By Alyssa BereznakFebruary 24, 2026Photograph courtesy of Dr. Majid Fotuhi; Illustration by Kelsey NiziolekSave StorySave this storySave StorySave this storyWhen Dr. Majid Fotuhi goes to a big banquet dinner, he makes a point of memorizing somewhere between 50 to 70 people’s names in a night. That might sound superhuman, but the neuroscientist who has taught at George Washington University, Harvard Medical School, and Johns Hopkins University wants you to know it’s actually no big deal. “It’s not that hard,” he says. “Believe me, it’s not amazing. I don’t know how to tell you how simple it is.” This searingly optimistic belief in the capabilities of the human mind, no matter one’s starting point or age, is at the crux of Dr. Fotuhi’s 26-hour Johns Hopkins course “Advances in Neuroplasticity and Its Applications in Neurology,” his long-running 12 bi-weekly “Brain Fitness Program,” and his new book, The Invincible Brain: The Clinically Proven Plan to Age-Proof Your Brain and Stay Sharp for Life, out March 3. In the book he offers actionable tips related to diet, mindset, movement, and memory so you can challenge your mind, and help it reach its full potential.
It may be no surprise that Dr. Fotuhi lives by many of these research-backed recommendations himself. We caught up with him by phone earlier this month to learn about how he designs his days to be as brain-friendly as possible, with a routine that includes exercising four days a week, watching his gut health, and always having something good to read on his nightstand.
Dr. Majid Fotuhi: “I’m very intentional with the way I do my daily routine when I wake up. The first five minutes of the day, you set the tone for what kind of a day you will have. So when I wake up in the morning, I don’t reach for my phone and I don’t rush to get out of bed. I usually put the timer at 15, 20 minutes before when I’m supposed to get up, and I just lie back and think about the day. And I tell myself, today is going to be just a great day. Then I think about some of the things I have to do and I just envision them going well. For example, I say, "I’m going to have an interview today with GQ. I wonder if they’ll put my picture on the cover. So the first thing I do [in my] daily routine is to set the tone. That is so important for happiness, for brain health, for brain performance. To start a day on a positive note and expect good things to happen that day.”
“About four days a week, I go to the gym downstairs and I do one hour of stationary bike. And then three days a week, if I have time, I will do 45 minutes of weight training. I actually like doing the exercise because it gives me ideas about different things. I feel like I have some creative solutions to some of the problems. So it’s not time wasted in terms of brain energy. I also enjoy the fact that I can break a sweat. When I am sweaty—I don’t want to give you too much detail—I love it. I just feel like I’m purifying myself.
“There’s a ton of research that has shown that exercise is the single most important thing you could do for your brain health. I often talk about five pillars of brain health: exercise, sleep, nutrition, positive mindset, and brain training. Of those five pillars of brain health, exercise is by far the single most important thing you could do for your brain. Exercise is the source of oxygen, source of BDNF [brain-derived neurotrophic factor], the source of nutrients, reduces inflammation. Exercise generates new neurons in the hippocampus.”
“Research has shown that humans and animals generate new cells in the hippocampus every day, but these cells need to mature in order for them to be able to function optimally and connect with neurons and other parts of the brain. And that maturation process requires oxygen, nutrients, and a molecule called BDNF. The main way you can increase BDNF levels is through exercise. Because when you exercise, BDNF is actually released in the muscle, which then goes to your brain and serves as a healing repair and maturation molecule.”
“Most days, I eat oatmeal with a banana and some raisins. Other days, if I don’t have time, I have a protein bar. I like to have a high-fiber diet as much as possible. I’m not too rigid about the food. Especially when we travel, there may be some flexibility. But I like oatmeal because it’s a high-fiber breakfast.
“People don’t realize there’s such a tight connection between every body organ and your brain. So your heart obviously is linked to your brain because the better it functions, the more blood gets to your brain. Your lungs are important because when your lungs are in good shape, they provide plenty of oxygen for your brain. Your liver is important because your liver detoxifies all the molecules that are bad out of your system. The kidney is optimal because actually vitamin D is synthesized and matured, in part, in the kidney, so it’s important for vitamin D synthesis but also it filters chemicals out of your body.
“So every part of the body has connections with the brain, especially your gut. And your gut and the brain are very tightly connected. If you eat a poor diet, if you have obesity, you may experience a condition called dysbiosis or leaky gut. because if bowel movements are not optimal and if food contents are pro-inflammatory, they can erode the linings of the gut. The gut lumens are the tube, and if the content are pro-inflammatory [like] highly processed food or trans fat are, they can erode those layers and some of the content of the gut can leak out in the body and be picked up by the blood vessels and go everywhere, including your brain. So when you eat a high-fiber diet, you help the growth of beneficial bacteria and reduce the growth of the bad bacteria that also contribute to this process.”
Practice two-minute “mind resets”
“Your brain has a great deal of malleability and can respond well to even brief interventions, as long as they are consistent. One of the most powerful tools I use myself daily is a simple two-minute ’mind reset.’ This small practice interrupts the automatic stress loops that wear down your focus, memory, and mood. It’s an easy habit you can build into your day, and the neuroscience behind it is compelling.
“Chronic stress keeps your emotional centers—especially the amygdala—on high alert and dulls the circuits in the front of your brain that help you plan, solve problems, and make clear decisions. A mind reset acts like a neural circuit breaker. By pausing for just two minutes, you lower cortisol levels, quiet your amygdala activity, and give your frontal lobes the space they need to regain control. It can also help you sleep better at night.
“One technique is what I call slow breathing. It’s six, three, six where I breathe in for the count of six and then hold for a count of three, and I breathe out for the count of six. It doesn’t have to be like six. There’s no magic in 6-3-6. The idea is to have very slow breathing. The science behind it is very compelling in that it improves blood flow to the brain and it reduces the attacks and tangles in the brain. The footprints of Alzheimer’s disease in the brain are reduced when people do regular slow breathing exercises. This is one of those things that’s too good to be true. The one time I may do it is between around 10 o’clock or 11 o’clock, [if] I have a couple of minutes. And in the evenings, before going to bed, if I’m not so tired that I crash, I do the breathing exercise.
“The other one I like is the ma-ta-sa-ba, where you put your hands in front of you, and then you get your thumb and you rub your pinky and say ma, ma, ma, ma, ma about 10 times. Then you do your ring finger and say ta, ta, ta, ta. And then you go to your middle finger, sa, sa, sa, and then you go to the index finger and say ba, ba, ba.
“Now why do I do this? Because there’s actually research that shows this kind of exercise improves brain health. So it’s not like hokey-pokey stuff. As a neurologist who’s reviewed the literature, I know what’s good for me and what’s questionable. And so I know that slow breathing and what I just told you are really powerful techniques for brain health. And I use it myself. I wouldn’t use other things.
Don’t obsess over a good night’s sleep
“If you wake up in the middle of the night, you shouldn’t toss and turn, toss and turn, toss and turn. If you’re not sleeping, you’re not sleeping. Just get up, get a book, and just read the book. And don’t worry about the next day, life will go on. It’s not OK if you can’t sleep every night, but it’s OK if you miss an occasional night of sleep or you sleep five hours or six hours instead of seven to eight hours. A lot of people make the mistake of just getting frustrated that they can’t fall asleep and they keep tossing and turning and not sleeping and keep looking at the clock. It’s 1:00, 1:30, 2:00, 2:15, 2:35, 3:00. Don’t do that.
“If you can’t sleep, get up and just do breathing exercises. The breathing exercises really can calm the mind and help you fall asleep. And if you are worrying about things, if you’re woken up in the middle of the night because you’re worried about the project that you haven’t finished, then just get up and make a list of things to do. And if you really are concerned, just go do it. I mean, you shouldn’t miss the night of sleep because of a deadline, but if you’re not sleeping, you might as well just go work.
“Again, it’s OK if these things happen once in a while. You don’t want to make a habit of it, but you might as well use this time and make it productive. So again, I’m happy and feel fortunate that I don’t have sleep problems and the only time I do is caused by my own doing. Also, I think it’s important for people to make sure they’re physically tired. I usually walk around five, 10,000 steps a day just going around doing things. And with the exercise I do in the morning, I am tired.”
Memorize at least three new names a day
“There is definite scientific evidence that brain training improves brain function. There’s some debate as to how much brain training, what form of brain training, what kind of outcomes. And that’s not because they’re not good. It’s because of what you measure as an outcome. Are you measuring the outcome as incidents of Alzheimer’s disease, or measuring the outcome as improving your memory? Whatever you practice on, you get better. So if you practice memory, you’ll have better memory. If you practice attention, you’ll have better attention. If you practice processing speed, you get better at processing information quickly. My recommendation is do the things you enjoy.
“I like to focus on improving my memory. I recommend that people memorize three or four names every day just out of habit. Imagine somebody gave you $10,000 for every name you memorized. And I think you would probably memorize a handful of names every day.I want people to become that one person who’s good with names. Instead of saying, I’m not good with names, become the person that says I’m good with names. Just like you can learn to play the piano, you can learn to be better at memorizing names.”
