The phrase “I’m too old” should never be a part of your lexicon if you’re talking about starting a new hobby. In fact, staying active and maintaining hobbies later in life is linked to a host of benefits for seniors.
In addition to providing more time to socialize (which on its own can prove quite healthy), keeping up with those hobbies can reduce stress, improve memory and mental acuity, boost your self-esteem, and even help bolster your immune system. With that in mind, we’ll be taking a look at a few excellent activities that you can start (or continue) while you’re enjoying life in assisted living communities.
Top Hobbies for Seniors
Here are seven hobbies that can benefit seniors in various ways:
Arts & Crafts
Arts and crafts — activities like pottery, knitting, drawing, and painting — offer seniors much in the way of providing a sense of purpose, self-acceptance, and personal growth. That first factor is especially important for those who may have spent a lifetime fostering a career and may feel somewhat lost now that they’ve retired.
Gardening
Gardening is an excellent form of stress relief, and while you’re cultivating some lovely plants and flowers, you’ll also be getting in a fair amount of physical activity. Getting down into the weeds is a great way to increase flexibility, mobility, muscular strength, and help improve your motor skills. Altogether, gardening can help stave off conditions like osteoporosis while simultaneously satisfying your love for the outdoors.
Swimming
As a form of exercise, there’s no doubting the efficacy of a good swim. For seniors, getting in regular laps at the community pool can increase cardiovascular health, which improves both circulation and lowers blood pressure (and, by extension, reduces the risk of heart and lung disease). Beyond that, swimming can improve strength and flexibility, making you more capable both in and out of the water. To top it off, swimming provides these benefits while going easy on the joints, since it’s a low-impact form of exercise.
Volunteering
Few things can provide purpose quite like the joys of volunteering, and for seniors the benefits go even further. You’ll have an opportunity to make all sorts of new connections in your community, and while you’re at it, all that social interaction will help prevent loneliness, reduce stress, and leave you with a much-improved outlook on life.
Walking
Who knew so many amazing health benefits could be achieved with such a simple form of exercise? Walking helps improve overall health, and, specifically, can help enhance cardiovascular health, lower blood sugar levels, boost mental health, and control weight. What’s more, walking can help decrease the pain related with chronic conditions, and is an activity that you can with groups, also promoting social interaction.
Journaling & Scrapbooking
Writing, or just keeping track of memories using a scrapbook, can come with all kinds of brain-related benefits. By chronicling parts of your life, you’re more likely to remember them as time goes on, and will help boost your creativity as you figure out how to best detail those important moments. All the while, this is a great form of stress relief that will help you in clearing your mind and reducing anxiety.
Playing Games
Lastly, hobbies as simple as playing a few games (like chess or cards), can go a long way in keeping your mind sharp. You can think of these activities as a kind of “weight training” for your brain, helping to enhance memory, reaction time, concentration, and a host of other cognitive elements, while providing ample fun in the process.
Ever thought, “how do the best assisted living communities near me help promote senior hobbies?” Contact us today to learn more about what it’s like to live at a Cottage location and the amazing community and amenities they provide.
