How Older People Can Utilize Their Time In A Fun Way To Stay Healthy

Written by - Reviewed by Consumer Health Digest Team

Published: Feb 4, 2018 | Last Updated: Aug 3, 2019

4 Fun Ways For Seniors To Stay Healthy

Even if you spent middle age sedentary and stressed out, it’s never too late to start making healthy changes.

When you enter your senior years, protecting your health becomes more important than ever. But adopting a new lifestyle doesn’t have to be all bad. Here are four fun ways to stay healthy as you grow older.

1. Go High-Tech

Senior life can get lonely, especially if you’re widowed or if adult children live far away. While it may feel like technology is for the younger generations, staying up to date on tech can help keep seniors social and connected well into their golden years.

Social networks and video chat apps let you stay in touch with far-away family members, while online communities like message boards and dating sites create a social life that can be enjoyed from home.

For seniors, the internet is more than a way to stay connected. It’s also an excellent tool for keeping the mind sharp as you age. Take an online course, learn a new hobby, or play games to promote brain fitness[1].

2. Start A Hobby

Start A Hobby
After years of looking forward to retirement, some seniors are surprised to discover they don’t like being idle as much as they thought.

Too much free time can leave seniors feeling restless and bored, but older adults can regain their sense of purpose with a fulfilling new hobby.

Hobbies keep seniors mentally fit by challenging their minds to learn a new skill. It’s also an excellent avenue for meeting new people, which in turn fights social isolation ‘ a health threat that Brigham Young University[2]says is as dangerous as smoking 15 cigarettes a day.

Seniors can connect with others through a social hobby like playing music or dancing, or share stories and information with people who enjoy a more solitary hobby, like painting or woodworking.

3. Join An Exercise Group

Researchers at University London College found that exercising regularly[3] makes adults seven times as likely to stay healthy as they age, but what does that actually entail? It turns out that exercise not only prevents lifestyle diseases, supports bone health, and promotes mobility, but it can also have a big impact on mental health[4].

Seniors who exercise regularly are less likely to become depressed or suffer cognitive impairment as they grow old.

When it comes to staying fit, seniors shouldn’t limit themselves to low-intensity activities. Older adults who engage in moderate to high-intensity exercise like running and aerobics have better episodic memory and mental processing[5] than less active adults.

So while a walking group is a great way to get moving, seniors should also look for opportunities to really get their blood pumping, like an interval training fitness class.

4. Plant A Garden

Plant A Garden
Starting a garden does more than increase your home’s curb appeal. Gardening improves senior nutrition by bringing fresh, nutritious vegetables right outside their back door.

While others buy their produce at the grocery store, gardeners enjoy fresh produce that’s up to 45 percent more nutritious, according to the University of Illinois[6].

And as seniors work in their garden, they’re moving, bending, and lifting in ways that promote balance and flexibility.

Like exercising, gardening’s benefits go beyond the physical. Simply spending time in a garden reduces levels of cortisol, often called the stress hormone[7].

Conclusion

As stress decreases, contentedness, concentration, and creativity take its place, which makes for a much happier retirement.

These activities won’t replace eating right and getting enough sleep, but they do fight some of the biggest threats to senior health: inactivity, isolation, and depression. More than that, they bring variety and fun to life so you can make the most of your golden years.

Image Credits
Feature Image: Shutterstock.com
In-Post Image: Shutterstock.com
View All