Exercises To Improve Working Memory

What Is Working Memory (And Why Yours Feels “Full” All The Time)

Alright, let’s talk about exercises to improve working memory, because working memory is basically your brain’s scratchpad – the place where you hold and juggle info for a few seconds while you use it. It’s what lets you remember a phone number long enough to type it, follow multi‑step instructions, or keep track of a sentence while you read. When it’s weak or overloaded, you feel scattered, forget what you were doing, and reread the same line five times. The good news: working memory can absolutely be trained with the right exercises, and pairing those with smart tools like the Flashrecall app can make your brain feel way less “buffering” and way more “smooth streaming.”

If you want to turn this into something practical instead of just “brain theory,” using a flashcard app that’s built for active recall and spaced repetition is one of the best ways to train working memory while actually learning useful stuff.

Flashrecall does exactly that:

👉 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/flashrecall-study-flashcards/id6746757085

You can make cards from text, images, PDFs, YouTube links, or just type them, then the app quizzes you at smart intervals so your brain is constantly pulling info out of memory instead of just rereading passively.

Let’s break down some working memory exercises you can actually use and how to plug them into your daily life.

1. The “N-Back” Style Game (Made Simple)

You’ll see people online talk about “dual n‑back” like it’s some magic IQ booster. You don’t need to go that hardcore to get benefits.

• Pick a sequence type: numbers, letters, or simple shapes.
• Start saying (or writing) a random sequence:

Example: 3 – 7 – 1 – 9 – 4 – 6

• Your job: remember the item that appeared one step back (that’s 1‑back).

So when you hear “7”, you say “3”.

When you hear “1”, you say “7”, and so on.

• When that’s easy, go to 2‑back: say the item from two steps ago.

You’re constantly holding and updating information in your head, which is exactly what working memory is.

In Flashrecall, you can:

• Create cards like:

• Or even better, create a set of sequences as cards and quiz yourself quickly.

Because Flashrecall uses spaced repetition and active recall, you’re not just doing a random game—you’re training your working memory and learning to focus under pressure.

2. Chunking Practice: Turn Long Stuff Into Manageable Pieces

Working memory doesn’t like big, messy info. It loves chunks.

1. Take a 10‑digit number: 4938271546

2. First, try to remember it as-is. Hard.

3. Now chunk it: 493 – 827 – 1546

4. Notice how much easier it is to hold in your head.

You can do this with:

• Phone numbers
• Vocabulary phrases
• Short lists (e.g., “milk, bananas, rice, chicken, olive oil” → “groceries for dinner”)

• Make flashcards where the front is a long string and the back is the chunked version.
• Example:

Over time, your brain gets better at automatically grouping info, which massively reduces working memory load.

3. Mental Math (No Calculator Allowed)

You ever notice how doing math in your head feels like lifting weights for your brain? That’s because it’s pure working memory work.

• Pick two 2‑digit numbers: 37 × 14
• Try to solve it step by step in your head:
• 37 × 10 = 370
• 37 × 4 = 148
• 370 + 148 = 518
• Don’t rush; focus on holding the intermediate results.

Start easy (like 23 + 48, 17 × 5) and work up.

Create a “Mental Math” deck:

• Front: “37 × 14 (solve in your head)”

Flashrecall’s active recall forces you to retrieve the process, not just recognize it. And since it works offline on iPhone and iPad, you can do a few cards anytime—on the bus, in bed, in line, whatever.

Download it here if you haven’t already:

👉 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/flashrecall-study-flashcards/id6746757085

4. “Reverse It” Exercise: Sentences, Lists, And Directions

This one is simple but surprisingly tough.

• Take a short sentence:

“The cat sat on the red mat.”

• Try to repeat it backwards word by word:

“Mat red the on sat cat the.”

• Next level: do it letter by letter for short words.

You can do the same with:

• Shopping lists: “milk, bread, eggs, apples” → “apples, eggs, bread, milk”
• Directions: “Left, straight, right, right, left” → reverse it

• Make cards like:

Or use Flashrecall’s chat with your flashcards feature:

• Ask it to give you random short sentences to reverse
• Try to do it in your head, then check yourself

This keeps your working memory flexing in a fun way instead of feeling like homework.

5. Visualization Drills: Picture It, Don’t Just Say It

Working memory isn’t just verbal; there’s a visual side too.

1. Look around your room for 10 seconds.

2. Close your eyes.

3. Try to mentally “walk” around and list:

• Objects on your desk
• Colors you saw
• Positions (left/right/behind/etc.)

You can also:

• Look at a simple image for 5–10 seconds
• Hide it
• Sketch it from memory (roughly is fine)

One of the cool things about Flashrecall is you can make flashcards from images and PDFs instantly:

• Snap a pic of a diagram, chart, or map.
• Create cards where the front is a question:

“Where was the red circle in this image?”

• Back: Show the image with a highlight.

You’re training your brain to hold visual info briefly and then recall it—perfect working memory practice that actually helps for real stuff like anatomy, geography, or business charts.

6. “Follow The Steps” Game

This one is great for people who always forget multi‑step instructions.

Ask a friend (or yourself) to create 3–5 step instructions:

• “Clap twice, touch your nose, spin once, say your name.”
• Try to do all steps in order, from memory.
• Level up by going to 6–7 steps.

If you’re solo, you can:

• Write a random instruction list
• Read it once
• Hide it
• Perform it

Create a deck called “Multi‑Step Memory”:

• Front: “Do these in order: snap, blink, tap table, raise left hand.”

You can study these cards with spaced repetition, and Flashrecall’s study reminders will ping you so you actually remember to practice instead of just thinking “I should work on my memory sometime.”

7. Language And Vocabulary Drills (Secret Working Memory Training)

Learning a language is basically a full workout for working memory: you’re holding sounds, meanings, and grammar all at once.

• Take a new word + example sentence.
• Repeat the sentence out loud from memory.
• Then try to use that word in your own sentence, without looking.

Example (Spanish):

• Word: “aprovechar” (to take advantage of)
• Sentence: “Quiero aprovechar este tiempo para estudiar.”

Try to say it from memory, then make your own.

• Create vocab cards manually or generate them from YouTube videos, PDFs, or text.
• Example card:

• Then, while reviewing, cover the screen and try to say the sentence before you flip.

Because Flashrecall has built-in spaced repetition and active recall, you’re constantly pulling the words from working memory, which strengthens it over time—especially for languages, exams, and uni subjects.

8. Reading + Summarizing: The “1–2 Sentence Recall” Drill

If you read something and instantly forget it, this one’s for you.

1. Read a short paragraph (3–6 sentences).

2. Close the book or tab.

3. Summarize it in 1–2 sentences out loud or in writing.

4. Check how accurate you were.

You’re forcing your brain to hold several ideas at once, then compress and organize them—classic working memory work.

• After reading, open Flashrecall and quickly make a card:
• Front: “Summarize: [topic/paragraph title]”
• Back: Your 1–2 sentence summary.
• Next time it comes up for review, try to recreate the summary from scratch before looking.

Over time, you’ll feel your “mental buffer” for reading get way stronger.

9. Combine Working Memory Training With Spaced Repetition (This Is Where Flashrecall Shines)

Doing random exercises to improve working memory is nice, but the real upgrade happens when you:

1. Practice recalling information (active recall)

2. Review it right before you’re about to forget it (spaced repetition)

Flashrecall bundles both of these in a super simple app:

• Make flashcards from:
• Text you paste
• Images (snap a photo of notes, textbook pages, whiteboards)
• PDFs and YouTube links
• Manual entry if you like full control
• The app automatically schedules reviews with spaced repetition.
• Built‑in active recall means you’re always trying to remember answers before you see them.
• Study reminders nudge you to come back at the right time.
• Works offline, so you can train your brain anywhere.
• You can even chat with your flashcards if you’re unsure about something and want a deeper explanation.

This isn’t just for students: it’s great for languages, medicine, law, business terms, coding concepts—basically anything you want to keep in your head and actually use.

Grab it here (free to start):

👉 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/flashrecall-study-flashcards/id6746757085

How To Fit These Exercises Into Your Day (Without Making It A Chore)

To actually see improvement, you don’t need hours of training. Aim for:

• 10–15 minutes per day, mixing:
• 5 minutes of mental math / n‑back style sequences
• 5 minutes of Flashrecall cards (language, exams, whatever you’re studying)
• 2–3 quick “reverse it” or visualization drills

A simple routine:

1. Morning commute: 5–10 minutes of Flashrecall reviews.

2. Lunch break: do one mental math problem and one “reverse the sentence” exercise.

3. Evening: read a short paragraph and summarize it, then turn it into a card.

Do this for 2–3 weeks and you’ll probably notice:

• It’s easier to keep track of what you’re doing
• You remember what you just read more often
• Multi‑step tasks feel less overwhelming

Final Thoughts

Working memory isn’t fixed; it’s like a muscle. The right exercises to improve working memory—mental math, chunking, reversing sequences, visualization, language drills—can make a real difference, especially when you combine them with a smart study system.

If you want all of this to actually stick (and not just be a fun experiment you forget about), using Flashrecall as your daily “brain gym” is honestly one of the easiest wins you can give yourself:

• Fast, modern, easy to use
• Free to start
• Works on iPhone and iPad
• Built around active recall + spaced repetition so your memory gets trained automatically

Try it, build a few decks around these exercises, and see how your brain feels after a couple of weeks:

👉 https://apps.apple.com/us/app/flashrecall-study-flashcards/id6746757085

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Quizlet good for studying?

Quizlet helps with basic reviewing, but its active recall tools are limited. If you want proper spacing and strong recall practice, tools like Flashrecall automate the memory science for you so you don't forget your notes.

What's the fastest way to create flashcards?

Manually typing cards works but takes time. Many students now use AI generators that turn notes into flashcards instantly. Flashrecall does this automatically from text, images, or PDFs.

How do I start spaced repetition?

You can manually schedule your reviews, but most people use apps that automate this. Flashrecall uses built-in spaced repetition so you review cards at the perfect time.

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