Elderly and Mental Fitness
Elderly and Mental Fitness
Exercise is a powerful antidepressant. It can create mental alertness, sharper mind, and the ability to learn. Movement, such as a simple brisk walk can deliver a powerful dose of mind altering hormones to the brain. Researchers at Duke University have shown that exercise can improve the brain functioning of the elderly and may even protect against Dementia. Just as our bodies need physical exercise, our mental faculties also need exercise if they are to remain useful.
There are countless ways to give your mind a workout. Simple things that you encounter every day can help you keep your mind active. 1. Get plenty of sleep, exercise regularly and eat a balanced diet. If your body is suffering due to decline in unhealthy living, your mind will also decline. 2. Join a club or organization where you can interact with other people. Discussion groups do wonders to stimulate even the most sluggish of minds. 3. Get curious. Choose a subject each week and find out as much as you can about it. 4. When someone calls. Try to guess who it is before they identify themselves. 5. Read the newspaper. Then try to talk with someone about a certain topic. 6. Do crossword puzzles. (No peeking at the answers till you are done.) 7. If you have trouble remembering names, try rhyming a persons name with something. Like Ted Gates could be rhymed with red skates. Picture Ted skating around on red skates. You may giggles when you think of his name, but at least you remembered it. 8. Borrow a math book from a child and try doing the problems in it. Work your way up to harder problems. 9. Work jigsaw puzzles. Rework the same puzzle several times to see if you can improve on the time it takes you to do it. 10. Find a friend to play card or board games with. Try new games frequently to increase the mental challenges.
After working on some of the mental exercises in this list, you will probably find similar challenges to
Exercise is a powerful antidepressant. It can create mental alertness, sharper mind, and the ability to learn. Movement, such as a simple brisk walk can deliver a powerful dose of mind altering hormones to the brain. Researchers at Duke University have shown that exercise can improve the brain functioning of the elderly and may even protect against Dementia. Just as our bodies need physical exercise, our mental faculties also need exercise if they are to remain useful.
There are countless ways to give your mind a workout. Simple things that you encounter every day can help you keep your mind active. 1. Get plenty of sleep, exercise regularly and eat a balanced diet. If your body is suffering due to decline in unhealthy living, your mind will also decline. 2. Join a club or organization where you can interact with other people. Discussion groups do wonders to stimulate even the most sluggish of minds. 3. Get curious. Choose a subject each week and find out as much as you can about it. 4. When someone calls. Try to guess who it is before they identify themselves. 5. Read the newspaper. Then try to talk with someone about a certain topic. 6. Do crossword puzzles. (No peeking at the answers till you are done.) 7. If you have trouble remembering names, try rhyming a persons name with something. Like Ted Gates could be rhymed with red skates. Picture Ted skating around on red skates. You may giggles when you think of his name, but at least you remembered it. 8. Borrow a math book from a child and try doing the problems in it. Work your way up to harder problems. 9. Work jigsaw puzzles. Rework the same puzzle several times to see if you can improve on the time it takes you to do it. 10. Find a friend to play card or board games with. Try new games frequently to increase the mental challenges.
After working on some of the mental exercises in this list, you will probably find similar challenges to