Staying active is a key ingredient to your aging loved one leading a healthy and fulfilling life. Exercise is important to keep the body strong, the mind well, and the spirits boosted. But just like all of us, seniors sometimes experience a lack of motivation to keep moving. The Siren song of the couch or easy chair is just too strong. When your senior is feeling unmotivated, consider using these tips to get them back to being active and enjoying life to its fullest. If you can’t always be there to help motivate your parent, companion care at home can step in to provide support and encouragement.
Have a moving buddy. If you’ve watched the classic “Toy Story” movies, you’ve heard the toys talk about having a moving buddy. Your senior might also need a moving buddy. Not someone to help him move to a new home, but someone to give him motivation to keep moving. This can be a caregiver like yourself, a friend, or his companion care at home provider. One great service that companion care at home providers offer is companionship during exercise. They can walk with your loved one or drive him to a senior center. A moving buddy can help your loved one be accountable.
Find an exercise that doesn’t feel like exercise. Many people think of exercise as going to the gym and lifting weights or walking endlessly on a treadmill in one place. There’s no joy attached, only a task that needs to get done. When viewed this way, any excuse to avoid being active seems like a good one. But if you can help your loved one find an activity that he truly enjoys such as gardening, swimming, or playing pickleball with his companion care at home provider, he’s more like to look forward to it instead of trying to find ways to avoid it.
Celebrate the wins. Nothing makes doing something more fun than having a reward you get when you’re done. For some, just completing a task is reward enough. For others, you might need to find little ways to reward your loved one each time he meets a new milestone or conquers a new obstacle in his workout. While going for ice cream after is a fun reward, try to keep the rewards to non-food prizes as much as possible so you don’t undo all the hard work your loved one has just completed.
Make it an escape. If your loved one lives in a loud busy home, perhaps he craves the quiet and peace of being alone. Help him find an exercise that helps him reach that goal like maybe a walk in a local state park or stroll down an empty beach. If he wants to escape being alone, find an activity that brings him together with others, creating a sense of community that he might be lacking.
Finally, remember the benefits. Staying active helps your loved one in four key ways. It gives him physical strength and the ability to move. It builds social connections. It provides a positive state of mind and finally, it promotes cognitive vitality.
If you or an aging loved one are considering companion care at home in Dallas, TX, please contact the caring staff at Clear Path Home Care today. Call (817) 631-7710
Clear Path Home Care provides compassionate, high quality home care in Parker County, Tarrant County, Johnson County, Hood County, Somervell County, Erath County, Bosque County and Hamilton County in Texas.
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