Oh, my. Oh, my. I keep on forgetting things. I keep on forgetting names. I am getting slower in solving simple math problem and in reasoning. What happened to me? What happened to my brain? What happened to my neurons? Am I getting lazier to think? Am I getting old? Oh, no. I must fix it!

And so, one fine day I found lumosity.com. What a great day indeed! Halleluiah! The day I found a comprehensive solution to wake my neurons up.

Without I realising it, some parts of my brain were sleeping all these while. They were sleeping because I rarely use them. They were not growing all these while. Their growth, their development stopped because I rarely feed them with tasks. Sorry, Mr. Brain. I shouldn’t have neglected you. I should have given you the right mental challenges, workouts that you need to grow and to stay awake.

Now, with lumosity.com (Lumosity), I can make my brain busy and active by playing mental stimulating games, which are scientifically designed for certain brain functions (cognitive areas) i.e. speed, memory, attention, flexibility and problem solving.

New scientific research shows that we can improve the health and function of our brains with the right mental workouts.
- Lumosity

What Are The Mental Workout Games That I Played?

My favourite game for cognitive speed is Speed Match, an information processing game. It is designed to improve our thinking speed and reaction time, and speed up our cognitive processes. I hope that I could improve my response times and enhance my ability to adapt to changing environments, such as driving in the city or engaging in a heated debate. Try it!

For cognitive memory, I recommend you to play Monster Garden (improves working memory), Memory Match (also improves working memory), Name Tag (improves face-name recall) and Moneycomb (improves spatial recall). You can try Memory Matrix too (also improves spatial recall). These games do look simple, or should I say, like children’s games. Do not be deceived. They aren’t simply children’s games. They are scientifically designed to improve cognitive memory for everyone (you, me, granny and children). What I hope from these games? I hope that I could remember locations and names better, improve sense of direction, and recall important information more quickly and accurately.

Cognitive attention – it is hard to pay attention when there are too many things happening around us, right? Simply too many distractions! To improve my cognitive attention, I play Birdwatching (improves visual field), Lost in Migration (improves focus), Playing Koi (also improves focus) and Top Chimp (also improves visual field). By improving my ability to avoid distraction and increase my productivity and concentration, my life would certainly be better!

Although I am a (self-claim) multitasker, my ability to do multitasking has been reducing over the years. I am also having problem to resist temptations sometimes (but luckily it is still controllable most of the time). Therefore, I need to improve my cognitive flexibility! If you want to improve your cognitive flexibility too, the games that I recommended to you are Brain Shift (improves task switching), Color Match (improves response inhibition), Word Bubbles (improves verbal fluency) and Penguin Pursuit (improves spatial orientation). I am still playing Route to Sprout (improves planning). My initial thought on this game is it is a recommendable game too.

One of the most important functions of the brain is problem solving. I feel that I do not have much problem with this but nevertheless, I want to improve my cognitive problem solving skill. The most recommended cognitive problem solving improvement game in Lumosity is Raindrops (improves arithmetic). Tell you, the math problems drop like rain drops! Solve them quickly or else, game over! My other recommendations are Chalkboard Challenge (improves quantitative reasoning) and By the Rules (improves logical reasoning).

When polled, 98% of subscribers said they recommend Lumosity to friends and family.
- Lumosity

How Do I Measure My Performance?

Adding thrills and excitements to you, Lumosity measures your Brain Performance Index (BPI) level. Your BPI is how you measure and track your cognitive performance in Lumosity. Your Overall BPI is your average BPI across each of the 5 cognitive areas: attention, memory, speed, flexibility and problem solving. It is useful in tracking your improvement and comparing yourself to others.

Try to compare your BPI with others of the same age with you in ‘Your Profile’ > ‘Brain Profile’. It is measured in percentile. Explanation: For example, 46% Overall BPI means you are doing better than 46% of the other people of your age, but the rest (54%) are doing better than you.

Snapshot of BPI Benchmarking (with others of the same age): Big room for improvement.

Try to see your BPI history in ‘Your Profile’ > ‘History’. Is it improving? Good!

Snapshot of BPI History: Improved! Improved!

So, are you interested?

Signup link: https://www.lumosity.com/sign_up (not an affiliate link)

Lumosity Mental Workout Courses

Lumosity also has Basic Training courses for its registered members. There are 40 daily sessions altogether. And there are 5 games that you need to play during each session. It takes less than 10 minutes a day to complete these games. And you know what? You can opt to accelerate your Basic Training courses. I take 2 daily sessions a day!

When you had completed Basic Training courses, you may enrol in other Lumosity’s Core Brain Training courses, i.e. Speed Boost (think fast), Memory Boost (sharpen memory), Attention Boost (strengthen attention abilities), Flexibility Boost (improves focus and verbal abilities), Problem Solving Boost (upgrade math and quantitative reasoning skills), Basic Training II (has more challenging games than Basic Training course) and Lumosity Basic Training CB (but excludes games which require being able to tell the difference between colours).

Are you serious in improving your brain power? Lumosity has Peak Performance courses for you (but you must complete Basic Training courses first). It consists of Lumosity Peak Performance (most challenging games, help you achieve peak mental performance), Advanced Memory Training (best memory training activities on Lumosity) and Dual N-Back course (improves fluid intelligence, a trait that is similar to IQ and is critical in creatively solving new problems).

Beside Basic Training and Peak Performance course categories, Lumosity also provides Student courses and Medical Conditions courses. These training courses are designed specifically for students/children (Lumosity Scholar course and Lumosity Math Tutor course), and those with certain medical conditions that requires mental workouts, e.g., Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), cancer (recovery from chemotheraphy) and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

In addition to enrolling in those courses, you may participate in Lumosity Assessments, a quick brain tests to evaluate cognitive abilities. It is recommended that we take these assessments periodically in addition to regular Lumosity training.

Beyond the exercise that Lumosity provides the brain, wellness is supplemented by diet and other lifestyle factors.
- Lumosity

Do I Need To Pay Anything?

Is it free? I am currently playing, brain-exercising for free in Lumosity. I can choose to upgrade as a paid subscriber later to have full access. There are 4 billing plans available. And the most popular billing plan is yearly subscription at $6.70 per month (2010 rate). Tell you, wrong decisions from unhealthy brains could cost thousands or even millions dollars. Therefore, this $6.70 per month is ‘nothing’ for those who are serious in keeping their brain healthy, in improving themselves! Let me finish the Basic Training courses first before I decide whether to upgrade or not.

Start your training today: https://www.lumosity.com/sign_up (not an affiliate link)

Or visit to learn more about it: http://www.lumosity.com/ (not an affiliate link)

Good luck!

Disclaimer: IanKree.com does not receive any benefits from Lumosity by recommending its products and services. $ mentioned in this article is in U.S. dollar currency (USD).