your brain training app is probably a waste of time

and i'm honestly just as surprised as you!

At some point in the last decade, looking after your brain became a solitary hobby. You download the app, do your ten minutes of puzzles before bed, take your fish oil, and feel pretty better-than-other-people about it. The brain health industry is enormous, and almost all of it is designed for one person, alone, with a screen.

There’s just one problem. That’s not really how your brain works.

Almost everything the research actually supports points in the opposite direction: toward other people, shared spaces, and the kind of activities our grandparents would recognise as just a normal Tuesday. Not a subscription. Not a gadget. Just other humans!

The app problem

Brain training games do work. Studies show genuine cognitive benefits from regular practice: better memory, sharper attention, improved processing speed. But here’s the part the app store doesn’t mention: the research found these benefits almost exclusively in group settings. Solo brain training, done at home on your own, showed little to no measurable improvement. The social element isn’t a nice bonus. It appears to be most of the mechanism.

(Honestly, kind of upsetting to learn! I always felt so so productive doing my little quizzes or learning new words/languages. But when I think about trying to recall any of this in my day-to-day it really never comes back to me.)

One to three sessions a week is the sweet spot according to the studies; beyond that, the benefits plateau and you’re just doing puzzles for fun, which is fine, but we need to start being honest about what it is.

Mindfulness has the same caveat

Habitual mindfulness practice (i.e. slow breathing, meditation, genuinely slowing down rather than just thinking about slowing down) improves working memory and attention span. It helps your brain process information more accurately rather than just faster, which turns out to be the more useful skill.

But again, the strongest results came from in-person, instructor-led sessions rather than solo practice. There’s no research yet on video-led mindfulness, so your YouTube meditation isn’t necessarily useless — it’s just unknown.

(Which I’m taking as a win…)

The pattern, though, is consistent. Your brain responds to other people in ways it simply doesn’t respond to an app.

(I think I’ve mentioned this before but I struggle SO much with meditation. My mind wanders, my thoughts are loud and I’m so impatient! I’ve always wondered if being in a room with other people would help me, the same way you feel more inclined to study in a busy library.)

What actually works, on its own

Two things in the research stand up without needing a social component. Exercise and sleep.

Resistance training twice a week for around 45 minutes has been shown to improve overall brain function and self-control. Cardio remains the gold standard for memory specifically. And if you want a slightly left-field option, Tai Chi and yoga show up repeatedly in studies on executive function - problem solving, planning, decision making. Your brain does not distinguish between moving your body and training itself.

Sleep is non-negotiable. Deep sleep is when your brain literally cleans itself by clearing out the waste products that build up during the day. Seven to nine hours on a consistent schedule isn’t a wellness luxury. It’s basic maintenance.

(Personally, I strength train 3-4x a week and try to get my 8 hours in every night! If consistently miss sleep I really feel the consequences: brain fog, dissociation, lack of motivation… The difference is definitely there.)

The cheapest brain health intervention

Laughing with people you actually like reduces cortisol by around 32%, directly protecting your brain from the damage that chronic stress causes over time. A 20-minute walk in a green space cuts stress hormones significantly. The Mediterranean diet - fish, vegetables, whole grains, olive oil - is associated with up to a 30% reduced risk of Alzheimer’s, and it’s historically a way of eating built around shared tables rather than individual meal prep.

The thread running through all of it is that your brain is a social organ. It evolved in groups, it performs better in groups, and it declines faster in isolation.

So by all means keep the app if you enjoy it. But maybe also just call someone.

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I’m not a doctor, dietician, or licensed nutritionist. Everything in this article is based on the scientific sources linked throughout and is intended for informational purposes only. If you’re considering changes to your diet, supplements, or lifestyle, please consult a qualified professional first. What works for one person may not work for another.

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