further clarification is that VR and AR/MR can be collectively referred to as ‘immersive media’.

XR (Extended Reality)

XR is also relatively straight-forward. It basically refers to technology that can switch between VR and AR/MR. Basically this term came about to save companies having to describe their products as virtual reality and augmented reality devices. Enough said.

Metaverse

You’ve likely heard the term ‘metaverse’ being bounced around due to Meta investing some serious marketing dollars into hyping up the next evolution in virtual experiences. At this stage it’s still more of a concept born out of science fiction, than an actual experience. As such, it’s also a concept that there’s not yet a clear consensus on.

At the simplest level the metaverse takes VR (virtual metaverse) and/or AR (augmented metaverse), and applies them to a persistent virtual environment that exists independently, and is shared by many people.

An analogy for this is the game World of Warcraft, where millions of people play quests in a fantasy landscape that carries on in real-time, even when you are not playing. The metaverse could also be more of a unified network of virtual worlds, a little like connecting all multiplayer games into one ecosystem.

At the other end of the spectrum the metaverse could become an embodiment of all virtual experiences within a single and cohesive world. It could also contain its own socio-cultural norms, economy and political systems, as a parallel, yet independently functioning virtual universe.

In this sense the metaverse isn’t fundamentally about technology, instead it’s about how the human race will transform its relationship with technology.

In a Nutshell

Boiled down here are the essential definitions.

VR – fully simulated experiences that are highly immersive

AR – real-world experiences enhanced by immersive simulations

MR – an interchangeable term for AR

XR – technologies which can switch between VR and AR

Metaverse – VR and AR/MR experiences within a shared and persistent virtual universe

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In part 1 of this 2 part blog we covered an introduction and some of the history behind the 6 biggest types of games in eSports. As we saw they vary quite radically, for instance comparing RTS and FPS is a little like comparing say soccer to boxing – totally different! The big question to answer here is how do these eSports differ in terms of the mental loads on some of the highest performing human minds on planet earth? The goal here is to analyze each class of gaming to discover which eSports are the most demanding on high-level cognitive functions – enjoy!

Essential High-Level Cognitive Abilities in eSports

First we’ll break down the each type of the 6 eSports in terms their demands on seven different high-level cognitive functions. Research shows that many types of cyber athletes possess mental abilities that surpass those of non-gamers. Based on the NeuroTracker Team’s knowledge of neuroscience, here are our selection of the particular aspects of elite gamers’ mental prowess that matter most.

Processing speed – the amount of sensory information that can be meaningfully processed and evaluated over time. Why it’s important – this literally determines how fast you can operate in any demanding situation. As this decreases throughout adulthood, it's the reason why professional gamers tend to be young.

Working memory – the total load of information that can be held in mind and simultaneously manipulated in a given moment. Why it’s important – call it multitasking or mental juggling, this form of cognitive bandwidth is essential for thriving in complex or chaotic situations.

Depth perception – the ability to perceive your position relative to the environment and objects moving away or towards you. Why it’s important – perceiving depth is the most complex form spatial awareness, and is critical for predicting where you and your opponents will be, moment to moment.

Peripheral vision – the total visual field of view that can be effectively perceived. Why it’s important – having a wider useful field of view allows more visual information to be absorbed, and is essential for being able to track many moving objects, as well as virtual motion from a 1st person perspective.

Situational awareness – the ability to evaluate the relevance of perceptual information in terms of environmental consequences. Why it’s important – it’s especially key for recognizing situational threats or opportunities, and is an essential component of any kind of tactical or strategic awareness.

Decision-making – the ability to evaluate all of the above (and more) in order to predict different outcomes and select the best opportunities in a given situation. Why it’s important – gaming involves endless concatenations of small to large decision-making events, smart choices add up quickly into large advantages, and vice versa.

Reaction time – the neurophysical response time to execute an appropriate physical action. Why it’s important – when there is only a small timeframe to execute a decision into an action, a fast response time is needed to actually make it happen, otherwise the opportunity is lost.

The Cognitive Demands of Different eSports

Now we'll evaluate each of the big eSports across these cognitive metrics on a scale of 1-100, with some explanation of how they are scored.

FPS (First-Person Shooters)

As we can see FPS games rank very highly on depth perception, which is essential for perceiving self-motion through the environment via optic flow, as well as the precise distance of opponents (think sniper targeting). It’s also a classic form of reaction-based gaming, where milliseconds determine who gets shot and who survives.

Working memory and decision-making are less taxing, as there are times during gameplay where players are mostly roaming the map scouting opponents or seeking defensive positions. Overall FPS players have high demands on their visual systems during the heat of action.

RTS (Real-Time Strategy)

As we can see, RTS games place very heavy mental loads across the board apart from reaction time (mostly confined to micro managing units) and depth perception (mainly discerning the differences between flying and ground units).

Peripheral vision may seem surprisingly high, but RTS players have to constantly scan the activity of myriads of both friendly and enemy units, often across the whole screen, as well as maintain astute awareness of the all-important mini-map. Processing speed, working memory and decision-making are also maxed out, with the world’s best players executing in excess of an incredible 800 gaming actions per minute (aka APM), while also making complex tactical and strategic decisions.

Fighting

Just like in martial arts, fighting games are the quintessential reaction challenge when it comes to gaming. Every attack, block and counter attack is intimately dependent on the opponent’s actions, pretty much every micro second of combat. This requires a reasonable level of processing speed to interpret and predict each action.

However outside of this, the mental demands are fairly low. Decision-making and working memory demands are quite limited in terms of the number of gameplay options. Visual focus is much more acute than peripheral, and depth perception is largely about simply judging left and right motion through parallax 3D effects, with the background moving at different speeds to the plane of combat.

Racing

When it comes to racing games peripheral vision and depth perception are absolutely critical. They also go hand-in-hand, especially when it comes to precise judgement of speed when cornering or going for inevitably risky overtaking maneuvers. These specific visual demands push the human brain to its limits, way past what it was evolutionary designed to handle.

Although reaction time and decision-making do win or lose races, they tend to only come into play occasionally during battles for position – moments which have to be timed and chosen carefully. Working memory is also not overstrained, as top-flight racing is more about acute focus and precision than mental juggling.

Sports

Sports games tend to be quite polarized in their demands. Similar to some degree to real sports - reaction time, situational awareness and peripheral vision demands are very significant. This is because tactical play is all about reading every player position moment-to-moment, in order to predict play threats and opportunities.

Depth perception is only stimulated moderately through judging ball trajectories along with minor differences in the relative motion of players that are closer, versus further away. Likewise, processing speed, working memory, and decision-making demands aren't very significant, mainly due to the limited number of play outcomes compared to other eSports.

MOBA (Multi Online Battle Arena)

As we mentioned in the last blog, MOBA competitions are fiercely competitive. They also have a phenomenal number of potential play outcomes in big team fights. For example in DOTA 2, each of the 10 different players can execute up to 37 combinations of hero abilities and items in synergistic fashion. This vast complexity, paired with fast-paced gameplay, rigorously tests players’ grey matter across the board, topping the charts when it comes to both challenging tactical and strategic decision-making thinking.

However, the Achilles heel for these high-level cognitive functions is the low demand on depth-perception. For the most part this just about judging the motion of occasional airborne spells or attacks across a mostly flat battle environment.

The Takeaway

As we’ve seen, the specific high-level cognitive demands of one particular eSport can vary quite dramatically when compared to another. Now let’s take a look at the overall scores across the top eSports.

As mentioned in the Part 1 of this blog, not all games are created equal. Also it’s useful to recognize that, with the exception of fighting games, all the big eSports games have very significant cognitive demands compared to the majority non-professional games.

Although FPS, Racing and MOBA games are close contenders, it’s RTS games that come up trumps when it comes to needing superhuman brain power in order to succeed at the highest standards. Even with the light demands on depth perception, RTS games still excel overall when it comes to taxing gamer’s neurons.

In particular, there is a huge gap between high-level competitive players and the world’s best RTS cyber athletes, who execute play actions on the order of 10 times faster than their lesser counterparts. This is likely the reason why cognitive sports scientists have chosen to study Starcraft II champions to investigate what makes gamers’ brains so special. Additionally, this class of gamers were the first choice for Google to field test an astonishingly powerful evolution of Deepmind AI, dubbed AlphaStar.

If you enjoyed this two-part article, then check out our other blogs revealing why eSports deserve to be taken seriously.

4 Blogs on Why eSports are Impressive

And in case you missed it - Which eSports Are the Most Cognitively Demanding? Part 1

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There are myriads of different types of video games, especially when you take into account the popularity of casual or hyper-casual gaming. That said, when it comes to competitive gaming, cyber athletes fall into 6 main categories of eSports - collectively attracting by far-and-away the most spectators and biggest prize pools in gaming. In Part 1 of this blog, we’ll cover a brief introduction as well touch upon a little history of each of the big eSports. In Part 2 we’ll analyze each eSport in terms of their demands on 7 different high-level cognitive functions, and then weigh-up which types of gamers have to be the most adept at flexing their mental muscle!

First-Person Shooters

First-person shooters, or FPS as they’re more commonly known, were originally spawned by the legendary game of Doom in 1993. The desire for fans of the game to compete across the internet was so strong that the makers of the game actually invented multiplayer technology, changing gaming forever. Modern iterations of the same game are still popular almost three decades on.

This distinct class of games essentially involve gunning your foes down from a first-person perspective, while maneuvering to get better shots and taking evasive actions to avoid getting incoming fire. They also combine tactical teamplay, typically with two of teams five or more players pitted against each other. Some of the most popular FPS games today include the long-running success Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds, Arena of Valor, Fortnite, and the Call of Duty series.

Real-Time Strategy  

Also acronymized, RTS games blend strategy with fast-paced warfare. The epitome of multi-tasking gaming, players strive to build up a small empire via economic growth combined with tech research (macro play). They do this while managing growing armies from a top-down perspective (micro play), to steadily conquer control of the map, or rush to directly besiege their enemy’s base.

The Command and Conquer series popularized the format and brought RTS into multiplayer status. However, Starcraft II (Starcraft’s successor), has very much dominated the modern RTS landscape. The game was so popular in Korea that it literally helped bring the economy out of recession, with Korean players having a long history of being exceptional at this cybersport.  Whole TV channels have been dedicated to showing competition matches, and Korea’s top players are heralded with the status of rock stars.

Fighting Games

Fighting games deliver one-on-one brutal combat viewed from the sidelines. Born out of video arcades, they were the first games which allowed one player to really challenge another player head-on. The winner being the one who pummels their opponent into submission (or death) the first. Requiring very high-dexterity, this skill-based form of combat involves knowing precisely when to exact a combination of strikes on the opponent, and when to dodge incoming blows.  

Going all the way back to 1991, and still going strong today, the original Street Fighter II cemented this genre’s massive popularity. In 1992 it was soon followed by its far bloodier counterpart Mortal Kombat, and then the Japanese game Tekken. These games all successfully transitioned out of the arcades into homes, online gaming, and eventually eSports. That said they have been steadily declining in popularity compared to their eSports counterparts.

Racing

One of the earliest types of computer entertainment, racing or driving games have come a long since their graphically crude beginnings. Driving down race tracks or streets, they are the ultimate eSports simulation game. And today’s computer hardware allows for extremely realistic racing experiences which test a player’s cognitive skills much in the same way real driving does.

iRacing.com and Trackmania are examples of racers which attract respectable prize money, but it’s F1 eSports which has been gaining phenomenal growth and spectators in recent years. The video game even replaced real Formula 1 races, when events were cancelled due to COVID-19. Some of the biggest names in real F1 continue to compete regularly in online championships, with millions of viewers following their Twitch streams.

Sports Games

Ever since computers could do a decent job of recreating competitive sports, digital versions have been delivered into our homes. EA Sports has been the major video game maker on the market, covering long running series of NBA, NFL, NHL and MBL, with newer versions of the games released regularly. However, it’s pretty much only the sport of soccer which is globally popular in eSports tournaments, played through EA Sports’ FIFA 21 (and now FIFA 22). With a truly vast competitive player base, these cyber athletes have clocked up almost half a billion online matches.

Although very realistic, sports games are not sports simulations, as they are viewed from somewhere in-between a top-down and sideline perspective, and player actions have no resemblance to how the sports is actually played (unlike with racing games). Though they do involve some similar demands on situational awareness and tactical play.

MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena)

The core mechanics of MOBA evolved out of modding an older RTS game called Warcraft III (the predecessor of Starcraft). A whole community of gamers iteratively developed a brand new style of game by essentially hacking a game near the end of it's lifespan. This changed the history of video game development, as no company actually invented MOBA - instead gamers created all by themselves.

MOBA essentially blends FPS, RTS and RPG (role playing games) mechanics. Similar to FPS, matches involve facing-off two teams of 5 players against each other, with the ultimate goal of destroying the enemy base. Each players control a single hero or avatar (also like in FPS), but from a top-down perspective like RTS. Along with this is an RPG style leveling up of each hero via experience, allowing increasingly more powerful spells or combat abilities to be brought to the fray. The result of this melting pot of playstyles is a frenetic combination of tactical teamwork, meta-strategy and action gaming. As such, MOBA comes with a reputation for having an extremely steep learning curve, as well as being aggressively competitive.

MOBA games are both the newest type of game in eSports, and perhaps the least known generally. Nonetheless MOBA’s popularity among the serious gaming community has soared over the past decade, accounting for the most massive tournaments in eSports, as well as the most phenomenal prize pools. League of Legends and DOTA 2 are by far the most popular games of this genre, with a die hard following of fans. So much so, that in 2021, DOTA 2’s premier tournament (dubbed ‘The International’) dished out over $40 million dollars in winnings - with every cent contributed by people devoted the game!

The Cognitive Dimension – Which Gamers Will Come Out on Top?

Sports science and neuroscience research has demonstrated that elite gamers have exceptional cognitive abilities. In Part 2 of this blog, we will analyze each of these cyber sports in terms of their demands on mental bandwidth. Then we’ll measure them across these 7 high-level cognitive functions, which are all critical elements in gaming prowess.

• Processing speed

• Peripheral vision

• Depth perception

• Working memory

• Situational awareness

• Decision-making

• Reaction time

Scoring each cognitive function from 0-100, we’ll take the highest collective score to determine which cyber athletes require the biggest superbrains to compete at the top level. Who do you think will come up trumps? Find out in Part 2!

Which eSports Are the Most Cognitively Demanding? Part 2

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As a sports scientist and experienced coach with different types of athletes, the chance to work in eSports was a great opportunity. Luckily, I was recruited by the Alpine F1 eSports team to bring cutting-edge neurovision training into this truly exciting domain of human performance. In 2021 alone, we have made superb progress in transforming the team’s athletic abilities on the simulated track. Here I’ll share some insights on our unique approach, and reveal why the training methods of eSports athletes could change the way all athletic potential is developed.

Hyper Competitive Racing

In F1 eSports racing the goal is clear – to train the drivers (or ‘pilots’ as they are referred to in the sport), not only to perform at their best, but also to maintain their performance across the whole season. And in this domain the competition is extremely fierce. In the first Formula 1 eSports Series held in 2017, over 60,000 drivers competed through the qualifying stages. As the first traditional sport to have successfully transitioned onto a fully virtual platform, it provides both competitors and fans an unparalleled racing experience that is surprisingly close to real F1. To help get an idea, here is a clip of the Alpine Team in action.

The simulation side is also very sophisticated at the professional team level, with a pit wall crew communicating live telemetry data such as tire wear, along with very technical customization of each driver’s sim-station setup.

If you're interested to discover more, a series of great documentaries on the team’s development over the season can be watched here.

From Strength to Strength

Things have been growing rapidly ever since, particularly due to COVID-19, which led to real F1 drivers crossing into the virtual series when events were cancelled. This, along with the huge popularity of the Netflix Drive to Survive documentary, led to competitor and spectator numbers to rising dramatically. In 2021 close to half a million drivers competed to qualify in the F1 eSports Pro Series, with an estimated viewership of 26.8 million - making it one of the most popular events on online streaming platforms.

On top of this, real F1 stars continued to compete in virtual F1, bringing in an additional 2.7 million viewers from their live streams. The phenomenal growth of this eSports shows no signs of stopping.

The point is that F1 eSports is ultra-competitive. It's not just tenths of a second that count - it's literally thousandths of a second that make the difference at the checkered flag. The competition is so strong that it's all about the details!

Pushing the Boundaries of Human Performance Through eSports

Human performance development is of paramount importance to the strategic approach of the Alpine eSports F1 team.  For this reason, we work closely with the real Alpine F1 team, including sharing vanguard human performance approaches that we have developed on the eSports side.

One unique area we focus on is the neurovisual and physical conditioning of the drivers. Alpine brought me in as Manager of Performance, partly with the goal of bringing in the best tools currently available to improve drivers' visual, cognitive and motor performance.

Leveraging Cutting-Edge Science and Technology

What makes our approach particularly innovative is our driver training programs, which are built and developed on the basis of the latest scientific research and publications in cognitive neuroscience and sports psychology.

We use state-of-the-art technology such as NeuroTracker, to help drivers gain those few thousandths of seconds that make the difference between a podium finish and fourth place. As you can see here, the technology fits perfectly for the sim-racing setup, making it easy to use as pre-training or pre-competition warm-up to cognitively prime the brain on-demand.

As an up-and-coming team we’ve had phenomenal success in developing relatively low-ranked drivers into world class pilots, allowing us to battle for podium places with the very top teams like Mercedes. This is why Alpine F1 eSports management was asked to present to real race teams at Le Mans 2021, to share how leveraging technologies like NeuroTracker has allowed the team to punch well above their weight.

Custom Neurovisual Training Protocols

Within the team, we have put into place two specific training protocols in addition to the classic simulator training. The first is an evaluation and training protocol which targets the visual and cognitive functions of the drivers, which we call neurovisual training. The second is oriented around the development of the speed of motor responses and reaction times. These two training protocols combined allow us to put the pilots in the best possible position in terms of performance throughout the season.

In addition we use neurovisual assessments to test each driver’s performance readiness, and to recruit new talent. In a follow-up to this blog, I’ll share a case study demonstrating how these techniques helped us to statistically predict potential driver rankings and recruit diamonds in the ruff.

The Cognitive Advantage in Both Sports and eSports

Having worked with elite athletes across a wide range of sports, it was a surprisingly natural transition to move into sim-racing. This is because in traditional sports, the cognitive dimension of performance is a primary factor differentiating athletes at the top level.

In fact, many of the demands of traditional sports, real F1, and eSports F1 are very similar. This includes factors such as speed of processing and dynamic attention, but especially so for neurovisual abilities like peripheral vision and situational awareness.

Evolving Performance to the Next Level

As a truly innovative race team we are constantly striving to develop the next training technique or technology to achieve next-level athletic abilities. In particular we are keen to develop custom-training methods with NeuroTracker that give our pilots an extra cognitive edge. In fact, we are working directly with NeuroTracker’s scientific consultants, to merge neuroscience expertise with sports science, to evolve never-before-seen applications of the technology specifically geared for sim-racing.

That said, I can see how these evolutions in neurophysical training could lead to similar adaptations for real F1 racing, as well as traditional sports. Neuroscience and neurotechnologies have the potential to transform how elite athleticism is nurtured - with the brain in the center of attention. In this sense I can definitely see how the fiercely competitive eSports industry will be a catalyst for athlete development universally – exciting times!

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Year on year, the pace of neuroscience discoveries is both exciting and relentless. From lab grown mini-brains, to artificial intelligence uncovering evolutionary secrets of the human brain, enjoy these 7 of the most amazing breakthroughs of 2021.

Treating Severe Depression with Adaptive Deep Brain Stimulation

A research team at the University of California San Francisco have successfully developed a method using deep brain stimulation (DBS) to adaptively treat depressive symptoms only when they appear. Deep brain stimulation involves implanting electrodes within the brain to deliver electrical currents to alter brain activity.

Previous studies have had limited success for treating depression with DBS because devices could only deliver constant electrical stimulation in one area of the brain. However depression can affect various areas of the brain, and the neural signatures of depression can rise and fall unpredictably.

With the aim of essentially creating a pacemaker for the brain, the scientists decoded a new neural biomarker. This specific pattern of brain activity effectively predicts the onset of symptoms. With this knowledge the team customized a new DBS technology that only activates when and where it recognizes that pattern.

The type of automatic on-demand therapy is impressive because it's functional responses are unique to both the patient’s brain and the neural circuit causing the illness. In it’s first trial, this custom DBS method was tested with a patient suffering from severe depression and passed with flying colors.  Almost immediately, the patient’s symptoms were alleviated, and this continued to be the case long term.

In the COVID era, where anxiety and mental health problems are becoming rife, this approach could prove an invaluable drug-free therapy for hundreds of millions of people.

Beyond Human Hearing

Similar to light waves, humans can only perceive a relatively small spectrum of the sound waves that travel around us. Typically we can only pick up on frequencies between 20 Hz and 20,000 Hz, beyond this is considered ultrasonic. This is the frequency range that animals like bats operate in, and also what is put to use in ultra sound medical scans.

A new method utilizing sophisticated technology has been pioneered by scientists at Aalto University, and has led to a device that basically gives humans bat-level hearing. This includes not only the ability to hear frequencies well beyond 20,000 Hz, but also to discern the direction and distance of the sound sources. For biologists for example, it allows people to track otherwise stealthy bats in flight, and locate their positions.

It works by recording ultrasound via a spherical microphone array, which detects ultrasonic sounds and uses a computer to translate the pitch to audible frequencies. It then plays the converted sound waves through headphones in real-time. Being able to perceive normally inaudible sounds could have valuable industrial applications, for example being able to hear and locate otherwise silent gas leaks.

AI Independently Learns to Smell in the Same Way Humans Do

Although neuroscience is a relatively young and fast-growing domain of science, artificial intelligence (AI) is both much newer and growing faster. The potential of combining these two fields of science has been revealed by researchers at MIT.

Using machine learning, they have discovered that artificial neural networks can self-learn how to smell in just a few minutes, actually mimicking the olfactory circuits in mammalian brains. This is profound because the algorithm put to work had no knowledge of the millions of years evolution required to develop smell biologically.

Yet amazingly, the artificial neural network replicated the biological activity of smell so closely that it revealed the brain’s olfactory network is mathematically optimized for its function.

This precise mimicking of the natural structure of circuits in the brain by independent machine learning may herald a new era, whereby AI teaches us the inner secrets of biological evolution. Sense of smell is the starting point in 2021, but who knows where this could lead…

Neuroprosthesis Converts Thoughts into Sentences in Severely Paralyzed Patient

Researchers at UC San Francisco developed a new kind of a speech neuroprosthesis for patients with paralyses that prevents them for speaking. The method was demonstrated successfully on a man with a severely damaged brain stem, causing whole body paralysis.

Somewhat remarkably it works by detecting speech-related brain signals that control the vocal cords. When we speak, the vocal cords require complex motor-function instructions in order to articulate the wide variety of sounds we use when conversing. Even when unable to move, these signals can still get sent from the brain.

Using brain recordings from epilepsy patients, the scientists developed a method for real-time decoding of instructions to vocal muscles, into words. From these neural patterns, they were able to reliably discern 50 different common words whenever the patient was thinking them.  

All that was required was for the patient to wear a high-density electrode array to capture and record neural activity, which recorded signals from the speech motor cortex. This allowed up 18 words per minute to be translated with 93% accuracy. The advantage for the patient was that he simply had to act like he was really speaking and he could communicate hundreds of different sentences from the 50 words vocabulary.

Although this breakthrough seems limited to paralyzed patients, we undergo paralysis every night when we dream (unless we sleep walk). If evolved sufficiently, this approach could, for example, pave the way to translating our very thoughts while sleeping!

Human Mini-Brains Developed with Complex Neural Activity

Technically termed ‘brain organoids’, mini-brains can be grown from induced pluripotent stem cells. These stem cells can be taken from a person’s skin or blood, and the the potential to be morph into any type of cells. The benefit is that cell structures normally very difficult to access, can in principle, be grown and isolated for study. This is especially relevant for the brain, however previous mini-brains had limited functional structures.

This year’s breakthrough by scientists at UCLA has catapulted the structural complexity by growing aggregates of organoids to form complex three-dimensional brain structures. The researchers took stem cells from patients with Rett syndrome (a condition with seizures), and were able to grow mini-brains with functional activity similar to parts of human brains. This meant they were able to safely and successfully observe patterns of electrical activity that resemble the onset of seizures.

This research shows for the first time that some aspects of brain function can be isolated and studied in the lab down to the level of individual living cells. The key advantage is that these mini-brains can be grown to replicate aspects of both normal and diseased brain functions, as well as to test drugs and treatments with no risks to human or animals.

The scale of the human brain is enormous, so there are still clear limitations in terms of the complexity of brain structures that can be studied, but clearly this emerging neuroscience domain has sci-fi like potential.

‘Neurograins’ Used to Develop Next-Generation Brain-Computer Interface

With the exponential growth in growth in computing power in recent decades, microchips have been getting increasingly smaller each year. Tech focused neuroscientists at Brown University have now developed a wireless computer so small it can be easily missed by the human eye. Dubbed ‘neurograins’ - because they are about the size of a grain of salt - they were developed to track and monitor brain activity.  

These ultra-tiny computers are able to record electrical activity from nearby neurons, and transmit their data wirelessly. The goal was to develop a new type of brain-computer interface (BCI) system, where a network of the mini-sensors can collectively track meaningful aspects of brain activity, and send the information to a nearby hub.

In a proof-of-concept experiment, the researchers deployed a network to successfully record a rodent’s neural activity with much greater accuracy than ever achieved before. This recording of brain signals in unprecedented detail it’s still in it’s early stages, but the technological breakthrough holds much promise for being able to convert brain waves into useful real-world actions without any physical effort.

Restoring Functional Vision for Completely Blind People

This year a new type of microelectrode array has been used to create a form of artificial vision via a visual prosthesis. University of Utah scientists at the John A. Moran Eye Center built the device to record and stimulate neuronal activity within the visual cortex.

Implanted within the eye, the array receives visual information through glasses containing a small video camera, with the data processed by specialized software. The device then activates retinal neurons to produce phosphenes, as if they are receiving points of light. In turn allowing basic images of lines and shapes to be percieved by the mind.

Trialed with a completely blind patient, this method proved to be effective, and involved no complications from the surgery or the neuronal stimulation. In this first test, only a single array was used. However, the next goal is to use 7 to 10 arrays to deliver more detailed images that will allow blind people to actually navigate the world visually.

New Injectable Molecular Therapy Repairs Severe Spinal Cord Injuries

A new class of ‘dancing molecules’ has been applied by researchers at Northwestern University to repair tissue in severe spinal cord injuries and successfully reverse paralysis. The dancing part involves manipulating the motion of these molecules to that they can wiggle their way into normally impossible to reach cellular receptors, in order to prompt them to get into gear repairing nerve tissues.

These seemingly magic molecules work by setting-off cascading signals, triggering axons to regenerate and helping neurons to survive after injury by encouraging a variety of new cell types to be born. This is in turn supports the regrowth of lost blood vessels necessary for cellular healing.

Tested in mice, just a single injection of the molecular therapy led to the paralyzed mice being able to walk again in under four weeks. Somewhat conveniently, 12 weeks later (well after recovery is complete), the materials biodegrade into nutrients for the cells without any side effects, effectively disappearing from the body naturally.

VR Delivers Therapy to Overcome Fear of Heights

Virtual Reality (VR) has been used by psychophysicists for decades to investigate how we perceive sensory information. This year researchers from the University of Basel, the oldest university in Switzerland, developed a virtual reality application to actually treat height phobias.

Called Easyheights, the smartphone compatible software provides exposure therapy using 360° images of real locations. Wearing a VR headset, users stand on a platform that starts one meter above the ground, and then progressively rises as the users acclimatizes to each stage of height. It works by increasing sensory exposure to height with without increasingly the level of fear.

A clinical trial demonstrated the efficacy of this immersive form of treatment, producing significant reductions in phobia in real height situations. The benefits were experienced with just four hours of home-based training. This discovery shows how combining neuroscience knowledge with today’s technologies, can clinically improve peoples’ quality of life in ways that are easily accessible.

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Adolescents with severe cognitive challenges are often confronted with important obstacles both at home and school. Although cognitive training has come to the foreground in recent years, there has been a general absence of research investigating the potential benefits for children with neurodevelopmental conditions including intellectual disability, who also often present with difficulty with attention and staying on-task at school. The ability of these children to perform certain tasks is often underestimated, and current cognitive interventions developed for typically developing children are simply not accessible to them. This presents a key challenge, since these youngsters are perhaps most in need of such benefits. Falling behind at school has long term repercussions, both in terms of future opportunities and for social esteem. Here we cover research showing why cognitive interventions show a lot of promise for students with intellectual disability, defined in part by very low IQ.

The Challenge of Training Attention in Children with Learning Difficulties

Attention is known to be strongly correlated to student performance and behavior in the classroom. Accordingly, students typically have poor attention struggle academically. In recent years, studies have demonstrated that  attention can be improved with cognitive training interventions for adolescents diagnosed with a neurodevelopmental condition. However, very little research has been conducted with students who have very low cognitive and/or language abilities, often associated with conditions such as autism and Down Syndrome, for example.

There are a number of reasons debated as to why this is, including the practical issues related to whether a student with intellectual disability can understand task instructions, or the challenges with obtaining parental and school consent for participating in a study. However, perhaps the most likely reason is that children with very low IQ are assumed not to be capable of performing the cognitive training programs currently available, which are generally designed for typically developing adult or actively aging populations.

This seems a valid assumption, given that current intervention programs generally include a panoply of exercises which all have different rules to learn to perform them, often include lengthy verbal instructions, and/or are characterized by superfluous and possibly distracting stimuli that children with learning and cognitive challenges find difficult to process and engage.

Building on Attention Training Research

My research colleagues at McGill University and the University of Montreal previously published a study showing that a cognitive training based on the NeuroTracker software was effective at improving the attentional capacities of children with clinically significant attentional difficulties. This showed for the first time the potential to improve academic outcomes for children and adolescents with different neurodevelopmental conditions. However, in this study the student’s cognitive and language abilities were at a level where task comprehension was not an issue. The question remained if children with severe cognitive challenges – who represent a largely underserved part of students receiving special education - would be able to perform the task.  

About NeuroTracker

NeuroTracker is quite distinct from other cognitive training interventions, in that there is one core training exercise which is relatively simple to understand, yet challenging to do. The task involves remembering and tracking multiple balls moving in 3D space among distractions, and recalling them when they stop after 4-8 seconds of movement. This is repeated 20 times to complete a 6-minute session, with the difficulty of the task adapting on each repetition. Here is a 2D video introduction to the task.

The adaptability of this type of training to individual needs is broad, being used across diverse populations from elite athletes and US Airforce pilots, through to training for elderlies at risk of mild cognitive impairment and for clinical rehabilitation.

With these factors in mind, we decided to conduct a feasibility study in a classroom setting to see if this training intervention could be used successfully and independently by students who have very low IQ.  In comparison to efficacy and validation studies, feasibility studies are rarely conducted to in cognitive research, but can provide valuable insights on both the implementation and viability of a program in a applied setting and/or for a group of individuals with different capabilities.

What Was Studied

We worked with a school in Quebec that specializes in educating children with learning difficulties, and had supported previous research with NeuroTracker. At this school students are not separated according to specific learning difficulties, but instead they are grouped into small classes based on their level of academic ability and behavioral challenges. Each class is managed by a teacher and a student aid.

Students were given the opportunity to participate voluntarily with the consent of their parents. On each training day a research assistant provided the class with iPad tablets setup with the NeuroTracker software, along with custom anaglyph glasses to create stereoscopic 3D. To allow for maximum adaptability in the training difficulty, we opted for a NeuroTracker algorithm which autonomously modifies three variables of the task: number of targets, speed of movement, and duration of movement.

Each student was asked to perform 2 x 6-minute sessions back-to-back, 3 days each week. 15 training days (30 NeuroTracker sessions) were required to complete the overall intervention – approximately 3 hours of total training time on the NeuroTracker task. An active control group of students were also included, who instead of using NeuroTracker, played a simple browser game called Google Chrome Dino.

What Was Found

In terms of the total number of students and parents invited to participate in the study, 58% of parents asked if their child could be part of the study consented (a relatively good percentage). This demonstrated a clear interest in the potential of cognitive training interventions versus other intervention modalities, such as cognitive therapy or cognitive medications.

For the NeuroTracker training, the software adapted the difficulty down to tracking one target throughout the intervention for 53% of participating students. This was the first NeuroTracker study conducted at this low level of difficultly, and reflective of how the program can adapt to the cognitive abilities of participants. The rest of the students progressed to 2, 3, or 4 targets, demonstrating the need for high training adaptability with this population. The students also improved at the task overall, but again the results were unsurprisingly quite variable across participants. Importantly, 100% of students successfully completed all the 30 NeuroTracker sessions, with no missing data for any sessions. In total the sessions comprised 600 trials (or mini-tests), requiring each student to independently input their answers on every trial.

Takeaways

Contrary to the concerns raised over the feasibility of cognitive interventions for children with very severe cognitive challenges, this study showed very promising results. These students weren’t only able to understand and engage with NeuroTracker, they were also all motivated to train independently on this task, completing 5 weeks of distributed training with 100% compliance. Indeed, this training paradigm showed to be highly accessible to students with significant cognitive and language difficulties.

The results suggest that cognitive training that is simple to understand, yet challenging to perform, with a high degree of adaptability to individual needs, could be very suitable for adolescents who struggle to maintain even limited amounts of attention.

These findings show that it is possible to conduct cognitive studies with youth with very low intellectual abilities, and our experience will inform future larger studies to investigate the efficacy of NeuroTracker in terms of transfer to academic skills. If the results continue to be positive, this will open a new opportunity to improve low-functioning students at a neurodevelopmental level, hopefully with long term benefits.

Study Reference

Assessing the feasibility of a classroom-based attention training program targeting academics for students with extremely low IQ

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How strong are you mentally to face eSports opponents in League of Legends, Dota 2, and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive? Part of preparing for competitive gaming is honing your skills. However, mental wellness can help prepare effectively for eSports events. Good mental health may also improve your performance in other competitive activities, including online casino games.

Gaming may require you to sit all day. Thus, eSports players are more likely to be obese and in need of weight loss programs and experiencing sharp stabbing pain in knees than the general population. So, it’s also essential to stay physically active to help you prepare mentally for eSports events. Continue reading to discover how to flex your “mental muscles” when preparing for eSports competitions.  

Take More Breaks

Spending more time doing a particular activity may seem to improve focus. That’s not really how it works. Research shows that taking breaks from activities, such as studying, may improve focus. If your concentration drops during eSports sessions, consider taking a mental break, even if it’s 10 minutes every hour.

You have several options. Try getting a drink, eating a snack, or taking a walk. When you return to your gaming session, you may feel more focused and motivated. Research shows that taking breaks may help students focus better when studying.

Taking breaks seems to improve academic performance. However, further research is needed to determine if taking breaks while gaming produces the same results.  

Practice Relaxation Techniques

Stress is the human body’s response to change, challenge, or demand.  While stress often has negative connotations, learning effective stress management can help counter high-pressure situations. Suppose you’re preparing for an epic eSports event. You can take steps such as muscular relaxation to help you keep calm.

Relaxation techniques such as deep breathing exercises can help lower the adverse effects of stress on your mind and body. Let’s say your stress levels are spiraling out of control before an eSports world championship. Relaxation techniques can help reduce stress to lower levels.

These techniques provide several benefits. For example, they’re often free or low-cost, doable nearly anywhere, and low-risk. Relaxation technicians may provide several physical and mental benefits, including:

● Lower blood pressure

● Slow down the heart rate

● Maintain normal blood sugar levels

● Boost confidence to handle problems

● Improve mood and concentration

● Manage stress hormones’ activity

● Slow down the breathing rate

● Lower fatigue

Get Enough Quality Sleep

Research shows that sleep deprivation can produce a negative effect on cognitive performance. It will help if you get 7 to 9 hours of sleep as often as possible. Getting a good night’s sleep may also help improve other aspects of your health related to physical, mental, and emotional well-being.  

Getting a full night’s sleep may be challenging due to various factors. Some examples include health issues and a busy schedule from preparing for a big eSports event. However, research shows that healthy adults generally need 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night.

Here are some tips to get enough sleep:

● Keep your bedroom at a comfortable temperature

● Avoid heavy workouts right before bedtime

● Go to bed, then get up at roughly the same time daily

● Wind down before sleeping with a warm bath, book, or music

Do a Concentration Workout

Children who have problems focusing often do these mental workouts, although adults can benefit from them. With these workouts, you are required to devote full attention to a particular activity for a set period, such as:

● Tossing a small ball

● Doodling for several minutes

● Blinking as little as possible within three to five minutes

● Focusing on the flavor of hard candy

These concentration workouts are simple activities, making it easy to lose focus. When doing the exercise, take note of when you lose focus and what steps you took to refocus.

Or for something more structured, NeuroTracker is one example of a cognitive training tool used by professional gamers to boost concentration under pressure. Scientific research also shows it can reveal gamers' unusually high-level mental skills.

Try Meditation

At first, meditation may seem to have nothing to do with gaming. However, meditation can help improve focus, enhancing your gaming performance.

Research published in Clinical Psychology Review showed that mindfulness training that focuses on attention may help improve concentration and focus.  

Meditation can involve various activities, including yoga and deep breathing exercises.  

Despite the studies showing that meditation may help improve focus, more studies on meditation and gaming are needed.  

Consume Some Caffeine

Good options for beverages include black coffee, green tea, and raw cacao. Studies show that drinking caffeine may help improve attention and concentration.

Make sure not to consume high amounts of caffeine, as you may experience symptoms such as heart palpitations or jittery nerves.

It would help if you also avoid certain beverages, like sodas, energy drinks, and sports drinks. Besides the high sugar content, some beverages include synthetic caffeine.

Exercise Regularly

Besides the physical benefits of doing workouts, you may experience mental benefits that improve your gaming.

Physical exercise may impact the brain’s white and gray matter. These brain cells perform different cognitive functions. In turn, cognitive processes such as thinking, attention span, and memory may improve.

More research is needed on regular exercise’s ability to help improve focus while gaming.

Listen to Music

Sound effects are a significant component of today’s video games. However, playing relaxing music in the background may help boost concentration.

Research indicates that listening to music while studying may help enhance your study sessions.

For example, listening to nature sounds, “spa music,” electronic music without lyrics, and classical music in the background may improve your studying.

When selecting music, consider genres that won’t be distracting. Examples include listening to music with lower volumes, slower speeds, and without lyrics.

More research is needed on whether listening to music may improve focus when playing video games, such as eSports.

Work on Your Mental Focus

Achieving and maintaining focus may help you perform better during eSports events.  

A recent study showed that playing League of Legends for one hour increased focus among subjects.

The study also showed that expert gamers experienced more brain activity than non-gamers.

While short gaming sessions may improve mental focus, other steps and activities may also improve concentration in preparation for eSports events:

Create a focus-friendly environment: Factors such as noise levels and room temperature may affect how effectively you can focus.  

Focus on your top priorities: While having gaming goals is essential, it’s critical to concentrate on the top items on your to-do list. Then you can focus your time and effort on those goals.

Practice mindfulness: Mindfulness is about “staying in the moment” through thoughts, emotions, and sensations.

Set clear eSports goals and a plan: Do you want to win your next game, qualify for an eSports event, or become a professional gamer?

Final Thoughts

Improving your eSports gaming can involve more than long practice sessions. Staying focused, using relaxation techniques, and getting a good night’s sleep can also help make you mentally tougher and ready for your next eSports practice session, game, or competition. Up your game with brainpower!

References

1. How to Manage Stress with Mindfulness and Meditation

2. Relaxation techniques: Try these steps to reduce stress

3. One Hour of Video Gaming Can Increase the Brain's Ability to Focus

4. What is mindfulness?

5. Sleep deprivation: Impact on cognitive performance

6. How Much Sleep Do We Really Need?

7. Does mindfulness training improve cognitive abilities? A systematic review of neuropsychological findings

8. How Meditation Can Help You Focus

9. The science of taking a break

10. Can music help you study and focus?

11. Effects of Caffeine on Cognitive Performance, Mood, and Alertness in Sleep-Deprived Humans

12. Working out boosts brain health

13. Why do we need sleep?

14. NeuroTracker Reveals the Secrets of Pro Gamers’ Brains

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Screens are a major part of life. Fifty years ago people spent an hour watching the evening news each day and occasionally went to the movies. Now, they check their phones, use their computers, and watch their televisions around the clock.

40% of college students admit that they’re addicted to their phones. Vox reported in 2020 that Americans spend an average of 600 total minutes in front of various forms of screens each day — and counting…

Humanity has benefited tremendously from the technological and information ages. But it doesn’t change the fact that our excessive use of screen time is posing some serious long-term threats, particularly when it comes to our mental health.

How Screen Time Negatively Impacts the Brain

It should come as no surprise that too much screen time hurts the body and the brain alike. The physical effects are often easy to spot. Reduced activity leads to weight issues, staring at a screen all day strains the eyes, and so on.

The mental side of the equation is harder to identify, but often just as detrimental.

For instance, while not definitively conclusive, studies have suggested that too much screen time can lead to grey matter shrinkage in the brain. It can also hinder the ability of white matter to communicate and generally hobble cognitive performance.

In addition, there are indirect effects. Blue light has been connected to sleep issues for a while now. If sleep is disrupted, it can lead to further cognitive function concerns from struggling to preserve memories to lower mental agility, hormone regulation, and even major issues like Alzheimer’s disease.

Harvard researchers have also reported that, along with sleep deprivation, too much screen time can interfere with creativity. The brain needs time to wander with nothing to do. This boredom is often the time when creativity and innovation are the strongest. Excessive screen time takes away that process.

Some of the subtlest ways screen time impacts our mental state is through its addictive nature, as well. Digital devices encourage things like FOMO (fear of missing out), dopamine-inducing environments, and the need to “always be sharing” information. All of these can seriously influence how we perceive and interact with the world — and mostly in negative ways.

Ways to Minimize the Effects of Screen Time

There’s no doubt that screen time is a growing issue with modern individuals. However, the integrated and valuable nature of digital devices makes entirely removing screens an impractical solution. Instead, here are a few suggestions to help you better manage your screen time.

Limit Your Screen Time

It may sound difficult, but it really is possible to reduce your screen time. If you’re in virtual school classes or you work remotely, you likely have certain quotas of screen time that you simply can’t get out of each day.

But you can still look for ways to be healthier “in the cracks.” Instead of vegging out in front of the television every day, look for healthier options, like playing a board game with a friend or going out on a date with a loved one.

You can also look for recurring activities, like a home workout routine, that can keep you motivated to do non-screen activities on the regular. By finding hobbies or setting fitness goals, you give yourself something to focus on and work toward that isn’t screen-dependent.

Get Screen Time Accountability

If you want to manage your screen time better, you may need to get some help. It’s important that you approach the issue as any addict would. Trying to positively impact your situation on your own is both risky and prone to failure.

Instead, look for accountability to help keep you on track. This could be daily check-ins with a friend. It could also come from creating a screen time agreement with your family that creates basic parameters for your digital device usage.

Whatever you choose, setting up accountability is a great way to truly break your unhealthy screen time habits.

Support Your Mental Health in Other Ways

Along with removing the screen problem, you also want to look for ways to proactively fill it in with positive mental health habits. Some suggestions include:

● Eating a clean, healthy diet;

● Getting consistent exercise;

● Addressing the quantity and quality of your sleep;

● Cultivating a positive, thankful, and grateful mindset;

It’s hard to remove something like screen time without filling in the hole with another equally potent (and ideally positive) alternative.

Minimizing the Negative Impact of Screen Time

Screens are a necessity of life. But that doesn’t mean they should be used in an unrestrained manner. On the contrary, it’s essential that you make an effort to regulate your screen time and minimize the effect that it can have on your mind.

So use the three tips above as a starting point and then look for ways that you can improve your screen habits. Your mind, body, and emotions will thank you in the long run.

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Lack of attention and concentration is a problem that individuals confront daily. The capacity to pay attention and avoid distractions is referred to as focus. Mental focus is critical because it serves as the entry point for all perception, thinking, learning, decision making, remembering, and problem-solving. All of these talents will deteriorate if you don't concentrate. The truth is that if you can't focus, you can't think effectively, and thus you can't generate the quality of work required for success. It's easy to see why focus is such an essential skill for success.

People use a variety of medicines to reduce stress and enhance attention, such as the so-called nootropics. The most effective nootropics are those that rely on natural ingredients and compounds such as caffeine and ashwagandha. Another one that is quickly becoming popular is the kratom plant, which may be helpful if you suffer from stress and worry and find it difficult to concentrate.

Kratom is a plant that may be used to reduce stress and enhance attention. As a result, it is quickly becoming a popular type of natural healing. Kratom may be an effective treatment if you suffer from stress and worry and find it difficult to concentrate.

What are the Mechanisms of Kratom?

Kratom is a tropical coffee-related plant based drug that has become more popular in recent years. It grows natively in Southeast Asian nations such as Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Papua New Guinea, where the environment is hot and humid. Kratom has just recently been introduced to the western world, and its positive characteristics are causing it to become increasingly popular. Kratom is used as a dietary supplement to help relieve stress and anxiety. Kratom is also called Biak, Kakum, Kakuam, Ketum, Thom, and Chang.

Stress, anxiety, and sadness may all be treated naturally with red vein hulu kapuas which is an effective strain. It also boosts energy and attention. Biologically, Kratom leaves contain a wide variety of compounds. As far as Kratom alkaloids are concerned, Mitragynine and 7-hydroxy mitragynine are the two most active molecules. A mitragynine medication has the same effects as an opium drug, i.e.; it mimics molecules in the body that relieve pain and tension. In the body, 7-Hydroxymitragynine has analgesic properties. Kratom's alkaloid attaches to opioid receptors in your brain, reducing tension, which explains its antidepressant and anti-anxiety properties.

Kratom's characteristics can relieve stress and anxiety symptoms, whether in the form of powder, leaf, or tea. These are sometimes referred to as nature's opioids since they help the body and mind operate better by enhancing energy and attention.

Is Kratom Beneficial for Increasing Energy and Focus?

To begin, you should be aware that Kratom contains alkaloids, which are little components that interact with our cell receptors. In this way, they affect people's sympathetic nervous systems. As a result, it has the potential to increase human brain function. Mitragynine is the substance that will improve your life. It functions in two ways. First, it acts as a stimulant when used in modest dosages. People who wish to take it as a sedative, on the other hand, use larger dosages.

We noted earlier mitragynine as the primary alkaloid found in Kratom. Fortunately for you, you are not alone. Mitragynine, like 7-hydroxy mitragynine, is an opioid receptor agonist. Thus, both chemicals bind to the opioid receptors and increase energy levels.

Some stronger opioids do not have the same effect. The alkaloids in Kratom bind to the delta-receptors, which is beneficial. This advantage will improve your brain ability. Despite this, other stimulants can create addiction, whereas Kratom does not. Due to its unique "properties," there is less risk of addiction.

6 Ways Kratom Can Help You Focus

1. Kratom is a Pleasurable Agent

Serotonin and dopamine levels will decline if you are under long-term stress. Serotonin is the hormone responsible for feelings of happiness and well-being. Dopamine is necessary for motivation and enjoyment. Kratom alkaloids bind to opioids, causing your brain to release more serotonin and dopamine. This is why Kratom is also known as a "Pleasurable Agent." It is possible to explore Kratom in several forms. Green Hulu Kapuas kratom is a popular and frequently used kratom.

2. A Variety of Strains

Kratom's effects differ from person to person. As a result, you should strive to study the different strains to choose which one provides the most stress reduction for you. Top Kratom strains for stress relief include —

● Malay Kratom is a strain of Kratom that originated in Southeast Asia.

● Kratom strain from Indonesia

● Kratom Maeng Da strain

● Kratom strains from Bali and the Red Vein

3. Energy Boost

The fact that Kratom is related to coffee explains why a certain type of Kratom leaf can enhance concentration and raise energy. According to research, those who consume Kratom can feel immediate mental clarity, improved attention, alertness, and an enhanced sense of purpose. The finest Kratom strains for energy and concentration are – Green Bali, White Borneo, and White Maeng Da.

4. Improves Concentration

Kratom is the most effective way to improve concentration at work or school. A little dosage of Kratom is all that is required to improve your concentration. However, keep track of how much you're ingesting because different dosages have different effects. For example, a significant quantity of Kratom might produce sleepiness rather than concentration.

5. Reduces Stress

Kratom has a tremendous metabolic advantage, which results in improved attention and stress reduction. Kratom boosts blood circulation by boosting the amount of oxygen delivered to bodily cells. As a result, the rate of metabolism rises. Kratom activates a unique metabolic pathway, which improves the body's capacity to focus and lowers stress.

6. Healthy Supplement

Kratom leaves have a plethora of health advantages. The use of Kratom can help with daily problems such as stress and poor focus. It may be consumed in a variety of ways, including as tea or capsule form. The powder may also be used to make delectable smoothies and drinks.

Conclusion

You should be aware that there are three distinct elements which heavily influence outcome of Kratom use. First and foremost, it is determined by your level of tolerance. Following that, the user's overall lifestyle is critical. If you live a fully unhealthy lifestyle, the effect may not be as severe. Finally, the quality of the product itself is important. With these factors in balance, most people should experience the many focus benefits of this natural supplement.

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I've been specializing in the world of biofeedback and Neurofeedback for 15 years now, both on the scientific research side, and in clinical practice. In the early days I was lucky enough to work with the Biofeedback Federation of Europe, an organization with the goal of educating professionals on use of these neurotechnologies across many different types of practices. It was a privilege to access many types of international experts, which helped me learn a lot about all the different applications from medical uses to applied sports performance. Here I’ll cover how this led me to NeuroTracker, and to discovering why it provides an ideal synergy with Neurofeedback.

Discovering NeuroTracker

Working with the Biofeedback Foundation connected with Dr. Len Zaichkowsky, a highly distinguished expert in the cognitive domain of elite sports performance, and also Sports Science Director of the Vancouver Canucks. As a world-leader in his field, he put NeuroTracker to use at its genesis, and so it was working with him and the Canucks where I actually discovered NeuroTracker. Right away it occurred to me this was a really interesting tool because of how effectively it elicits attentional resources, working memory, and information processing.

From my background I know this was exactly what a lot of clinical populations like children with ADHD and learning disabilities needed. So I started a scientific collaboration with Professor Jocelyn Faubert at the Faubert Lab, who is the creator of NeuroTracker and was very active in applying it across different studies to expand the frontiers of psychophysics. One challenge he faced was how to objectively demonstrate positive changes in the brain from this type of task. My go-to tool at that point was Quantitative EEG, essentially a highly detailed functional brain scan, which I believed would be a nice solution.

Providing a Window into Brain Performance

As part of my master's thesis, we undertook an experimental study with healthy university students. The aim was to investigate what functional changes we saw with training effects in terms of neuropsychological performance. In a nutshell we found evidence of clear gains in multiple types of attention, working memory, visual information processing speed, along with indications of heightened neuroplasticity. We used a combination of pre- and post-standardized neuropsychological assessments, alongside qEEG assessments, which corroborated each other very well.

An interesting aspect is both of these measures showed that the NeuroTracker doesn't necessarily train cognitive abilities in one particular skill, instead it actually improves more of a broad layer of cognitive attributes and cognitive functions. In particular we found gains crossing over modalities, where the benefits from this form of visual attention training transferred to auditory attention (a shared resource pool), and also to frontal lobe areas involved in decision-making performance. This paved the way for a real-world study by the Faubert Lab, which found that 3 hours of distributed NeuroTracker training provided far transfer to competitive soccer play, reducing passing decision-making errors by 42%.

Partnering Neurofeedback with Cognitive Training

It was clear that combining the two techniques of cognitive training stimulation and measures of functional changes had a lot to offer. Of particular interest was that fact that biofeedback and Neurofeedback can also be used to train physiological, cognitive, emotional, and behavioral resources.

For example, when we apply Neurofeedback interventions for patients with severe dyslexia, we can isolate where specific dysfunctional issues reside in the brain, and effectively recover them by normalizing those functions with training. Although Neurofeedback is a wonderful system to isolate cognitive resources that need to be improved, it doesn't necessarily tax them directly. We need to apply training tasks which reliably transfer to the development of those resources.

So, with the already promising evidence of NeuroTracker’s ability to transfer training widely across high-level cognitive systems, it was clearly ideal to pair with both biofeedback and Neurofeedback techniques. I like to think of it as doing the landscaping before building the house, and the beauty is we can apply both of these approaches concurrently.

Evolving NeuroTracker Training

We can also see the advantage for specialists already using NeuroTracker. It’s particularly relevant for dual-task training methodologies, because Professor Faubert’s research has shown that adding these extra neurophysical loads is sensitive to cognitive consolidation.

If extra neurophysical loads are added before adequate learning adaptations have taken place, then the benefits of the training will be diminished.

This is where biofeedback and neurofeedback fit perfectly, as they can be used not only to measure precisely when to introduce varying difficulties of dual-tasks for optimal learning, but also to reveal the actual neurological effects of training over time.

The ‘Closed-Loop’ Theory

The evident complementarity of these two approaches evolved into the idea of what I call ‘closing the loop’, that is, using real-time Neurofeedback to iteratively amplify learning responses on a moment-by-moment basis throughout actual NeuroTracker training.

The idea is that if you use feedback to more accurately and rapidly adapt the exercise to a user’s needs, it triggers an altered cognitive state. Then the feedback can be used repeatedly to adjust the training continuously, and with progressively increasing accuracy, to facilitate a proximal zone of development. The key advantage of this concept is the acute nature of how it can adapt temporally, based on a person's responsive performance level, regardless of their variability in cognitive state.

Putting the Theory to the Test

For my PhD. thesis Professor Faubert and I collaborated to test the closed-loop theory in another experimental study with university students, published in Nature Scientific Reports. For this project we used a ProComp Infiniti Encoder, which is ideal for incorporating biofeedback and neurofeedback modalities into the NeuroTracker training context.

Specifically, we found that live changes in certain brainwaves signatures could reliably detect the moment when a person’s attention is either drifting-off during the NeuroTracker task, or when they have effectively lost track of the targets. So we implemented an automatic re-indexing technique where the software would kind of say, ‘Hey, you need to refocus right now - here are your targets’, at any precise moment there was a lapse in attention.

With this integrated training method, we found clear effects that it did indeed boost NeuroTracking performance on-the-fly. And more importantly, that with training across 30 sessions, it produced superior learning rates compared to conventional NeuroTracker training, which was already very effective. We included an active-control group using sham Neurofeedback (random signals), which ruled out placebo effects.

The key takeaway from this study was that active cognitive training, adapted in live fashion via closed-loop Neurofeedback, is an effective means to achieve the zone of proximal development – the ‘sweet spot’ between being over-stimulated or under-stimulated. Naturally this leads to the question, who is this important for?

NeuroTracker Specialists

There are many practitioners and coaches around the world already using NeuroTracker, who maybe aren't quite familiar with biofeedback and neurofeedback. This ranges from specialists working at the high-end of human performance like elite athletes, F1 drivers, eSports athletes, jet pilots and military forces, all the way through to low-functioning populations, such as children with neurodevelopment disorders, or elderlies with cognitive impairments associated with aging.

For all these groups, applying biometric data will certainly help with more effectively adapting the NeuroTracker paradigm to the specific needs of individuals. This will result in more rapid and efficient development of core cognitive functions like attentional processes, information processing speed, executive functions and working memory – known to be critical factors in almost all aspects of human performance.

Then getting more into the nuances of NeuroTracker, this is a task that activates a number of different cognitive systems, which means it is also sensitive to factors such as fatigue, sleep quality, diet, emotional state, breathing techniques, and so on. These are typically things which are difficult to assess or simply be aware of, which biofeedback and Neurofeedback technologies can be excellent for revealing. EEG, heart rate (BVP or EKG), respiration, skin conductance, sEMG, and HEG are key examples of measures that are pair very nicely with this form of training.

Lastly, the great thing here is that the biometric data is also self-validating, because it shows objective changes from a neurobiological perspective. This extra dimension of assessment delivers additional and highly valuable insights to NeuroTracker scores, facilitating a better understanding of how they relate to functional changes, and ultimately to real-world performance.

Biofeedback and Neurofeedback Specialists

There are all kinds of specialists also working in the biofeedback paradigm, which similarly spans high-performance domains through to low-functioning populations - children with ADHD being one of the most common. As I mentioned earlier, NeuroTracker fits really well here, principally because it provides a very useful ‘active ingredient’ to the intervention side, or to come back to the analogy – building the house.

However, even when using Neurofeedback and biofeedback purely to assess different populations or patients, NeuroTracker also provides an effective, safe, and practical way to stimulate high-level cognitive systems. This is because it is known to activate attentional resources in what we call a threshold state, with the science showing it can be used to simulate the perceptual-cognitive demands of real-world situations, such as performing on the sports field or driving a car. This was part of Professor Faubert’s original goal in developing this psychophysics tool, and a key reason why it was designed to elicit higher-order binocular stereo 3D visual systems, which we rely on in everyday life.

For these specialists the tool provides a simple and very quick way to trigger cognitive states which can reveal neurobiological effects relevant to real-world demands.

Moving Forward

One of the most exciting aspects of this particular field of neuroscience is how fast things are evolving. Research is growing exponentially on both sides, as too is the research into the integration I’ve laid out in this blog. Following Moore’s Law, this is fueled by an exponential growth in neurotechnologies and AI-based machine learning, not just making them more powerful, but also smaller, cheaper, and more practical.

A nice example here is the eVU-TPS, recently developed by Thought Technology. It's a triple physiological sensor which monitors heart rate variability, skin conductance, and skin temperature, through a tiny finger-tip device paired with a smartphone.

This emergent synergy between neuroscience and neurotechnologies will bring these kinds of human optimization solutions into our everyday lives.

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A child’s development does not only involve addressing their physical needs. Just as important is nurturing and developing kids' mental health. Having well-rounded mental health allows a child to develop social skills and cognitive abilities.

If you are a parent, you know that good nutrition through a proper diet is one way to provide the nourishment that your child needs for physical and mental development.

Additionally, other factors like having friends, family, and a safe, secure environment also help develop self-confidence and a sense of responsibility in your child. This article discusses the key ways you can positively guide a child’s development and contribute to improving their mental health.

The Importance of a Child’s Good Mental Health and Development

Having good mental health gives children a better opportunity to succeed in their academic pursuits and fit better into society. Mental health works together with physical health and affects how a child thinks, feels, and acts.

Being mentally healthy allows children to achieve developmental and emotional milestones, effectively solve problems, and learn social skills to function well at home, school, and the community.

5 Ways to Develop a Child’s Mental Health

Children have varying levels of mental health needs. One set of methods may work for one child and another set for another. Here are some specific ways you can help your child develop a healthy mindset.

1. Encourage Self-Confidence

One way to make children confident of their actions is to acknowledge their achievements and even praise them. Talking to them and even making small gestures like smiling and patting their shoulders can do a lot to improve their self-esteem.

Children may also develop more confidence in themselves if you set goals that they can realistically achieve. For example, asking your child to get a perfect score on a school quiz may be a high hurdle for them and discouraging if they fail. Instead, giving them a score range, say around 80% or higher, may likely enable them to achieve your expectations and provide them with a confidence boost.

Even if the child still fails, it's best to resist being condescending or talking down on your child. Consider asking them what they feel, then talk about what you and the child should do in the future and offer assurance.

Another way to make your child feel confident about themselves is to tell them about your past mistakes or challenges. Perhaps you can tell them about your childhood experience in a similar situation as theirs. This way, your child may feel that they are not alone in their struggle, and they can get back up with your support.

2. Provide an Opportunity for Play

Play is a significant part of your kid’s childhood. This activity does not only provide enjoyment and break time from school activities. Playing also benefits your child by allowing them to develop their creativity, imagination, and problem-solving skills.

You can let your child experience play by:

● Encouraging them to play - Children are young once and need to make the most out of it through play. Play creates an opportunity for them to solve problems and even develop physically and mentally.

● Letting them play with other kids - Playing with other children allows your kid to socialize and make friends. Having other kids to play with also lets your child learn about cooperation and teamwork.

● Joining them in their play - Playing becomes when done with their parents or other relatives. It also becomes more enjoyable and allows the child to develop faster.

For example, your child may have a better time playing board games like Scrabble, Monopoly, or chess with adult players, like parents or caregivers.

Adults who comprehend the game better can explain to the kids so that they understand the rules more easily.

● Playing for fun, not for competition - Competition is not a bad thing. However, the child may not appreciate the game that much if they only play it to win.

This mindset may cause the child to become frustrated if they see losing as a bad thing.

Instead, let the child have fun. They may have a better opportunity to learn and develop themselves regardless of the outcome of the game.

3. Provide Appropriate Discipline and Guidance

Part of a child’s learning and development include taking actions by themselves and being independent. This way, the child can learn new skills and make decisions when faced with unforeseen situations.

However, they must also learn what actions and behavior are unacceptable. They must also learn to take responsibility, especially if their behavior causes negative consequences.

Suppose you set house rules telling your child not to run too fast within the house. Despite those rules, your kid still decides to run and ends up breaking an expensive vase. In that case, you have to make the child understand why you set those rules and explain the consequences of their actions so that they will not do it again. For example, a broken vase may cause injury to your child or other people.

By learning about responsibility and consequences, children are more likely to develop social skills and proper conduct when in school or public places.

4. Show Unconditional Love

Your child should experience love, acceptance, and a sense of security in your home. To do this, you must acknowledge that no child is perfect and that your kid has a learning and development pace that may differ from your expectations.

Showing your kids unconditional love may allow them to confide with you more and talk about their accomplishments and struggles. They will grow confident, knowing you will listen to them and provide them with guidance.

Unconditional love does not mean tolerating wrongdoings. It should be made clear to your child that you are firm and consistent with your decisions and that your method of discipline is fair.

5. Provide a Safe and Secure Environment

Children may experience fear, uncertainty, and a sense of vulnerability. These feelings are normal and warranted, and you do not have to dismiss those feelings.

The important thing is that you can acknowledge your child’s fears and tell them that they can still experience safety and security in your company. A comforting environment is as much about social security as physical security.

Conclusion

Mental health should not just be described as simply having or not having a mental disorder. Instead, mental health is a continuum that parents must address with varying care and development levels tailored to each child.

While this article mentions several ways to effectively develop your child’s mental health, this list is not exhaustive. You may discover other methods that work best for you and your child.

Consult with a psychologist or cognitive behavioral therapist if you need more information or help regarding your child’s mental health. If you wish to find professional therapy or pursue treatment options, visit MentalHealth.gov as a place to start.

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Since the development of spectacles and the thermometer, medical technology has advanced significantly. The growth of a wealthier middle class and an increasing global population are pushing transformations in the healthcare sector. According to the World Economic Forum, more than 50% of the medical industry's workforce is expected to adapt to the new tech in the coming years. A large portion of this change goes to modern healthcare gadgets that are easing into the lifestyle of everyday users.

But which electronic equipment qualifies to be a healthcare gadget? How do they help ease the problems of the healthcare sector? Sensor-based devices that monitor and warn about healthcare problems are known as digital therapeutics. Mobile applications, which can be installed on your smartphone, power most modern healthcare devices. Because of the impact of healthcare devices and smartphone applications, the contemporary idea of being healthy has altered dramatically. Read on to know about essential healthcare gadgets and their uses in the lives of ordinary people.

What Is the Difference Between Hospital Equipment and Healthcare Gadgets?

Healthcare experts, such as doctors, may evaluate a patient's medical requirements using equipment in hospitals that are often large, sophisticated and very expensive. In contrast, healthcare gadgets are small tools used at home or on the go for the convenience of patients.

Before being authorized for use in healthcare institutions, hospital machines undergo rigorous testing. Unlike those used in homes and offices, electronic equipment used in healthcare institutions must satisfy stringent grounding standards to avoid harming patients and employees. Microscopes, analyzers, centrifuges, freezers, and other electronic equipment are regularly used in healthcare labs to examine samples. For example, you must use a hospital grade power cord in medical facilities to prevent grounding issues that may lead to medical equipment failures.

Helpful Medical Gadgets You Should Know About in 2022

The majority of personal healthcare devices are in the tracking and alerting category. Some popular medical devices used for healthcare reasons, for example, are those that monitor blood pressure, sugar levels, temperature, and other medical problems. Here are the some of the latest useful medical gadgets that you should be aware of for the coming year.

1. ECG Monitor from AliveCor

AliveCor is a handy medical device that can be utilized at any time to check on the health of your heart via an ECG test. This device is a multiple sensor strip that uses wireless connectivity to link to a mobile app.

You may launch the program by placing the two-point sensor gadget near the mobile phone. Place your two index fingers on the strip with both hands. Within 30 seconds, the program tracks the heartbeats and displays an ECG graph on the screen. You may also print this report for your physician.

2. Asthma Monitor by AirSonea

AirSonea is a gadget that monitors asthmatic symptoms. This technology captures your breathing pattern as well as the zipping of air as you breathe deeply. AirSonea examines your breathing patterns to determine whether you have asthma. It is also beneficial for managing therapy depending on the patient's current circumstances.

The patient puts the device near their nose and breathes normally. The device records the data and transmits it to the mobile software, which processes it according to its parameters and requirements.

3. Dario Glucose Checker

Dario is an intelligent gadget that operates on a smartphone app. Wireless technology links the widget to the mobile app. You must insert a blood test tape into the device and use the lancer to extract a tiny blood sample. The information is transmitted to a mobile app already set up with the nutrition and insulin dose regimens. The mobile app processes the data, which demonstrates the overall sugar level and the insulin dosage provision.

4. DNA Biomeme Monitor

This monitor is an excellent device for small clinics that cannot afford to buy DNA testing equipment. This tiny device, controlled by a smartphone app, transforms into a potent DNA-based illness diagnosis tool. It employs the Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (qPCR) instantaneously. This gadget works with both Android and iPhone smartphones.

5. Tinke Respiratory Monitor

Tinke, by Zensorium is a solid physical fitness tester that can measure your pulse rate, respiration rate, oxygen absorption ratio, heart rate variability, and more. This gadget is designed specifically for iOS smartphones. The patient places their fingers on the gadget, which detects the heartbeat and other biometrics. This data is then analyzed and presented on the mobile device's screen.

6. Bodyguardian Cardiac Monitor:

The patient may receive remote medical and emergency assistance with the use of a wireless cardiac monitor device. Bodyguardian is a device that is linked to the user and connects to the web through wireless communication. A doctor may keep an eye on the patient's health and provide remote assistance in an emergency. This device was co-created by Mayo Clinic and Preventice Systems.

In Conclusion

The finest home medical gadgets are developed by teams of clinical specialists and utilize cutting-edge technology. Always go to your doctor if you have a diagnosed disease or suspect you may have a condition that has yet to be identified. The health gadgets listed here are primarily helpful in keeping track of your overall health. In case you have to see a medical consultant, these at-home health gadgets may give you valuable data that you can show them.

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Unknown to many people, your everyday choices will go a long way in determining your health. Simple habits like the choice of meals, sleeping patterns, smoking, attitude to stress, etc., can surprisingly influential on overall health. As a result, one needs to make the right call and develop healthy habits to foster good mental and physical health. Practicing good health habits will reduce your chances of disease, keep your body's organs stronger, reduce the onset of degenerative disease as you grow, and increase life expectancy. Here are six daily habits that can help.

1. Prioritize Rest

Sleep is vital for good mental wellbeing. It rejuvenates the mind and body, providing the perfect opportunity for many body processes to take place. Sleep, however, does not come easy to many people. Stress, pain, anxiety, depression, and other menaces make it challenging to enjoy a night of deep and relaxing sleep. Yet, without optimum sleep, productivity takes a hit, and one runs the risk of obesity. With obesity, the risk of stroke, type 2 diabetes, and high blood pressure increases.

The good news is, you can address sleep issues in many ways. For instance, natural substances can help deal with the underlying cause of insomnia, making it easy to enjoy optimum sleep. For example you can consider taking the best CBD gummies for pain and anxiety. Once these take effect, it will be easier to enjoy a sound and restful sleep.

Alternatively, you can make the atmosphere comfortable to foster natural sleep. Taking a shower, drinking milk, reducing noise and light rays in your bedroom, are all examples of daily habits that can make sleep an easier process for most people.

2. Healthy Eating

You need a well-balanced meal to prevent obesity and ensure your body gets the essential vitamins and minerals. Stay away from fast or processed foods as they offer little nutritional benefit and influence poor diet choices. High nutritional and balanced meals improve the disease-fighting capacity of the body, reducing your tendency of falling sick.

Consider healthy and creative snacks as a replacement for unhealthy ones to support healthy functioning of your bodies organs. Some recommended healthy eating tips are:

• Eat more greens and lettuce

• Avoid eating alongside other tasks (it increases the tendency to overeat)

• Ensure you eat lots of colors, not calories

• Your vegetables and fruits can last with freezing

3. Live an Active Lifestyle

You need not get a membership at the gym or buy some special equipment before having an effective workout. It is possible to teach exercise in your daily life. Ideally, experts recommend that everyone should get at least 30 minutes of exercise per day. It is possible to divide this into various sections throughout the day.

For instance, taking a walk, finding an opportunity to use the stairs, trekking to the grocery stores, etc., benefit you in various ways. Exercise will reduce stress, release serotonin that makes you feel good about yourself.

Consider getting a dog if you find it challenging to exercise. Dogs need constant walking, which will force you to exercise as well.

4. Positive Thoughts Only

Life is not always a bed of roses, so there will be days of feeling blue. In such a situation, even if feeling positive does not seem possible, it can be consciously influenced, with research indicating that it can have a terrific effect on your mood. Interestingly, positive thinking also impacts positive moods, leading to a happy cycle.

Try and start your day on a positive note always. Say it out loud that you expect good things to come your way. Celebrate the small wins as humans are programmed to fixate on the bad stuff.

Appreciate the receptionists who welcomed you with a smile and any positive encounter with strangers you have. Such encounters can be positive for your mental health.

5. Give Yourself a Break

Due to vast improvements in technology, we now live in a fast-paced, high-pressure society. Information is readily available due to the internet, social media, and smartphone. Absorbing information is easy, and many respond emotionally. Communication is accessible with friends and family as the world is now a global village, unlike some decades ago. As nice and lucky as we are to live in this present age, our mental health takes a huge hit. Many people deal with stress, anxiety, pressure to be available constantly, and many more.

This calls for taking it easy and indulging in self-care. Schedule time for yourself and disconnect occasionally. Go on a vacation, spend time on the beach, take a walk in the park, and switch off all screens. Do away with the news and reduce what you consume on social media. After all, there is nothing one can do about the news, and most news even ends up getting one worked up.

Staying away from all the hustle and bustle from time to time will help lift your mental health over the long term.

6. Consider Meditation

Meditation is a tool that has existed for thousands of years. It involves training the mind to focus rather than wandering around. Meditation can provide tremendous benefits like improved productivity, reduced stress, and anxiety, etc.

The process can be pretty overwhelming for beginners. However, guided meditation will hold your hands as a beginner, helping you to learn it successfully. Start small, and with time, you will get the hang of it.

Conclusion

Developing healthy habits is one of the best things you can do for your mental and physical health. It will go a long way to keep you healthy so that you can live a long, fulfilling life, devoid of unpleasant sickness.

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For a long time, traveling wasn’t something just anyone could afford. It was a luxurious hobby only the richest could experience the benefits from, while others learned about the rest of the world from textbooks, memoirs, and travel guides. Fortunately, that started to change a while back, and now we can safely say traveling is an essential part of our life.

Still, not everyone recognizes the impact and countless benefits traveling has on our everyday life. Traveling is much more than simply visiting and exploring an unknown place. From affecting our mindset to expanding our knowledge, there are so many advantages this activity equips us with.

So, if you’d like to learn more about what traveling can do for you, make sure to check out this article.

1. Travel Affects Your Mindset!

First things first, traveling affects your entire life perspective as well as your mindset. It’s common for individuals to feel happier, more fulfilled, and satisfied after breaking the daily routine and going somewhere new.

Furthermore, traveling can completely change your mindset by allowing you to get in touch with different people, traditions, cultures, and countries. This allows you to change your view on life completely and simultaneously enrich your perspective.

Even though it’s widely known traveling and other experiential purchases have long-term effects on people in comparison to material purchases, there are several items you need to own to make your next trip comfortable. One of those might be a defender 110 roof rack which lets you transport all your bulky belongings.

2. Travel Allows You to Recharge!

The stress of contemporary life is hard to manage and overcome, especially without any stress-relieving activities or hobbies. Traveling is an excellent activity if you’re looking to take a break from busy everyday life and recharge. Also, you can enjoy vape flavors collection to enhance your mood.

Whether you’re exhausted from family obligations, professional life, studies, or have difficulty balancing all these simultaneously; it’s crucial to know when you need a break. Away from daily duties, obligations, and tasks, travel efficiently relieves stress and anxiety. Just a day or two away from familiar surroundings is sometimes more than enough to rest and disconnect.

After a weekend getaway or an entire vacation, you’ll return home refreshed, energized, and ready to tackle any complex and challenging tasks.

3. Travel Exposes You to New Cultures!

Something you can achieve only by traveling is meeting people from different cultures. Traveling allows you to directly contact various cultures, traditions, customs, beliefs, and religions worldwide, all unique in their way.

There’s no better way to be exposed to new cultures than by traveling. Becoming familiarized with other cultures helps you get to know new personalities and ways of thinking, which influence your perspective for the better.

A newly-found perspective built on exposing yourself to different cultures helps you become more open-minded, understanding and accepting of other people.

4. Travel motivates you to be more experimental!

Closely connected to the previous point, regular traveling motivates you to try out new and unknown things. Becoming more experimental can have many different meanings, including trying a new meal, exploring unfamiliar locations, becoming part of customs and rituals, and so much more.

Whatever the case may be, it’s a fact we’re only comfortable in a specific environment we grew up in. Only by traveling and exploring can we become more motivated to understand and accept something that’s not a part of our everyday life.

Becoming more experimental will also influence your life after traveling, as you’ll become more open to new job opportunities, projects, and other life-changing events.

5. Travel Boosts Your Creativity!

Creativity is something a large majority of individuals struggle with. While creativity comes on its own to some people, there’s a large number of individuals who can’t seem to distinguish what sparks their motivation and ability to create.

The truth is, you don’t have to do a lot to make your creativity and imagination run wild. Traveling is a safe bet for anyone since it’s an activity that’ll indeed affect how you perceive the world around you. You can easily find inspiration at any corner when traveling because you’ll be surrounded by unique architecture, culture, and language.

Therefore, a quick getaway is just what you need if you’d like to boost your creative and inventive levels.

6. Travel Enriches Your Life Story!

Finally, every journey you embark on will complete and enrich your life story. Each place you put your foot on will bring something new to your personality. Additionally, all travel experiences will find their place in your life story and slowly start to fill in like a puzzle.

After each trip, you’ll find yourself more satisfied and complete. So, try visiting new places as much as your finances and obligations allow you. As a result, you’ll end up with an eventful and rich personal story.

The Bottom Line

All in all, traveling has the power to transform your life completely. Besides it affecting your daily routine and changing your everyday life for the better, traveling will bring so much more than that. It allows you to have a different perspective on life and become more open-minded to new and unaccustomed items. It’s the ultimate tool for personal growth.

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Your brain is one of the few organs in your body involved in everything you do. And like any other organ, it also changes as you age. It means your mental and cognitive functions also get affected with age. Cognitive functions are the skills that determine your brain’s ability to think, learn, and remember. They all work together to process information and are one of the many aspects that control overall brain health.

Your daily activities play a significant role in sharpening your cognitive skills and keeping your brain engaged. But not every activity will enhance your cognitive potential. After some time, your brain becomes habitual of these activities and doesn’t use many muscles to complete these tasks. In such cases, you’ll have to identify new ways to challenge your brain. The following activities will go a long way to boost your brain function and enhance your cognitive potential.

1. Reduce Chronic Stress

Stress is the ability of the brain and body to respond to a demand. You’ll experience stress from time to time in your daily life. But, while short-term stress acts as a motivation and compels you to take action, a long-term feeling of pressure can negatively affect your mental health. This prolonged and consistent stress can affect your memory and experience sleeplessness and irritability.

When experiencing stress, your body produces a stress hormone called cortisol. It is responsible for providing substances that repair tissues during stress. But during chronic stress, cortisol is produced in high levels, impairing brain functions and changing its structure.    

As stress is a natural event of your life, you’ll need to take steps to manage it.

Once your body shows signs of stress, such as tiredness, tense muscles, and headaches, take practical ways to mitigate them. Identify the leading cause of the stress and take small measures to eradicate stress.

Make sure your environment is filled with stress-relieving factors. Natural herbs like lavender, chamomile, and cannabis are natural alternatives to relieve stress. Fancy creating a healthy, breathable environment? Find high quality cannabis seeds and have your mini herb garden. Other important stress-relieving activities include exercising and getting a healthy diet.

2. Engage in Meaningful Tasks

The brain can continue to grow, develop, and establish new connections even when we are old. So when you engage in challenging and unfamiliar activities, you mentally exercise your brain to improve its cognitive potential.

Learning new skills targets brain muscles, increasing your brain’s resilience to cope with stressful situations. You can dwell in complex activities like engaging in music, learning a new language, photography and playing chess to enhance your cognitive abilities.  

Regular physical exercise or swimming is another way to stay mentally fit. As these activities involve constant thinking and learning, you train your brain for various cognitive functions, such as concentration, problem-solving ability, and attention to detail.

Memory card games are another great way to engage your brain and target areas related to recalling and recognition strength.

3. Practice Mindfulness Meditation

In recent years, the public interest in mindfulness meditation has increased manifolds. Meditation involves being aware of your senses and feelings in a calm, controlled way. Over time, various studies have shown the scientifically proven benefits of meditation.

Mindfulness involves specific breathing techniques and other practices that relax your body and mind. Meditation help gets rid of negative thoughts and provides clarity in thoughts. It reduces stress and helps you focus on the present. Mindfulness can also enhance your cognitive flexibility and data-driven information processing abilities.

Mindfulness training enhances your attention capacities and regulates your emotional reactivity. It helps you to become less reactive to disturbances and focus more on your cognitive tasks.

If you wish to promote your working memory processes and creative thinking, mindfulness can be a fantastic choice. Regular practice can also increase your ability to retrieve specific information when required.

4. Connect and Network

Social isolation and loneliness can disrupt your brain and cognitive functions. It can also lead to sleep disruption, high blood pressure, and depression. Hence, it is vital to connect and engage with other people. Socializing in meaningful activities with your friends boosts your mood and provides a sense of purpose.

Also, engaging in quality relationships and volunteering activities involves a high level of social and intellectual function. You should adopt a more active lifestyle and absorb leisure activities to maintain or enhance your thinking skills.

Meaningful social activities also slow down the cognitive decline in later stages of your life and can even lower the risk of dementia.

Takeaway

Actively engaging your brain in new and challenging tasks improves its functioning and boosts connectivity between different brain areas.

The best thing you can do is develop new habits, take on fresh challenges, or build social relationships. These activities can have a positive long-term effect on your brain health and prevent it from declining. Work on these activities, and your cognitive skills will get sharper with time.

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