The mind always wants to go with the easiest option, but it turns out the body and mind do a lot better when things aren’t so cushy. The adaptive cellular stress response shows that your system on a cellular level thrives when your body and mind have the right amount of stress to keep it strong. Turns out your body and mind can actually have too much of a good thing. Researchers call this “chronic positive energy imbalance” and it happens when life becomes too easy. An example is when our cavemen brains come in contact with too many calories, which happens everyday on the streets of America. Turns out that our bodies do better when things are a little tough, such as when we regularly exercise, solve problems, and intermittently don’t eat. This is due to our caveman genetic lineage that didn’t always have access to food, or googling questions, and had to fight to stay alive everyday. Our bodies then developed an efficient system to meet these needs. This is why we need to challenge our bodies and minds on a daily basis to keep ourselves sharp.

• FACT: Brain cells that are not used will atrophy and die if not used
• TAKEAWAY: You must regularly challenge your mind, or necessary brain cells used in problem solving will die off