What Exercises Are Right for a Senior with Alzheimer’s Disease?
November 7, 2018
Depending on where your senior is in her battle with Alzheimer’s disease, she may find exercise more or less complicated. These ideas can help you and her to determine what she wants to be doing at every stage in order to stay as active as she can. Remaining active can help to deal with other issues later, such as the potential to wander or trouble with sleeping.
Earlier Stages Are Fairly Open to Most Activities
In the earlier stages of Alzheimer’s disease, your senior’s brain may not be affected as much as she might fear. This can mean that a lot of her activities might not change much. Complicated exercise videos, driving herself to the gym, and other activities she’s always enjoyed can still be on the menu. It helps a lot if what she’s doing to keep herself active are things that she enjoys doing, no matter what those activities are.
Change Things up as Her Abilities Change
As your elderly family member’s abilities change and as her brain changes, so too will her activities. She may find that it’s more difficult to follow along with complicated aerobics routines, for instance, or she might give up driving when she starts to feel uncomfortable behind the wheel. This might mean that she opts for simpler activities, like going for a walk or taking up gardening.
Later Stages Might Feel More Complicated
It’s in the later stages of Alzheimer’s disease that you and your senior might find keeping her active is more of a challenge. Doing simple household tasks together that don’t require a great deal of complex thought can help. Sweeping or vacuuming is easy enough to do and can be quite a workout. Even using resistance bands can be helpful.
Elderly Care Providers Can Help
Working with elderly care providers can be a good idea for your aging adult as she tries to stay active. Home care providers are experienced at helping aging adults with Alzheimer’s disease and other health issues to go about all of the activities in their day safely. When your elderly family member needs extra help remembering what she’s doing, senior care providers can prompt her.
Always talk to your elderly family member’s doctor about her exercise needs and routines. It’s important to make sure that she’s getting the right amount of activity for her, especially if she has other health issues that you need to keep an eye on.
If you are considering Senior Care in Robinson Twp, PA, please contact the friendly staff at Liken Home Care. Call (412) 693-6820 or (855) 856-0551.