Learning to think faster is a surefire way to flow effectively through life. Whether you have jobs that require quick thinking skills or want to learn how to be a quick thinker for school or hobbies—know that the mind is elastic.

You can mold the mind. You can turn into a learning and performance machine. You can learn to be a quick thinker with some consistency and practice.

Discovering how to think faster is focusing on three key areas. These areas are nutrition, fitness, and training the mind​.

How to Think Faster with Nutrition

The body—including the brain—is ultimately an accumulation of the food you eat. Therefore, eating processed foods, sugars, rancid fats, and other foods high up on the unhealthy list can render your brain slow and inefficient. On the other hand, eating a diet centered around plants can do a ton to ramp up your quick thinking.

With that being said, there are specific foods and supplements you can focus on to fortify your brain power. Study these, implement them, and notice a considerable difference in your thinking.

Cocoa

According to the ​British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology​, the flavonoids found in cocoa have numerous benefits for the brain. Researchers note that these antioxidants “provoke angiogenesis, neurogenesis, and changes in neuron morphology, mainly in regions involved in learning and memory.” Moreover, the specific flavonoid found abundantly in cocoa, epicatechin, has neuroprotective properties that preserve cognitive abilities.

Our Wild Cocoa Powder from Peru​ provides an excellent way to get a good dose of cocoa. Put a tablespoon of this stuff in a drink or smoothie to satisfy your brain-boosting needs.

Blueberries

Blueberries deserve the title of “brain berries.” Here’s why.

Blueberries contain antioxidants called anthocyanins that increase neural signaling in the brain, prompting the facilitation of memory function and decreased neurodegeneration. One ​2010 study found that participants who consumed blueberries for 12 weeks showed significant increases in learning, word list recall, and even a reduction in depression.

Lion’s Mane Mushroom

Often referred to as yamabushitake, lion’s mane mushroom is now being taken by thousands of people worldwide for its mental performance and quick-thinking benefits.

On our ​Wild Lion’s Mane Mushroom Extract​ listing, we link ​a study​ examining the effects of 50-to-80-year-old Japanese men and women with cognitive impairment. After 16 weeks of supplementation with lion’s mane, the subjects performed significantly higher on cognitive function scales.

Quick Thinking Through Targeted Fitness

Let’s move on to fitness. It’s no new story that fitness is vital to being quick (not only in the running but thinking as well). There are, however, specific ways of working out to optimize brain health and performance.

High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)

HIIT has become prized for anything from fat loss and muscle growth to testosterone production and brain benefits. This form of training presents short (think 10-to-20-minute) workouts with very little rest.

They are, as the name implies, intense. Some examples of HIIT training are sprints with very little rest and Tabata training.

The ​Journal of Exercise Nutrition and Biochemistry​ published a paper in 2018 concluding that HIIT significantly increases hippocampal neurogenesis. This translates as the production of new brain cells in the region responsible for learning and memory.

Running

Ever feel that runner’s high? It’s your brain releasing chemicals that positively act on your endocannabinoid system. This process reduces anxiety, induces euphoria, and increases feelings of calm.

Besides running’s ability to help you chill out, running has been shown to ​boost brain function by a whopping 5.7 percent​. If this percentage seems minor to you, think again. On top of implementing other protocols in this article, adding nearly 6 percent to your overall brain function will make a massive difference!

Training the Mind for Quick Thinking

Nutrition and physical activity aside, there are ways you can expedite the brain-optimizing process. Implementing at least some of these daily activities will provide lasting results. Some may seem obvious, but they’re good reminders of how simple training the mind for quick thinking can be.

How to be a Quick Thinker with Reading

You’ve probably heard that maintaining a solid reading habit is a time-tested way to boost your intelligence and quick thinking. Reading is not only entertaining and emotionally rewarding.

Reading encourages creativity​, critical thinking, and personal levels of knowledge. Further, speed reading is a growing practice that proves humans can quicken the pace by which they obtain information.

Beginning to read every day is a matter of forming the habit. Choose a similar time each morning to sit down with a book for 15 to 30 minutes. Sooner than later, you’ll begin to cherish and even crave your reading time.

How to Think Faster with Cold Showers

A few years ago, thinking quicker with cold showers would have left you skeptical. Today, however, this sentiment has become apparent to many.

Cold showers release serious amounts of endorphins that ​help treat depressive symptoms​. If you’ve ever experienced cold exposure, you’ve undoubtedly felt that post-cold high. Depressive symptoms lessen, but ​considerable focus, energy, and optimism​increase.

Start small with cold showers; maybe 30 seconds cold at the end of each battery. Over the weeks, build up to taking 5-minute cold showers at a comfortable pace.

Breathing for Quick Thinking Breath

While reading the previous tip on cold showers, a remarkable man may have come to mind: the iceman, Wim Hof. Wim has accomplished world record-breaking feats relating to cold, but he’s also done a lot of work to prove the benefits of breathing exercises.

Breathing exercises can sharpen the mind​ and attention, rendering practitioners better able to show up to daily tasks with more coherence and overall ability.

You’ll see great results by simply practicing deep breathing. A great technique, to begin with, is 4-7-8 breathing.

To do this, inhale through the nose for a count of 4, hold at the top for a count of 7, then exhale through the mouth for a count of 8. Repeat four times.

Final Thoughts: How to Think Faster and Smarter

The foods, exercise types, and training methodologies herein only touch the surface of what’s available to improve mental performance. We’ve chosen this information to share with you for a good reason among the vast seas of information on brain power. Know that.

You’re sure to notice a vast difference in your thinking if you implement some of this stuff consistently. We recommend creating routines (such as morning and evening routines) that include advice in these critical areas. Enjoy the results!