Is Knitting Good for Your Brain?

Knitting is an activity that can be done comfortably on your favorite sofa as well as on a park bench in the morning sun. You can knit while riding the subway, waiting for a bus, or listening to the radio!

Do you require additional suggestions? Gather your knitting friends and spend an enjoyable afternoon with them. Along the way, you will develop your empathy and sense of belonging to the group, as well as learn how to work in a group.

Because knitting improves memory and concentration! Besides, knitting allows you to create something new!

Knitting is a good way to relax our bodies and minds because it slows our heart rate, eases muscle tension, and lowers blood pressure.

This activity keeps us thinking all the time, from choosing the wool to work with to the work itself, the needles we need, and of course, knitting!

Knitting is a complex neurological process that is more than just a simple repetition of a hand movement. Knitting uses the language brain area as well as the motor, sensory, visual, auditory, and language brain areas.

Wool
Knitting is versatile and colorful!

Knitting requires the use of both hemispheres of the brain. One half of the brain must control and coordinate hand movements. At the same time, concentration, logical thinking, and imagination all need the other half of the brain.

Cardiff University conducted a study on knitting and memory. It demonstrated that existing knowledge is better remembered when knitting is done concurrently.

Our hands and arms are constantly in motion while knitting; we feel the texture of the wool, enjoy the colors we use, listen to the instructions in case someone still needs to teach us how to knit, and we can later pass on our knowledge to others.

We also activated the part of the brain that is responsible for planning and imagination.

7 Effects of Knitting on the Mind and Mood

1. Knitting Can Help You Relax

Knitting Wool
Knitting is a good way to relax

According to the New Zealand magazine “Listener,” 73 percent of people who knit at least three times a week report feeling significantly less stressed. In addition, they were able to better organize their thoughts.

2. Knitting Works as a Brain Booster.

Knitting requires a lot of concentration and attention, as anyone who has done it knows. It greatly benefits brain training. Furthermore, knitting necessitates the use of specific patterns. This skill is also taught in this manner, and it is always useful in everyday life.

Knitting Wool
There is plenty of choice of wool when knitting!

3. Knitting Helps You Improve Your Motor Skills

This is probably self-explanatory: Using a ball of yarn and two needles to make a scarf, hat, or even a sweater requires a lot of motor skills. As a result, knitting is also used as a therapy for Parkinson’s disease patients.

4. Knitting Enhances Memory

This technique has long been used in yoga: rolling the eyes from left to right several times in a row provides relaxation. Betsan Corkhill, a British physiotherapist, discovered that exercising your eyes intensively every day improves memory by up to 10%. And if you do one thing while knitting, it’s move your eyes.

5. Knitting Can Help You Break Bad Habits

Knitting distracts you from bad habits like smoking or eating out of boredom by focusing on your hands, the wool, and the needles. It keeps you busy, so you can’t even think about smoking or going to the refrigerator right now.

6. Knitting Makes You Happy and Proud

That brings us to one of the most important points: knitting creates something entirely new. Where there was previously only loose wool, there is now a sweater or scarf. This is a joyful, satisfying sensation that fills you with pride and joy. That is, without a doubt, the primary reason for most knitting enthusiasts.

7. Be Persistent in Your Pursuit of Success

It teaches us to fight for our goals and to never give up, even if we fail on the first try. Because when you first start learning to knit, you might have to unravel everything and start from scratch. An experience that you can still apply to your life.