15 Ways to Boost Your Memory in Your 30s, 40s, 50s, and Beyond

The 40s
Steal your kids’ toys
There’s a new version of that Rubik’s Cube that you loved as kid. It’s the 3-D-like Rubik’s 360, and it’s probably good for brains of any age, because it sharpens flexible problem-solving skills, says neuropsychologist Karen Spangenberg Postal, PhD, president of the Massachusetts Psychological Association. The key: As you play, you’re working on your memory, strategy, and spatial skills—all required for improving brain health—at the same time. What if you always found the Cube endlessly frustrating? No worries: Any game that stretches your thinking is helpful.

Just do it
Elevating your heart rate three times a week for 20 minutes—even just by walking—bathes your brain in oxygen and helps it grow new cells. “Aerobic exercise is two to three times as effective as any known brain-training activity,” says Sam Wang, PhD, associate professor of neuroscience at Princeton University and co-author of Welcome to Your Brain: Why You Lose Your Car Keys but Never Forget How to Drive and Other Puzzles of Everyday Life. If you have no time for the gym during the week, that’s OK: Recent research shows moderate to vigorous exercise even just once a week (say, a weekend jog) makes you 30 percent more likely to maintain your cognitive function as you age.

Start a bridge club
If book clubs bore you and dinner parties leave you exhausted, then maybe a brisk game of bridge is just what the doctor ordered. The combination of strategy and memory in bridge challenges the brain to learn new information and exercises cells so they don’t die, Dr. Postal says. Plus, socializing while playing cards adds a level of unpredictability that gives your brain a charge—something solo games don’t offer. Bridge is definitely on the comeback, so you can learn to play through a community college or continuing education program, or hire a private instructor for lessons.