Mold your gray matter into a lean, mean, life-changing machine. Article originally published on MensHealth.com, September 2008.

It’s no secret that you can sweat your way to more sculpted abs and a stronger heart, but new research finds you can also build a better brain. “For about 400 years, scientists viewed the brain as a complex machine, and that meant it couldn’t grow new parts,” says Norman Doidge, M.D., author of The Brain That Changes Itself. “But recent studies and imaging technology show that it’s more like a muscle—or a group of muscles working together—that bulk up when exercised.” [Read more...]