Looking for the cheapest ways to boost your IQ? Join a local library. Buy a Rubik’s Cube. Order picture-based riddles. Done.

While things are quite clear with a classy way to hone one’s intelligence through reading or Rubik’s mind fitness, brain teasers stand apart. Do they make you smarter? Does engaging in activities like this help maintain top-notch metal shape? You can check out the article published earlier on the key benefits of jigsaw puzzles to go into more detail on the most significant mental health benefits associated with jigsaws. The story below, however, will focus on how your favorite hobby can sharpen your wits and hone brainpower. So if you can’t find your keys again or stare into your closet unable to recall why - keep on reading!

Brain Stimulation Activities

Short for intellectual quotient, IQ is a measure of one’s relative intelligence. Based on the research performed by the Harvard-affiliated Institute for Aging Research, our brains can learn and grow. The process is called brain plasticity. However, to get the most from intelligence that is genetically determined in your exclusive case, ongoing practice and training are a must. The good news – is there’s no need to take pills or undergo painful procedures daily to fuel up your brainpower. With the brain stimulation activities, you’ll get your gray matter working and actually enjoy it!

  • Brush teeth with a non-dominant hand. Even though this activity is kind of frustrating, it’s fun. The process is similar to your gym sessions. Just like your workouts boost the functioning of your muscles (and developing new ones), toothbrushing on the opposite hand supports the development of the brain’s neural connections.  
  • Mind the music. Boost attention span, strengthen memory, and decrease stress levels while listening to your favorite song! Try to identify the instruments you hear against the background of the vocals. Is it drums? Violin? Or, perhaps, it’s something exotic like banjo or sitar? Work your brain to guess the sound!
  • Become Megamind with puzzles. Ensure your intellectual interests include assembling puzzles on a regular basis. Tricky to a newbie, mind-boggers are a great solo or getting-together pastime. Perfect to have fun, keeping your mind active, and completely zone out for a while.
intellectual interests
  • Play card games. Get the brain benefit and reconnect with the long-forgotten childhood trivia from a good old one-player solitaire or multiple-player crazy eights. Ready for a serious game? Go for bridge or poker.
  • Just dance! Learning new dance moves is both exciting and effective to hone your mental sharpness. Salsa, rumba, hip-hop, paso doble – grab a partner, get together with pals, or go solo dancing! Dance activities are among the best tactics for brain fitness.  
  • Learn a new language. Not only will this hobby for intellectuals broaden your horizons, but it will also preserve your brain as you age. Besides, bilingual speakers tend to be less prone to dementia and Alzheimer’s. Now, gear up and habla en español, amigos!
  • Feel yourself an investigator. People in this profession are required to keep the smallest details in mind to fill in the gaps in an investigation. Next time you meet your best friend for coffee, take note of 10 things about them. In a couple of days, get back to your meetup mentally and write down those 10 details.

How to Choose Intelligent Puzzles?

It’s always the right time for puzzles, guys! Use your next cold winter day off, summer siesta time, or festive family time indoors to immerse yourself in the art of mind riddles. Start the puzzling journey with beginner’s level products that you can fly through as fast as possible. Exercise your brain regularly to work your way to the next complexity level that includes tricky sections. The PuzzleUp company has easy (30 cm) and medium (40 cm) difficulty-level products, both preparing you for the harder job. Up for a challenge? Grand Teton National Park jigsaw puzzle 50 cm long will test even the most experienced dissectologist!

Grand Teton National Park

 

Relationship Between Jigsaw Puzzle Ability and IQ

When it comes to human intellect, a simple rule applies: use it or lose it! Ever since childhood, our gray matter is responsible for keeping us happy. Needless to say, mental health is a cornerstone of living a fulfilling and independent life. It’s official!

To make sure your mind works as best as it can, you have to challenge it non-stop. That’s when regular brain training exercises like jigsaws come in handy. After all, the key to success is persistence and regularity.

So, what is the linkage between jigsaws and IQ? Do jigsaw puzzles help your brain stay young at any age? According to the study Improving Fluid Intelligence With Training On Working Memory, a 20-minute puzzle assembling session is enough to boost one’s IQ by 4 points. In their experiment, Susanne M. Jaeggi and her colleagues asked participants to do puzzles for twenty minutes at a particular time. To see if this simple activity had any effect on the participants’ IQ, they provided them with a problem-solving test. The jigsaw enthusiasts were reported to have better scores in contrast to those who weren’t exposed to jigsaws.

 

hobbies for intellectuals

 

Science and Hobbies for Intellectuals like Jigsaw Puzzles

When we think of, we consider them hobbies for intellectuals and an easy way to unwind and relax after the office routine. The truth is that, in addition to being effective boredom fighters, intelligent puzzles help us socialize. Check this out:

  • Better teamwork and collaboration skills. If there’s an effective team-building activity for pupils, students, or office colleagues, it’s called jigsaw puzzles. Partly hobby and partly non-conventional medical tools, brain teasers help co-workers boost their relationships. Based on the research done by Yale University, a simple assembling session requires them to communicate, cooperate, share, take turns, and work towards a common goal. They learn to respect the agreed-upon rules, lend a helping hand to those in need and never cross into other’s territory. As a result, acing a group project becomes as easy as ABC.
intelligent puzzles
  • A solo pastime to learn to mix socially with others. Wondering how to make your mind sharp and intelligent and get better at socializing? Here’s the thing. As you attach all puzzle pieces together to complete an image, you train your mind and patience, improve memory and problem-solving skills, boost confidence and stretch your thinking skills. That being said, you polish up your communication skills without leaving the house.

They say perfect does not exist. However, there’s always room for self-improvement. The same goes for our intelligence. It’s like getting up in the morning and going for a jog every single day to burn body fat.

Just like six-pack abs, the ability to think creatively and critically doesn’t come overnight. It requires dedication, time, a healthy routine, and the right set of tools, including jigsaw puzzles. You should live a life in which a mental workout is an integral part. After all, the human brain functions well only when being challenged on a regular basis.

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