Keeping seniors active is important. Sometimes there is the misconception that when people reach a certain age they become less and less active. This doesn’t have to be the case for the aging relative in your life. In fact, a sedentary lifestyle is bad for your overall mental and emotional wellbeing, as well as your physical health. Entertaining an aging relative doesn’t have to be complicated and expensive, either. You would be surprised how easily you can play games and help an aging relative with their mobility, memory, and imagination at the same time!
A Few Great Games for Seniors
Famous Faces
This is a very cheap and cheerful game, and it will help stimulate the parts in the brain connected to memory. All you have to do is either get some glossy magazines or surf the web. The aim of this game is to guess the famous face, so you need to have a lot of examples of famous faces: how they obtain them is entirely up to you. You can either cut pictures out of a glossy magazine or print out a number of pictures from the internet. Then when you have a stack of about ten to twenty famous faces, simply show them to the senior in your life and get them to guess who it is.
Tip: Let’s face it, older people may not know who Nicki Minaj is, so make sure you choose suitable famous faces that your relative is likely to be familiar with. The more famous, the better! The kind of famous face you should choose should be classic icons like Judy Garland or Audrey Hepburn. This is not to say that seniors don’t have knowledge about current affairs. You know your relative the best: you’ll know what kind of famous face they’ll recognize.
Sudoku
Sudoku is a great game for all ages; not just for seniors. It does wonders for the brain. If you do sudoku regularly and then attempt a wordsearch, you won’t believe how fast you’ll fly through it. It’s strange, because sudoku is a number game and word searches are all about words. However, the parts of your brain that you use in both brains are similar: it’s your capacity for logic and identifying patterns.
The first few times you try sudoku, it can take forever to fill in the boxes. It’s one of those games that is a bit like riding a bicycle in the sense that once it ‘clicks’, you’ll be a pro. If you are a senior, or if you have an aging relative, sudoku is lots of fun.
Swimming
Now that you’ve seen some fun and easy games for seniors that are brain-stimulating activities, what about the physical side of things? Every senior is different in terms of their energy levels, mobility, and general state of health. Therefore, you might not want to suggest pumping iron to your aging relative. As a dutiful family member, you want the best for them.
Swimming is one of the best ways a senior can get the physical activity their body needs. This is because it is a form of what’s known as ‘low impact’ exercise. Low impact exercise basically means it’s not going to strain your body, but it still improves your physical fitness. Plus, swimming is very relaxing, so it improves the mental and emotional wellbeing of both you and your loved one.
If your aging relative isn’t a great swimmer, there’s no need to worry because most public pools provide all sorts of floats and safety gear for anyone who lacks confidence. Moreover, every individual at a swimming pool can choose exactly how little or how much swimming they want to do. If you want to swim laps for the entire session, go ahead. However, if you’re feeling like you just want to relax by the side of the pool, that’s perfectly fine too.
Swimming is perfect for the elderly because it strengthens the heart, doesn’t over-exert the joints or muscles, increases flexibility, improves the tone and strength of your bones and muscles (great for any senior who suffers from brittle bone disease), and even boosts mental health.
Dance Classes
Maybe you can’t imagine your aging relative twerking, but there are many forms of dance. For example, you and your loved one could sign up for ballroom dancing or line dancing classes. Imagine the fun you will both have dressing up in ballgowns or cowboy boots. It’s a wonderful way for you to ensure that the senior in your life stays physically active by exercising. Dancing is a great way of exercising, because a lot of the time you’re having so much fun you completely forget you’re getting exercise at the same time.
Running for miles on a treadmill at the gym can be monotonous and, unless you’re a gym junkie, it can be difficult to stay motivated. How many of us have paid for a gym membership and ended up using it less than five times during the entire year? Dance classes, on the other hand, are something you and your aging relative will look forward to each week. Not only will you both be getting exercise, you’ll come out of the session with wide grins and already looking forward to the next class!
Assisted Living
If you’re considering the option of assisted living either now or in the near future, make sure you choose a facility that centers its care around resident life. Fun and easy games for seniors are just one aspect of many that ensure your loved one receives the best quality care. If you’re looking for the personal touch, care and support for you or the senior in your life can be achieved by opting for a small community approach to care-giving.
Not only this, but a holistic approach to assisted living that aims to sustain the mind, body, and spirit truly enriches the life of those who avail of such a service. A community such as this engages the mind by supporting education and knowledge.
