How to wake up your brain at work and get out of the fog

We all probably know that movement is good for our brains. But that doesn’t always take priority at work.

Two Wichitans offered some tips about how to wake up your brain at work.

Meggin DeMoss and Lori Heger led a presentation called “Move Them or Lose Them” at the Working Wellness Conference hosted by the Health and Wellness Coalition of Wichita last week.

DeMoss and Heger talked about the neurological effects of movement and how it can act like a drug for our brains – to keep us awake, alert and productive. Because after 18 to 20 minutes of sitting, neuropathways in adult brains start to fade.

“You need to start thinking about getting people up and moving, or they’re going to lose interest,” Heger said about work, meetings and productivity.

Heger, a physical education teacher at Maize Middle School, showed the difference between two brain scans – one of a student after sitting quietly for 20 minutes and another after 20 minutes of walking.

After walking, the brain showed much more activity and use.

“You sit and your brain shuts down, because you are letting all the blood pool in your bottom,” Heger said. “When you stand up and move, you help increase your blood flow back into your brain, which is going to help you think, be alert and be on task.”

Here are some tips and tricks to stimulate your brain at the office – even if you look silly for a minute while you try them.

Tricks to wake up at work

First of all, drink water.

Your brain is 75 percent water. “You’ve got to be hydrated,” DeMoss said.

If you’re stuck on something: Cross the midline of your body

“Do cross crawls,” DeMoss said. “You’ll be amazed.”

How to do it: Stand up, hold your fists by your shoulders with your elbow toward the ground and touch one elbow with the opposite knee. You should be bending and twisting to reach each, or to reach as close as you can. Then you can switch it up by touching your hand to your opposite heel by lifting your foot to the front or back of the opposite knee. You should bend just slightly to reach your heel.

“All it takes is 10 or 12 for everything in your brain to start coming back,” DeMoss said.

To stay alert: Push your brain buttons

This can be done discreetly in a meeting or at your desk.

How to do it: At the base of your throat, two bones stick out from the ends of your collar bone. The two points make somewhat of a u-shape. Rubbing those two points helps increase blood flow in your brain.

To calm down: Get in a twist

“You will be amazed at how this will calm you down, calm your limbic system and make you think again,” DeMoss said.

How to do it: Stand up, cross your feet, put your arms out directly in front of you, then clap your hands, but miss – allowing them to go past each other with the backs of your hands facing each other. Then turn your thumbs down to hook your fingers together. Bring your hands inward so that they’re now resting on your chest, in a twist. Now push your tongue up to the roof of your mouth and breathe.

To fix ‘computer eyes’: lazy eights

This can be done sitting or standing throughout the day.

How to do it: Point one arm out straight in front of your face with thumbs up. Then draw a large sideways eight, or an infinity sign, in the air, letting your eyes follow your thumb. The movement should be large, crossing each side of your body. Then repeat that three times with each hand and three more times with both hands clasped together.

This story was originally published August 31, 2016 at 7:55 AM with the headline "How to wake up your brain at work and get out of the fog."