A new gym has recently opened here in San Francisco that’s perfect for any one who thinks their memory is getting a bit mushy with age. It’s called vibrantBrains and their focus is on building our mental muscle to improve and maintain memory and attention as we age.
Located among the diverse shops and restaurants on Sacramento Street, this new “health club” offers a range of memberships that include unlimited access to their “Neurobics Circuit” — a program of 28 challenging, cognitive skill workouts and games; stress management software tools; brain exercises that can improve memory and attention; and other cutting-edge software for practicing reasoning and concentration skills and measuring your “brain age.” Members can also enjoy the comfy lounge and read lots of books and magazines about, what else, our brains.
If you live in the area you can take advantage of their free Science Salon series featuring expert speakers. The next gathering will focus on a topic near to my heart - how information overload and multitasking can affect the midlife brain. And if you enjoy “group” exercises, check out their Brain Fitness Program classroom.
There are several scientifically-based software programs from companies such as Posit Science, that you can try on your own if you don’t live in the Bay area and you want to give this “mental workout” a try. It is certainly worth exploring if you’re concerned that your memory function is diminishing along with your Estrogen levels.
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Hey Wendy - I’m glad to see you’re spreading the word about brain fitness! I work with another program called Happy Neuron, which I believe is also featured in the vibrantBrains gym. Like you said, if you’re not in the area or can’t make it to the brain gym, there are definitely things people can do at home to keep their brains in shape!
Happy Neuron is really great because it isn’t software, it’s a Web site, so anyone with the internet can subscribe and log in. It has more than 30 games developed by a cognitive psychologist to work all five areas of the brain (memory, attention, language, visual/spatial,executive function) and also features a “virtual coach” that will compare your results to others and recommend a workout designed specifically for you. It’s like a personal trainer, for your brain!
I just wanted to let you know it was out there as another option for brain training - taking care of our minds is so important!
Thanks!
Thanks, Ashley, for letting us know about Happy Neuron. From what I’ve been hearing and reading, these kinds of brain fitness programs can really make a difference in the quality of our lives as we age.
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