Staying Sharp: 5 Brain Exercises for Seniors

Everything in life has its season, including us.

Our lives begin in youthful springtime with seemingly infinite energy. Then we blossom into the summertime of adulthood, where we strive for establishing family, jobs, and oftentimes, more things than we can handle.

In mature adulthood we settle into autumn, appreciating what we’ve grown so far.

And finally, as you’re already familiar with, we reach our winter — the time when everything slows down to relax, enjoy, and appreciate each of the seasons we’ve experienced.

One of the natural “slowing down” aspects of this season is the slowing down of cognitive brain function. It’s normal, healthy, and a part of the cycle of life.

Still, with daily mental activity, we can ease the process, increase our memory, and stay engaged during our peak season.

Here are 5 brain exercises for seniors that will do just that.

1. Try Something Completely New

Learning something new is better for improving memory than doing repetitive tasks.

Consider taking a cooking, art, or education class. Or, if you want to do it on your own, find a skill you’ve always wanted to learn but never did.

You can take up a hobby in a group setting to add task-oriented socialization to the mix, too.

The more challenging and foreign the task, the better.

2. Get Creative

Even if you don’t consider yourself the “creative” type, you can still find ways to express yourself while improving brain health.

This may mean getting crafty with art supplies or simply writing in a journal or letters to a pen pal.

Either way, it’ll improve your hand-eye coordination and give you a way to use your voice.

3. Read More

This may be obvious, but reading is one of the best ways to boost memory.

Get books from new authors, join a book club, and take notes on what you find to be important points.

If you already read a ton, great! Find ways to make your reading more engaging by discussing what you’ve learned with others in person or online.

4. Play Games

We all know you don’t have to be a kid to play.

Card games, chess, or educational games online that make you think are fun ways to add more problem-solving to your life.

Puzzles fall into this category, too. You can opt for physical puzzles, pushing yourself to try sets with more and more pieces.

Or, you can challenge yourself to puzzles like Sudoku and crossword puzzles.

If you’re already a puzzle master, get your mind racing with one of the 10 hardest puzzles in the world.

5. Physical Exercises Count As Brain Exercises For Seniors

And for everyone.

Increasing your heart rate sends more oxygen to your brain, allowing it to repair itself faster and work at optimal levels.

You don’t have to do anything extreme to be fit, like you may have in other seasons of your life. Go for a daily walk and regularly participate in exercise like yoga, golf, or swimming.

Exercise will benefit your body and mind.

Engage Yourself

Just because you’re in the winter of your life doesn’t mean that you can’t grow, cultivate, and produce new skills and opportunities.

Brain exercises for seniors is just as important as learning language is for a child (there’s an idea, learn a foreign language!)

Find comfort in knowing that you’re living your most healthy life by learning new skills, getting creative, playing games, exercising, and reading.

You can do this by continuing to read our blog for more inspiration and tips on how to approach the season you’re in, in luxury.