Kansas ranks 38th on the list of states for seniors meeting the recommended guidelines for physical activity, with only one in four meeting the target.
While we all know how important it is to take care of our health, we often overlook it as a priority. However, enjoying retirement life in Mission, Kansas, means feeling well in your body and mind. To do that, you need to stay active. Here are our top ideas for wellness activities to support your health in your senior years.
Senior Activities in Mission: Walking Groups
One of the most relaxing ways to stay active and protect your well-being is a simple walk in nature. As you enter your senior years, joining a group walk can be a more rewarding and invigorating experience.
Walking is excellent for our cardiovascular system, helping you stay heart-healthy, and gentle gradients can also help work your leg muscles.
However, don’t let limited mobility deter you. There are lots of flat walking routes in Mission, Kansas, that you can explore, even with a walking aid or wheelchair. Alternatively, if you are part of the Welstone at Mission Crossing senior living community, why not enjoy a walk around our beautiful landscaped gardens?
Water Aerobics: An Active Lifestyle for Aging Adults
If you suffer from aching joints or worry about injuries, you might feel tempted to avoid exercise. However, there are plenty of low-impact activities that are gentle on the joints while still helping you stay fit in your senior years. Water aerobics is a good example.
It provides natural support for your body, allowing you to work your heart and muscles without placing too much strain on your back and knees. Instructor-led classes designed for seniors will make it easy to start, even if you have little prior experience with aerobic activities.
It’s also a fun activity that’s great to do with a friend, which can support your mental well-being as well.
Healthy Aging Programs: Chair Yoga
Stretching exercises can help you stay flexible, which is one of the reasons yoga is popular with aging adults. Nevertheless, if you have balance issues, standing for yoga poses can prove something of a challenge.
Chair yoga is the ideal alternative in this situation. You’ll get to move, stretch, and practice your breathing, without putting your body at risk. With an instructor-led course, you’ll also be guided on how to safely practice basic yoga moves and master some of the techniques, even if you are a beginner.
Group chair yoga classes are also a great way to socialize with other residents in your senior living community.
Book Clubs
Wellness is also about keeping your mind healthy and active, so try to incorporate some brain activities into your weekly routine.
If you love reading, join a book club. You may find some in your senior living community, or you can start one by gathering other seniors with a passion for novels to meet weekly and discuss a book.
Book clubs help you with memory recall and information processing, which is a crucial way to protect your brain from age-related cognitive decline. It’s also a great way to meet people who share your interest in novels, and can be an avenue for making friendships.
Senior Enrichment in KS: Arts and Crafts Workshops
A relaxing activity that will also sharpen your cognitive skills is an arts and crafts workshop. It’s calming, meditative, and will improve your focus.
It’s also a perfect way to express your emotions if you struggle to articulate them, offering a way to handle emotional stressors in your life, such as grief or chronic health conditions.
Creative and therapeutic outlets, such as painting and sketching, can also support healthy aging from a physical perspective. They improve your hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills. That’s beneficial to seniors, as these skills can begin to weaken with age.
Games and Puzzles
To keep your mind sharp as you age, it’s essential to challenge it regularly. After you have retired, you won’t have the same taxing daily tasks that you might have faced in your career, so you need to find ways to replace them.
Brain games and puzzles are the ideal solution. They stimulate your thinking and help maintain your cognitive skills.Consider hosting a quiz night in your senior living community for a more sociable option. If you are the organizer, make the event fun by offering themes, prizes, and decorations.
If you want a quieter activity that helps your brain, a solitary morning of doing a crossword or Sudoku puzzle can be just as effective.
Mindfulness and Meditation
When you go through times of heightened stress and worry, your mind can become overactive, putting you at risk of mental health conditions like anxiety and depression.
Mindfulness techniques and daily meditation practices can help protect your emotions, and you’ll learn how to focus on your breathing and operate in the present moment. It’s an excellent wellness activity, as that calming routine, with regular practice, can also keep your blood pressure low and even improve your sleep at night.
Wellness Tips for Older Adults: Gardening
Gardening is an ideal senior activity that supports your physical and mental well-being, but without putting too much strain on your body. Planting and watering a garden can be therapeutic, helping you to focus on the task at hand and inadvertently practicing a form of mindfulness.
Additionally, spending time outdoors in nature helps lift moods and reduce stress levels in the body. A gardening club can also be a great way to meet people and enjoy conversations with one another while tending to the plants and flowers.
Seniors with joint and back problems may worry about whether gardening will put too much strain on their bodies. However, numerous gadgets are available nowadays to help you tend to the earth without bending and stretching.
Wellness Activities for Seniors: Taking a Proactive Approach to Your Health
There are lots of senior-friendly wellness activities that you can make part of your weekly routine. Choose something that looks fun, suits your taste, and supports both your mind and body.
At The Welstone, we schedule weekly activities for our seniors as part of our Dimensions Health and Fitness program. Visit us to see what else our community has to offer by booking a tour today.
