--- title: Speed Reading: How to Read Faster description: You can teach yourself to read faster and more efficiently, without missing any of the important details. Here are 3 tips to get started. canonical: https://time.com/4484634/speed-reading-tips/ author: Jonathan Levi article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-09-14T11:00:48.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:44:53.973Z og:title: 3 Steps to Becoming a Faster Reader og:description: Without missing any of the details og:url: https://time.com/4484634/speed-reading-tips/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf061d8c2ab4b4c4f/6988a5e9cf40a8d2dfc44cdc/speed-reading-how-to-read-faster.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2121 og:image:height: 1193 og:image:alt: Glasses on a stack of books og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 3 Steps to Becoming a Faster Reader twitter:description: Without missing any of the details twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf061d8c2ab4b4c4f/6988a5e9cf40a8d2dfc44cdc/speed-reading-how-to-read-faster.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 video:duration: 02:03 video:published: 2015-05-15 section: health topics: brain exercises, mental fitness, brain training, dementia, Alzheimer's disease, memory, crossword puzzles, physical activity and the brain, brain-training products genre: explainer, consumer health segment tones: informative, skeptical, practical, measured emotions: curiosity (medium), skepticism (medium), reassurance (low) sentiment: neutral audience: general consumers, older adults, health-conscious viewers, caregivers of people with dementia people: Robert Davis organizations: everwell products: Scrabble, crossword puzzles, brain-training video games, DVDs, brain-training software, subscription brain-training websites content_suitability: health controversy [00:29-01:22] transcript_source: publisher captions transcript_reviewed: not applicable ---  # 3 Steps to Becoming a Faster Reader > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME Health Matters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition Health Matters is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. The latest health news and expert advice on living well. Health Matters makes the fast-moving world of health more useful, surprising and human, from the latest science and medical breakthroughs to practical ideas for living better. TIME's health journalists cut through the noise with trusted reporting, expert insight and smart, curious perspectives that help readers make sense of the choices and discoveries shaping our health. 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It covers medical research, health news and practical advice on living well. #### Where can I get reliable health news by email? Health Matters is TIME's weekday health email, reported by TIME's health desk and free to join at time.com/newsletters. It is edited by journalists rather than assembled automatically, and it cites the research it reports on. #### Is Health Matters free? Yes. Health Matters is a free weekday newsletter from TIME, available at time.com/newsletters. #### Who reads TIME's Health Matters newsletter? Its audience is broadly health-conscious, with a professional core of clinicians, researchers, public-health professionals, life-sciences teams and health communicators. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-health-2026q3/newsletters?i=4e883d0d-2e92-482a-bd42-95bc78359597&cr=time-nl-health-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Do Brain Exercises Really Keep You Mentally Fit? [Watch (HLS stream): Do Brain Exercises Really Keep You Mentally Fit?](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/t67dFcgw.m3u8) (2:03)  _Published 2015-05-15. Do Brain Exercises Really Keep You Mentally Fit?_ Description, summary, key points, chapters, key quotes, questions and transcript, where present, were produced automatically from the video or its captions and were not reviewed. ## Summary The video examines whether brain exercises such as puzzles and brain-training products really keep the mind fit and ward off dementia. It notes a growing market for brain-training games and subscriptions, and reviews evidence that brain training can improve memory while the link to preventing dementia is unproven. It concludes that keeping the mind active is good, that inexpensive activities can do the job, and that regular physical activity may be the best option for the brain. ## Key points - Exercising the brain regularly with puzzles is an idea that has caught on, and it has become big business. (00:29) - Video games, DVDs, and special software are marketed as ways to keep you mentally fit. (00:42) - Some subscription websites charge about $100 a year for an array of brain-boosting games. (00:51) - Studies show brain training can help improve memory, but that is different from warding off dementia. (01:05) - People who read, learn a new language, or play a musical instrument have lower rates of dementia and Alzheimer's, but this does not necessarily prove cause and effect. (01:08) - The bottom line is that the jury is still out on whether brain exercises prevent dementia. (01:22) - Crossword puzzles to challenging board games can keep the mind active without buying special products. (01:29) - Research shows regular physical activity can help older people remember and process information more quickly. (01:37) ## Chapters - [00:00 to 01:22] Brain exercise claims and the evidence. The host describes playing puzzles and games, the marketing of brain-training products, and what studies do and do not show about memory and dementia. - [01:22 to 02:03] Practical advice for keeping the brain active. The host suggests inexpensive mental activities and physical exercise as the best options for brain health. ## Key quotes - [00:19] Host: "I enjoy playing Scrabble from time to time. It keeps me thinking about words and it's fun." - [00:45] Host: "Today you can find video games, DVDs and special software that promise to keep you mentally fit." - [01:05] Host: "Studies show that brain training can help improve your memory. But that's different from warding off dementia." - [01:22] Host: "So the bottom line, the jury is still out." - [01:35] Host: "Perhaps the best thing for your brain is regular physical activity." ## Questions this video answers - Do brain exercises really keep you mentally fit? [00:00] - Can brain training help ward off dementia and Alzheimer's disease? [01:05] - Do activities like reading or learning a language lower dementia rates, and does that prove cause and effect? [01:08] - Do you need to buy special products to keep your mind active? [01:29] - What might be the best thing for your brain? [01:35] ## Content suitability - health controversy [00:29-01:22]: Discusses the unproven claim that brain exercises prevent dementia and Alzheimer's, and the questioned value of marketed brain-training products. by [Jonathan Levi](https://time.com/author/jonathan-levi/) ## Jonathan Levi Sep 14, 2016 11:00 AM UTC  Getty Images by [Jonathan Levi](https://time.com/author/jonathan-levi/) ## Jonathan Levi Sep 14, 2016 11:00 AM UTC These days, we’re inundated with more information than ever before. Blog posts, news articles and a never-ending stream of [books](http://motto.time.com/4289057/how-to-read-more-books-tony-haile/) “you just have to read!” In fact, it has been estimated that there is [more information in just one day’s worth of the ](https://books.google.com.tr/books?id=tb0zAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA166&lpg=PA166&dq=new+york+times+more+information+than+17th+century+englishman&source=bl&ots=Kk83MmThNP&sig=bu0sT32MEnRE4fXD7lZzfg3vCtk&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjbjsn5-oPPAhXLtBoKHRuBDbQQ6AEINjAH#v=onepage&q=new%20york%20times%20more%20information%20than%2017th%20century%20englishman&f=false)New York _Times_ than people 100 years ago encountered during _their entire lives_. For this reason, being able to sift through, read and retain huge amounts of information has become a modern-day superpower, allowing you to leap tall mountains of books in a single bound. Enter speed reading. No, I’m not talking about the gimmicky, snake-oil oozing “read a page in a second” speed reading of the 70s or the one-day “triple your reading speed today” seminars you may have seen in college. Unfortunately, most of that stuff is baloney. There are, however, a few simple, proven steps you can take to dramatically [increase your reading speed](http://motto.time.com/4263413/success-habit-to-steal/) without sacrificing comprehension and retention. **1\. Reduce unnecessary eye movement**Your eyes make erratic, jumpy movements known as “saccades,” and while they do that, the optic nerve is essentially turned off by a process known as “saccadic masking” or “saccadic blindness.” What this suggests for people interested in improving reading speed is simple: spend less time moving your eyes. Instead of making the typical eight to 10 movements per line — one for every word — try to move your eyes only one or two times per line. This means you’ll take in _groups_ of words and spend less time in “saccadic blindness” than the average reader. **2\. Expand your focal range** **and use it more effectively**In order to really take advantage of the first tip, you may find you need to train your eyes to recognize wider groups of words. The best way to do this is with a tool called a [Schultz table](http://www.fasterreader.eu/pages/en/schultz-boards-generator-to-clicks-en.html). Stare into the middle of the table, then try to decipher the numbers to the left and right of where you’re focusing. With time, you’ll be able to read with more of your focal span. But hang on a second, because if you’re not careful, this new focal eye span won’t be used to its full potential. Many readers waste time by reading margins. The fastest readers, however, understand their focal width and adjust accordingly, indenting the points where they focus at the beginning and end of each line. **3\. Break “the sound barrier”**When you read, you probably hear the words in your head, right? Most people do, but it limits your reading speed to about 400 words per minute. Your brain, however, can make sense of visual symbols much faster than that, recognizing pictures in as few as 13 milliseconds. To become a truly effective speed reader, you’ll need to learn to suppress this inner voice (known as “subvocalization”) for the majority of words you read. Though it’s impossible to completely eliminate subvocalization, reducing it by even as much as 50% will dramatically improve your reading speed. By gradually incorporating the above two steps into your training, you’ll be able to help drown out that voice and focus more on the words on the page. Of course, this stuff takes practice to ensure long-term retention of your new knowledge. Still, there’s no reason you can’t easily double your reading speed from the average of 250 words per minute, which will save you hours in the day and countless headaches at school and work. Now… get out there and never stop learning! _Jonathan Levi is an experienced entrepreneur, angel investor and lifehacker in Silicon Valley. He teaches the online Udemy course “_[_Become a SuperLearner 2: Learn Speed Reading & Boost Memory_](https://www.udemy.com/become-a-superlearner-2-speed-reading-memory-accelerated-learning/)_.”_ ## Transcript [00:00] You're watching everwell. Know more. Live better. [00:04] [ MUSIC ] [00:19] I enjoy playing Scrabble from time to time. It keeps me [00:22] thinking about words and it's fun. I do the Sunday [00:25] crossword puzzle every week, to keep my mind active. [00:29] It is an idea that's really caught on, that exercising your [00:32] brain regularly, with puzzles for example, can keep [00:35] your mind sharp, and ward off dementia and [00:37] Alzheimer's disease. And it's become big business. [00:42] Today you can find video games, DVDs and special [00:45] software that promise to keep you mentally fit. There [00:48] are also subscription websites which charge about [00:51] $ 100 a year for an array of brain boosting games. In [00:55] a way it makes sense. Just as physical activity can keep [00:58] your body strong, mental exercise can keep your brain [01:01] in shape. But is it really true? Studies show that brain [01:05] training can help improve your memory. But that's [01:08] different from warding off dementia. And people who [01:11] do stimulating activities like reading, learning a new [01:13] language, or playing a musical instrument have lower [01:16] rates of dementia and Alzheimer's but this doesn't [01:19] necessarily prove cause and effect. [ MUSIC ] So the [01:22] bottom line, the jury is still out. Still it's a good idea to [01:26] keep your mind active, but you don't need to spend a [01:29] lot on special products. Anything from crossword [01:32] puzzles to challenging board games can do the trick. [01:35] Perhaps the best thing for your brain is regular [01:37] physical activity. Research shows it can help improve [01:40] older people's ability to remember and process [01:43] information more quickly. [ NOISE ] So [01:49] next time you forget where you parked your car, don't [01:51] sweat it. Just use it as an opportunity to go for a walk. [01:54] Your brain will thank you. 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