BrainFitnessBootCamp Questions & Answers!
I‘ve been getting a lot of good questions about Boot Camp, and I figured ya’ll might like to see the answers.
• Is Brain Camp a series of webinars, teleconferences, or what?
Since I’m a writer, it’s mostly text based. I haven’t mastered all of that technical webinar stuff yet 
There are three main elements to the course:
- Text-based lessons delivered through the website. (Some multi-media elements will be included, and I’m hoping to provide audio recordings of the lessons, but I can’t promise them yet)
- Worksheets that go along with each lesson, to help you develop your personalized brain fitness plan.
- A Community Forum where you can ask questions, track your progress, share your experiences, and discover even more resources.
• I’m thinking about entering boot camp, but I’m not sure if it’s for me (i.e. if I fit the target public/age). What do you think?
Brain Fitness is like physical fitness… there’s no right age, or rather, every age is the right age.
Being physically or cognitively “out of shape” has a more noticeable impact when we’re older, but it affects us when we’re younger, too - college students, in particular, often make poor choices about their brain health, eating poorly, not exercising, not getting enough sleep. Correcting that can give them an extra boost in their classes.
And the current wisdom from experts is that the earlier we start building a cognitive reserve, the better a protective impact it will likely have on us when we’re older. So goal with BootCamp is to create a course that will benefit anyone interested in improving/maintaining the health of their brain, not just seniors.
•Does any of this involve the spiritual aspect of a person’s life? I am a Christian and God and me, well, we’re inseparable - even in my physical and mental activities. Might sound kind of strange but if I don’t get God into my plans they just won’t work for me.
Wow, what a great question. The spiritual side is important to me, too, but I’m not stressing it in the course content. Still, there are some really cool studies on the positive effects of spiritual practices on the brain. There won’t be time to get into those in the actual course material, but it would make a great topic in the forums, and I’d love to get some discussion on it going!
There’s no reason why God wouldn’t be as big a part of brain fitness for you as in any other aspect of life. I know there’s some heated debate among folks about whether the neuroscience is somehow incompatible with religion, but I’m firmly opposed to the idea that a better understanding of our brain somehow negates the spiritual or makes it illusionary. After all, we pretty much know what parts of the brain are involved in experiencing a rose in full bloom, too, but it doesn’t magically make the rose less real or the scent less amazing.
•Does the program work on a Mac?
The course is delivered through your browser, so it should work just fine for you Apple fans : )
• What are the technical requirements?
A web browser, and your brain
Your browser needs to be set up for sound and flash to see the multimedia elements, and you’ll need to turn your popup blockers off. A printer may be helpful, in case you want to print out the worksheets.
•Can I have a discount?
Sure! Everyone is getting a huge discount for this charter version!
• Do you have an affiliate program?
No, but there will be one in place for the next launch, this summer. And if you help promote the charter edition, you’ll be eligible for a special deal as an affiliate down the road. If you’d like some graphics to use, just let me know!
Any other questions?
Don’t forget to check out my snazzy sales page for more info, and a huge thank you to those of you who are so enthused that you’re helping to promote this!
I realize that Brain Fitness Boot Camp is a new sort of critter — there’s absolutely nothing else out there like it, and I need to know what you need to know about it : ) So please leave me a comment (or use the contact form ) and I’ll be happy to answer.
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
In the “Bootcamp” is it mostly full of games and puzzles? I don’t know too much about brain training but I’ve read that there are two types of intelligences, Fluid and Crystal. Fluid intelligence is non learned intelligence while Crystal Intelligence is a learned intelligence such as math and is learned through repetition.
Games and Puzzles such as Soduko and Brain Age build crystal intelligence, so in effect makes you good at playing those games not necessarily help you in other areas. I’m looking for something that builds my Fluid Intelligence, its fluid intelligence that allows a person to truly become “Brain Healthy.”
Hi Scott,
Good question… I clearly still have some work to do, explaining all of this!
Rather than being a collection of games and training exercises, Brain’Camp is more a look at everything that contributes to overall Brain Fitness. “Brain Training” and keeping yourself mentally challenged is only a part of the Brain Fitness picture; maintaining a top notch healthy brain also means being overall health, being physically active, solid nutrition, social activity, attitude, etc. So in the course, we’re taking a look at each of those areas, assessing ourselves, and coming up for a plan to improve them.
There is a section on Brain Training, coming up next week… but rather than intended to train your intelligence or skills, it’s a look at why brain training important, and a look at some of the options available, along with discounts on some of the programs. So no, Brain Camp won’t train your fluid intelligence on its own.
A bit more information:
The jury is still out on whether or not most of the “brain training” software programs can improve it or not, and it’s not what they’re intended to do.
There is one exception… the N-Back protocol used within MindSparke Brain Fitness Pro has been shown to improve fluid intelligence. And you can find independent research articles on the n-back tests by Googling “N-Back Fluid Intelligence”
It’s also likely that training working memory improves fluid intelligence, and most of the software programs do that.
Does that answer your question?
This is a dream blog for me! I love brain puzzles. Just done with Kevin Trudeau’s Mega Memory program and ready for more! Thanks, I’ll check it out!
Hey there SanDiego!
Gotta love your enthusiasm : )
I just want to be really clear…. Boot Camp is *not* a collection of brain games and puzzles - rather, it’s an interactive course in all elements of brain fitness. Keeping an active and exercised mind is just one part of the brain puzzle!