The number one thing that seniors can do to improve their physical and mental health is be more active. And for many seniors getting more active is a goal that they set year after year. The health benefits of activity are enormous. Sometimes medical professionals even call activity the “fountain of youth” for seniors because exercise can do so much to keep seniors physically and mentally healthy. But it can be hard to motivate seniors who are aging in place to get up, get out, and get moving. Here are some expert tips to get your senior parent to be more active and improve their health:

Get Home Care

One of the reasons that seniors give for not exercising more is that they don’t have time because they have to clean the house, do laundry, shop, and do other chores. With home care to help do those chores like house cleaning, shopping, and cooking seniors will have more free time to get moving. And they won’t be able to use the excuse that they’re too tired because they will have plenty of help with the tiring chores. Home care is something that all seniors can enjoy because it gives them so much free time. 

Get Walking

Being more active doesn’t have to mean taking a challenging yoga class or biking 10 miles a day. Just walking every day is enough to make a huge difference in a senior’s health. Seniors can just walk around the block every day and soon they will start to notice some improvements in their health. And once seniors experience the joy that comes from movement they will want to move more. Maybe then they will join a swimming class, or join a walking club, or participate in a sport that is senior-friendly. Seniors can just walk through their neighborhood each day or they can join a walking club with other seniors and walk in places like malls or in outdoor parks. 

Get A Fitness Tracker

Fitness trackers are great for motivating seniors to get moving. With fitness trackers seniors can count all of their steps, which has been proven to motivate people to move more to hit their goal. They can also challenge others to contests to see who can hit their goal the fastest or who will get in the most steps in a day. Often seniors will just walk in place at the end of the day to get their steps if they haven’t reached their goal that day. The goal should be at last 8,000 steps per day for seniors. 

Adopt A Dog 

Adopting a senior dog is a fantastic way to motivate seniors to walk more. Senior dogs don’t have the high energy of puppies but they do still need to be walked. With a dog to walk seniors are much more likely to get out of the house and walk everyday because they know the dog needs the exercise of a daily walk.

If you or an aging loved one are considering hiring Home Care in Charleston, SC, contact Heart of the Carolinas Home Care at 864-991-3116.  Providing Home Care Services in Greenville, Simpsonville, Greer, Anderson, Spartanburg, Mauldin, Seneca, Laurens, Charleston, Columbia and the surrounding areas.

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Edward Harrison

Founder at Heart of the Carolinas

Edward Harrison founded the Heart of the Carolinas Homecare in 2007 when he saw there was a need for caregivers that provide non-medical home care services, at a price that most people could afford. It was standard in the industry to require hourly minimums and it was common to be assigned a caregiver, not matched with one based on your individual personal needs. Edward understood that to make a successful relationship between caregiver and client, skills were not enough, personality and compatibility plays as much a role as do skills.

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