Train Your Brain for Cards : Brain Foods

Article by Andre Thunestvedt

Imagine going to Vegas and actually winning! Imagine hitting the jackpot on your vacation!

The heck with imagining though. You want to hit Vegas and make it real. No slot machines for you. Your chances of winning at the slots range from slim to truly pathetic. Likewise at Roulette, where you’re basically throwing good money after bad.

You want to play a card game where your skills give you a better chance of winning—where you take some control of your chances of success. And what skills give you a better chance of winning? Your memory skills.

Think about it. Where do the expert gamblers go? They hit the Blackjack table. There, good concentration and memory skills give them a decent chance to beat the House at its own game. And you? If you apply concentration and improve your memory, you’ve got a chance to win a small fortune!

Train Your Brain for Memory Skills

If you were training for the Olympic triathlon, how would you start your day?

Would you watch TV while munching on potato chips, and playing video games? Probably not. More likely you’d work out in the gym, on the track, in the pool, and cycling. You’d work on general fitness and special triathlon skills. You’d also follow a healthy diet.

Your memory skills work in a similar way. They need constant brain workouts in order to get sharp and stay sharp. Playing cards requires cerebral robustness. Most people aren’t born that way—it comes from a deliberate training program. If you decide to improve your memory by undergoing regular brain workouts, the results will show up in your card playing.

To start with, put your brain on a steady program of difficult puzzles and crosswords. Yes, you can actually have fun while you train your brain! Don’t settle for the simple puzzles. Tackle those New York Times Sunday crosswords and deadly level Sudoku. The harder the brain workouts, the sharper your brain will become. And, of course, the better your memory will serve you when the other players lay down their cards.

As for diet, research shows that your memory function thrives on certain kinds of brain foods. Sure, you say—you’re a sceptic. But it’s true. Blueberries sharpen your concentration and intellectual alertness. And you’ve always heard that fish is brain food. Well, it’s true. Research shows that fatty acids like omega-3 optimize brain health. And here’s a nutty idea…sunflower seeds and nuts are also super foods for keeping your brain in shape.

Exercise and good food. At first it seems that these two ideas have little to do with memory skills. But give them a try for a while. You’ll see the results when you actually learn card-playing memory skills.

Certified nutritionist Cheryl Wheeler Duncan shares her top 5 back to school brain foods with KVVU-TV in Las Vegas
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