While we often discuss maintaining physical fitness, it’s less common to discuss mental fitness as we age. Just as some exercises strengthen our bones, others keep our minds fit, healthy and vibrant throughout retirement. Following these mental fitness routines can ultimately prevent or delay dementia and other forms of cognitive decline.
If you’re interested in ways to keep your mind healthy throughout retirement, try some of these ways to maintain mental fitness.
Brain Teasers
Doing puzzles and brain teasers that challenge your problem-solving skills can help your mind stay sharp. Studies have shown engaging in these activities can boost brain activity by increasing memory, mental processing speed and concentration. Exercises like crosswords, sudoku puzzles and other games that test recall and problem-solving are all great ways to improve brain fitness.
Try Something New
Regularly engaging in new activities helps our brain build new neural pathways. Dedicating time to learning new skills like a foreign language or musical instrument are all great ways to expand your horizons while boosting brain fitness. Joining a new club or organization is another great way to have new experiences and make new social connections.
Read
Because reading exercises your memory, studies have shown it can improve your short-term recall of everyday events. If you’re looking for a good book, try this list of Amazon’s all-time best sellers.
Sleep Hygiene
Sleep helps our minds integrate the information they learned throughout the day — boosting long-term memory and cognitive connections. Maintaining good sleep hygiene, or habits that respect our body’s circadian rhythms, can help our brains prevent decline. Keeping a consistent bedtime and avoiding stimulants like coffee and nicotine are simple steps anyone can take to improve sleep hygiene.
Friendship at Home is designed to help retirees over the age of 62 ensure they have a plan in place for potential long-term care. Through our membership program, long-term care is available at affordable, predictable prices. Our staff will also ensure care is coordinated in your own home — meaning your loved ones will never have to worry about arranging future care.
If you’re interested in learning more about our program, let us know at (614) 734-2167.