Dana Smith

“By learning a language, you permanently change structures in your brain. Bilingual brains are measurably different from monolingual brains—certain brain regions are more developed—and recent studies show that you don’t need to be bilingual from birth to show these telltale signs of bilingualism. You just need to learn a language and maintain it; the better you learn it and the longer you maintain it, the more your brain will change. How does this affect you in your daily life? When you learn a language, you permanently improve your memory—you’ll be able to memorize faster and easier. You’ll multitask better. Bilingual people are better at focusing on tasks and ignoring distractions. They’re more creative. They’re better problem solvers. Bilingual students beat monolinguals in standardized tests of English, math, and science. All these advantages—collectively known as the bilingual effect—aren’t the result of natural, inborn intelligence. Most bilinguals never choose to be bilingual; they just happen to grow up in bilingual families. The bilingual effect is a kind of learned intelligence, and by picking up a new language, you’ll get it too.”
― Gabriel Wyner, Fluent Forever: How to Learn Any Language Fast and Never Forget It

“It just means you need to train hard. All the cardio in the world won’t cut it. Research on women, especially past age 40, shows that even high levels of aerobic activity don’t translate into any meaningful changes in lean body mass. The only solution is strength training, strength training, strength training. And I don’t mean doing “toning” exercises with 5-pound dumbbells. I mean high-intensity power training—heavy lifting for pure strength. This kind of training stimulates your neuromuscular system, activating the maximum amount of muscle fibers. It also keeps those high-energy, powerful type II muscle fibers engaged, which is essential because those are needed for speed, and they’re the first to go.”
― Stacy T. Sims, Roar: Match Your Food and Fitness to Your Unique Female Physiology for Optimum Performance, Great Health, and a Strong Body for Life

“Not only does your brain get stronger, it gets healthier, too. Bilingual brains are more resistant to the wear and tear of age. Studies show a marked delay in the onset of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease for bilinguals. On average, elderly bilinguals will show symptoms of dementia five years later than monolinguals, and if they’ve learned more than two languages, then the effects are even stronger.”
― Gabriel Wyner, Fluent Forever: How to Learn Any Language Fast and Never Forget It

“The review included interesting research on brain health in women; identifying research that women with a major depressive disorder who augmented their daily antidepressant with 5 grams of creatine responded twice as fast and experienced remission of depression at twice the rate of women who took just the antidepressant. The researchers recommend a traditional loading dose (0.3 gram per kilogram of body weight a day for 5 to 7 days) or a routine daily dose (3 to 5 grams) for 4 weeks as effective for women, regardless of age. The traditional side effect of weight gain (due to water retention) does not occur with this low dose, yet the health and performance outcomes increase significantly.”
― Stacy T. Sims, Roar: Match Your Food and Fitness to Your Unique Female Physiology for Optimum Performance, Great Health, and a Strong Body for Life