7 Fun Winter Activities for Seniors
When the weather turns cold and dreary, pulling a warm blanket over your head and hibernating until spring has its attractions. But unless you’re incredibly sleep-deprived, adjusting your activities to suit the season will do more to brighten your days and boost your health.
For ideas to make this winter more enjoyable, we’ve put together a list of 7 fun winter activities for seniors. To be honest, you don’t have to be a senior to enjoy them. There are fun things to do for every member of the family.
1. Start an Indoor Garden
Gardening is a great way to beat the winter blues. You can grow microgreens on your kitchen counter, and they’ll be ready to harvest in two weeks. If you have a sunny window, you can grow herbs through the winter. Mini tomato varieties and green beans can also be grown in pots.
2. Make Time for Exercise
Breaking a sweat may not top your list of fun winter activities for seniors, but it’s vital to stay active. You don’t have to pump iron or pound a treadmill. Try adding variety to your exercise routine with something fun, such as line dancing or ballroom dancing. Yoga, tai chi, and Pilates are also wonderful for improving flexibility and balance (which helps prevent falls).
3. Get in the Pool
Swimming is a great way to get your heart pumping, and it’s easy on the joints and muscles. It helps improve balance, endurance, flexibility and strength. Just getting in the pool can lower stress levels and help you relax. To make fitness more fun this winter, consider joining a water aerobics class.
4. Explore Your Community
If there’s a museum or gallery you’ve always wanted to visit, winter is a great time to do it. The crowds are thinner, and prices may be discounted in the off-season. There may also be winter holiday programs you can join at your local library or community center. Wreath making, holiday concerts and theater productions are just some of the fun winter activities for seniors you’ll find in our area.
5. Try Something New
Winter is a great time to change your routine and try something new. Challenging yourself intellectually with something you enjoy helps keep your mind sharp and mood sunny. Any activity you find interesting will work. Learn to play a musical instrument. Take a class in painting, memoir writing, flower arranging, or a new language. Join a book club. Or volunteer at a local charity.
6. Get Crafty
Crafting is something the whole family can enjoy, and it offers a bounty of health benefits, including improved cognitive ability, reduced stress and improved motor skills. Wreaths and tree decorations are obvious choices for the holidays. But you could also add knitting, crocheting or scrapbooking to your repertoire.
7. Plan a Winter Getaway
If you’d rather be somewhere warmer and sunnier, hop on a flight and change the scenery. The Gulf Coast and Caribbean offer plenty of sunshine and sand. Farther west, San Diego and Palm Springs offer sun-drenched beaches and golfing resorts. Cancun is also popular (and cheaper) during the winter months.
Discover Why Winter is Wonderful at Laurel Circle
If the thought of shoveling snow and driving on icy roads sends a shiver down your spine, consider a more welcome version of winter. At Laurel Circle, for example, residents don’t care how much it snows or how they’ll get to the grocery store or doctor’s office. We provide door-to-door transportation and take care of all maintenance indoors and out. Besides, residents have better things to do with their time than grumble about the weather. From fitness and art classes to bridge club and movie nights, there’s always something fun to do with people who share your interests — not to mention a full slate of holiday festivities.
To learn more about what makes life at Laurel Circle merry and bright, get in touch and give old man winter the cold shoulder.
