If you wake up early enough, visit the beautiful Cathedral Church of Christ in the Lagos Island neighborhood for the early morning service. Ambitious, perhaps, after a big night out, but you won’t be alone: A fact of Lagos life is that both its dance floors and churches are full, and with many of the same people. The trip is worth it alone to see the cathedral’s grand exterior up close, right in the heart of Lagos Island’s bustling business district, which features some of the city’s Afro-Brazilian architecture. As a prominent church, it’s used to welcoming guests, but only go if you’re planning to stay for the whole service, usually about two hours.
12 p.m.Unwind by the sea
Recover from your night out with a day at the beach. Before you go, grab a local favorite snack: a subtly seasoned meat pie with fried minced beef or chicken, potatoes and vegetables, encased in flaky, buttery pastry. Head to your nearest Milk and Honey cafe (there is one in Lekki and one in Ikoyi) and fill a bag with meat or chicken pies (3,520 naira), sausage rolls (2,530 naira), and little doughnut-style bites known as puff puff (1,430 naira). With your goodies, head to Tarkwa Bay Beach, accessible via a 15-minute boat ride (9,000 naira) from a number of jetty locations in Victoria Island and Ikoyi. Stretch out, catch the sun and read the book you bought at Jazzhole while enjoying the vast Lagos coastline.
When Mexico City was still the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan, the district of La Merced, in the southeastern edge of the Historic Center, served as a dock for goods from the mainland. There’s no water anymore, but with its thousands of informal vendors and 11 or so covered markets, La Merced still feels like a port: raucous, heady and overwhelming. To avoid getting lost, the best way to visit is over a roving breakfast with Eat Like a Local, a small tour operator that directs part of its proceeds toward educational programming for young women in the neighborhood. The company’s flagship, four-hour walk ($120 per person) covers both La Merced and the Mercado Jamaica flower market, but it can organize shorter, custom tours focused on this Mexico City landmark.
1 p.m.Immerse yourself in art and craft in the Historic Center
Walking from La Merced to the spectacular ceremonial plaza known as the Zócalo, stop at Cerería de Jesús for handmade beeswax candles (24 pesos) and the Ex-Teresa Arte Actual (free), a museum set in a precipitously tilting former convent. From there, traverse the sunken ruins of the Aztec Templo Mayor (100 pesos) en route to the new flagship shop for FONART, the National Fund for the Development of Crafts, and, around the corner, the moving works of José Clemente Orozco at the Colegio de San Ildefonso (50 pesos), widely considered the birthplace of Mexican muralism. Finally, take in Diego Rivera’s dynamic suite of paintings — ranging from romantic depictions of Mexican folkways to giddy gibes at capitalist excess — in the former Secretariat of Public Education, open since 2024 as the Museo Vivo del Muralismo (free).
4:30 p.m.Sip a cocktail with a view
Opened in April 2025, the restaurant Charco, on the roof of the new, kid-friendly Museo del Cacao & Chocolate, overlooks the domes and buttresses of the Metropolitan Cathedral. Charco’s kitchen, run by the Chilean chef Ricardo Verdejo, turns out an inventive, seafood-heavy menu with a strong program of cocktails, mezcals and natural wines (cocktails from 190 pesos, dinner for two about 1,500 pesos, without drinks). On a clear day — admittedly few and far between — the twin volcanic peaks of Popocatépetl and Iztaccíhuatl might appear on the horizon, but sunsets are spectacular in any weather. For a low-key drink with a bit of history, try one of the neighborhood’s classic cantinas like El Gallo de Oro (beers from 65 pesos), open since 1874 with décor that’s practically unchanged since the 1970s.
7 p.m.Enjoy rare mezcals
In 2022, after almost six years of collecting rare agave distillates across Mexico, the food writer Natalia de la Rosa and photographer Jason Thomas Fritz opened one of the city’s best tasting rooms, Ahuehuete, in the Historic Center. Receiving six visitors at a time, the owners pour a diverse range of high-quality spirits purchased from producers in remote villages from the highlands of Sonora to the tropical hills of Guerrero and the volcanic valleys of Michoacán. Two-hour tastings, $90, include at least six pours of mezcal that paint an incomparable picture of Mexico’s cultural and ecological diversity. For a more self-guided experience, Bósforo, also in the Centro neighborhood, remains the city’s standard-bearer for agave spirits and experimental music — still sexy and surprising more than 15 years after opening (one-ounce pours from 80 pesos).
10 p.m.Indulge in a late-night snack
In Mexico City, where lunches stretch well into the evening, late-night provisions, often served under fluorescent lights and a halo of smoke, make a common replacement for dinner. Options abound. Café La Pagoda, one of the Historic Center’s venerable cafés de Chinos — coffee shops opened by Chinese immigrants beginning in the 1930s — turns out enchiladas (149 pesos) and chilaquiles (94 pesos) 24 hours a day, the same punishing schedule kept at Caldos de Gallina Luis in la Roma, known for its warming bowls of chicken soup (from 65 pesos). In the Narvarte neighborhood, Tacos Tony turns out fragrant tacos de suadero (32 pesos), a block from El Vilsito, a mechanic’s shop by day and taquería by night, serving marbled petals of pastor (27 pesos) until 5 a.m.
Congratulations, you’ve reached the final day of the Brain Health Challenge! Today, we’re asking you to do a few things that might feel a bit out of left field — like getting your blood pressure checked.
No, it isn’t as fun as playing Pips, but experts say it’s one of the most important things you can do for your brain. That’s because heart health and brain health are intrinsically linked.
High blood pressure, in particular, can damage brain cells, and it’s a significant risk factor for stroke and dementia. When blood pressure is too high, it places stress on the walls of arteries in the brain. Over time, that added stress can cause the blood vessel walls to thicken, obstructing blood flow. In other cases, the increased pressure causes the artery walls to thin and leak blood into the brain.
These changes to the blood vessels can sometimes cause a large stroke to occur. More commonly, the damage leads to micro-strokes and micro-hemorrhages, which cause fewer immediate problems and often go unnoticed. But if someone has hypertension for years or decades, these injuries can build up, and the person may start to experience cognitive impairment.
High blood pressure “is known as a silent killer for lots of reasons,” said Dr. Shyam Prabhakaran, the chair of neurology at the University of Chicago. “It doesn’t cause you any symptoms until it does.”
Because the damage accumulates over many years, experts say that managing blood pressure in midlife matters most for brain health. Hypertension can be addressed with medication or lifestyle changes, as directed by your doctor. But the first thing you need to do is know your numbers. If your blood pressure comes back higher than 120/80, it’s important to take it seriously, Dr. Prabhakaran said.
While you’re at it, there are a few other aspects of your physical health that you should check on.
Your eyes and ears are two of them. Hearing and vision loss have both been shown to increase the risk of dementia. Experts think that with less sensory information coming in to stimulate the brain, the regions that process hearing and vision can start to atrophy. What’s more, people with sensory loss often withdraw or are left out of social interactions, further depriving them of cognitive stimulation.
Oral health can also affect your brain health. Research has found a connection between regular flossing and reduced odds of having a stroke. That may be because good oral health can help to reduce inflammation in the body. The bacteria that cause gum disease have also been tied to an increased risk of Alzheimer’s.
And have you gotten your shingles vaccine? There is mounting evidence that it’s a powerful weapon for protecting against dementia. One study found that it lowered people’s odds of developing the condition by as much as 20 percent.
To wrap up this challenge, we want you to schedule a few medical appointments that benefit your brain, as well as your body.
After five days of feeding, exercising and challenging your brain, you are well on your way to better cognitive health. Thanks for joining me this week, and keep up the good habits!
Today, you’re going to do perhaps the single best thing for your brain.
When I asked neurologists about their top behaviors for brain health, they all stressed the importance of physical activity.
“Exercise is top, No. 1, when we’re thinking about the biggest bang for your buck,” said Dr. Gregg Day, a neurologist at the Mayo Clinic.
Numerous studies have shown that people who exercise regularly tend to perform better on attention, memory and executive functioning tests. There can be a small cognitive boost immediately after a workout, and the effects are sustained if people exercise consistently. And while staying active can’t guarantee you won’t develop dementia, over the long term, it is associated with a lower risk of it.
Researchers think that moving your muscles benefits your brain in part because of special signaling molecules called exerkines. During and after a workout, your muscles, fat and other organs release these molecules into the bloodstream, some of which make their way up to the brain. There, those exerkines go to work, helping to facilitate the growth of new connections between neurons, the repair of brain cells and, possibly, the birth of new neurons.
Exercise also appears to improve blood flow in the brain. That ramps up the delivery of good things to brain cells, like oxygen, glucose and those amazing exerkines. And it helps remove more bad things, namely toxic proteins, like amyloid, that can build up and damage brain cells, increasing the risk for Alzheimer’s.
All of the changes brought on by exercise are “essentially allowing your brain to age more slowly than if you’re physically inactive,” said Kirk Erickson, the chair of neuroscience at the AdventHealth Research Institute.
The benefits are particularly pronounced in the hippocampus, a region critical for learning and memory. In older adults, the hippocampus shrinks 1 to 2 percent a year, and it is one of the main areas affected by Alzheimer’s. Researchers think physical activity helps to offset some of that loss.
The best exercise you can do for your brain is the one you’ll do consistently, so find something that you enjoy and that fits easily into your life.
Walking is one option; two neurologists I spoke to said they got their exercise in by walking at least part of the way to their offices. Recent research suggests that just a few thousand steps a day can reduce the risk of dementia. It’s important to get your heart rate up, though, so “walk as though you’re trying to get somewhere on time,” said Dr. Linda Selwa, a clinical professor of neurology at the University of Michigan Medical School.
Or you could try swimming, cycling, Pilates, weight lifting, yoga, pickleball, dancing, gardening — any type of physical exertion can be beneficial.
If the thought of working out feels like a drag, try pairing it with something else you enjoy doing, like listening to an audiobook. This is a trick that Katherine Milkman, a professor who studies habits at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, calls “temptation bundling.”
For Day 3, we’re asking you to spend at least 20 minutes exercising for your brain. Go for a walk with your accountability partner if they’re nearby. (If not, call them and do a walk-and-talk.) Or let us find you a new workout to try, using the tool below. As usual, we can all meet in the comments to catch up and check in.
Welcome to Day 2 of the Brain Health Challenge. Today, we’re talking about food.
Your brain is an energy hog. Despite comprising about 2 percent of the average person’s body mass, it consumes roughly 20 percent of the body’s energy. In other words, what you use to fuel yourself matters for brain health.
So what foods are best for your brain?
In a nine-year study of nearly 1,000 older adults, researchers at Rush University in Chicago found that people who ate more of nine particular types of food — berries, leafy greens, other vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts, fish, poultry and olive oil — and who ate less red meat, butter and margarine, cheese, sweet treats and fried food had slower cognitive decline.
Based on these findings, the researchers developed the MIND diet.
Experts think the foods included in the MIND diet are especially good for the brain because they contain certain macro and micronutrients.
Berries and leafy greens, for example, are rich in polyphenols and other antioxidants, said Jennifer Ventrelle, a dietitian at Rush and a co-author of “The Official Mind Diet.” Many of these compounds can cross the blood-brain barrier and help to fight inflammation and oxidative stress, both of which can damage cells and are linked to dementia.
Nuts and fatty fishes, like salmon and sardines, contain omega-3 fatty acids, which are important for building the insulating sheaths that surround the nerve fibers that carry information from one brain cell to another.
Whole grains and beans both contain a hefty dose of fiber, which feeds the good microbes in the gut. Those microbes produce byproducts called short-chain fatty acids that experts think can influence brain health via the gut-brain axis.
You don’t have to revamp your whole diet to get these nutrients. Instead, think about “MIND-ifying” whatever you already tend to eat, said Dr. Joel Salinas, a neurologist at NYU Langone Health and the founder and chief medical officer of the telehealth platform Isaac Health. For instance, add a handful of nuts or berries to your breakfast.
Today’s activity will help you MIND-ify your own meals. Share your choices with your accountability partner and in the comments, and I’ll discuss the ways I’m adjusting my diet, too. For added inspiration, check out these MIND-approved recipes from New York Times Cooking.
Welcome to the Brain Health Challenge! I’m Dana Smith, a reporter at The New York Times, and I’ll be your guide.
To live a healthy life, it’s crucial to have a healthy brain. In the short term, it keeps you sharp and firing on all cylinders. In the long term, it can reduce your risk of cognitive decline, dementia and stroke.
Practicing basic healthy behaviors, like eating nutritious food and getting regular exercise, is the best way to enhance your brain power and protect the longevity of your neurons. These types of lifestyle habits can benefit the brain at any age. And while they won’t guarantee that you’ll never develop dementia or another brain disease, severalclinicaltrials have shown that they can improve cognition or slow decline.
Every day this week, you’ll do an activity that’s good for your brain, and we’ll dig into the science behind why it works. Some of these activities can provide a small immediate cognitive benefit, but the bigger reward comes from engaging in them consistently over time. So along with the neuroscience lessons, we’ll include a few tips to help you turn these actions into lasting habits.
To keep you accountable, we’re encouraging you to complete this challenge with a friend. If you don’t have a challenge buddy, no problem: We’re also turning the comments section into one big support group.
There are so many fascinating ways your daily behaviors affect your brain. Take sleep, for example.
Lots ofstudies have shown that getting a good night’s rest (seven to eight hours) is associated with better memory and other cognitive abilities. That’s because sleep, especially REM sleep, is when your brain transfers short-term memories — things you learned or experienced during the day — into long-term storage.
Sleep is also when your brain does its daily housekeeping. While you rest, the brain’s glymphatic system kicks into high gear, clearing out abnormal proteins and other molecular garbage, including the protein amyloid, which is a major contributor to Alzheimer’s disease. A buildup of amyloid is one reason experts think that people who routinely get less sleep have a higher risk of dementia.
What other behaviors play a big role in brain health? For today’s activity, we’re going to test your knowledge with a quiz. Share your score with your accountability partner and in the comments below — I’ll be in there too, cheering you on.