Do Something New. Come Out and Play.

Dear Rosies,

This morning I watched the old men in the ocean, flippers on, floating near the pier, waiting for their wave. When it came they body-surfed and tumbled like dolphins, spinning in the surf, coming up shaking their heads with enormous grins. Behind them: surfers, cyclists, people putting up viewing stands for a beach volleyball tournament, and all down the shore, people running and jogging in the sunrise — a whole population committed to living in their fullest, healthiest bodies, outdoors, at play.

Some places invite you like that. They say: come out and play. Other places say: stay here by the fireplace, read a book, go inward into the deep dark woods. Both are gifts. What is the interplay of place and play? Why do some environments call out the animal joy in us, and others lull us to sleep? We have so much agency, in any environment, to choose the new thing.

Our brains are a landscape of grooves. Repetition cuts a track, and the deeper the groove, the harder it is to lift the tire out of the rut and cut a new one. But the brain stays plastic for as long as we live, if we feed it novelty. In one landmark study, older adults who spent three months learning a genuinely new skill showed measurable improvements in memory, while those who simply socialized or did familiar, comfortable things did not.¹ The beginner's brain lights up.

Novelty is not just good for the solitary brain: it is good for love. In Arthur Aron's famous studies, couples who did novel, exciting things together,  versus pleasant-but-familiar things, reported less boredom, more closeness, and higher relationship satisfaction; even seven minutes of shared new challenge measurably warmed the bond.² The self expands when we learn, and when we learn beside someone, we weave them into that expansion. This is as true of friendships as of marriages. Adventure is relational glue. The couple that learns to tango, the friends who take up cpolar bear plunging together, are not just making memories. They are becoming larger selves in each other's company.

Movement holds a special key. A new book or hobby lights up the mind, but a new way of moving lights up everything at once: heart, balance, coordination, and cognition together. Aerobic exercise literally grows the hippocampus, the brain's seat of memory and learning.³ And in studies comparing dance against repetitive fitness routines, the dancers showed greater brain plasticity, because they were learning while moving.⁴ Novel movement is the double dose: the body's effort feeds the brain's growth, and the learning gives that growth something to build.

This is why the men tumbling in the surf are grinning like that. They are not exercising. They are playing, learning, and being remade.

So the inquiry becomes simple: What is one new thing I could do today? One thing I could try this week? One place I could let myself be a beginner — and who could I invite to be a beginner beside me?

Today, my answer is an athletic practice called Primal Moves. It sounds hard. I am, frankly, out of shape for it. And I am so excited to try — to be the old woman in the surf, tumbling, coming up grinning.

To your most beautiful, valued, sacred embodiment,

Christine

References

1. The Impact of Sustained Engagement on Cognitive Function in Older Adults: The Synapse Project

2.  Couples' Shared Participation in Novel and Arousing Activities and Experienced Relationship Quality

3. Exercise Training Increases Size of Hippocampus and Improves Memory

4. Dancing or Fitness Sport? The Effects of Two Training Programs on Hippocampal Plasticity and Balance Abilities in Healthy Seniors,"

5. Dance Training Is Superior to Repetitive Physical Exercise in Inducing Brain Plasticity in the Elderly

“The beginner's brain lights up. What is one new thing I could do today — and who could I invite to be a beginner beside me?”

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Frequently asked

Does learning new things improve brain health in older adults?

Yes. In the Synapse Project, older adults who spent three months learning a genuinely new and demanding skill—quilting or digital photography—showed real gains in episodic memory, while those who only socialized or did familiar activities did not. The mental challenge itself, not simply being busy or social, is what moved the needle. It is quiet, reassuring evidence that a beginner's mind keeps the brain supple at any age.

How does trying new things together affect a relationship?

Novelty is relational glue. Arthur Aron's research found that couples who share novel and arousing experiences report greater closeness and satisfaction, and that even a seven-minute shared challenge can warm the bond. When we do something new side by side, we meet each other again as beginners—curious, a little unguarded, alive.

Is dance better for the brain than regular exercise?

The research is striking. Studies in healthy seniors found that dancing produced broader gray-matter and hippocampal changes—and higher BDNF, a marker of brain plasticity—than repetitive fitness training alone. It appears that continuously learning new movement, not just moving, is what most invites the brain to grow. Play and novelty are their own medicine.

What is neuroplasticity, and can adults still grow new brain connections?

Neuroplasticity is the brain's lifelong capacity to rewire itself in response to new experience—and yes, adult brains retain it. Aerobic exercise has been shown to increase the size of the hippocampus and improve memory, effectively reversing a year or two of age-related loss. Every new skill, movement, or adventure is an invitation to your brain to keep becoming.

References

1. The impact of sustained engagement on cognitive function in older adults: the Synapse Project— PubMed
2. Couples' shared participation in novel and arousing activities and experienced relationship quality— PubMed
3. Exercise training increases size of hippocampus and improves memory— PNAS
4. Dancing or Fitness Sport? The Effects of Two Training Programs on Hippocampal Plasticity and Balance Abilities in Healthy Seniors— Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
5. Dance Training Is Superior to Repetitive Physical Exercise in Inducing Brain Plasticity in the Elderly— PLOS ONE

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