You don’t need to buy special clothes or belong to a gym to become more active. Physical activity can and should be part of your everyday life. Find things you like to do. Go for brisk walks. Ride a bike. Dance. Work around the house. Garden. Climb stairs. Swim. Rake leaves. Try different kinds of activities that keep you moving. Look for new ways to build physical activity into your daily routine. -National Institute on Aging
Aerobic exercise increases blood flow to the brain and benefits specific areas of the brain which control memory, multitasking, planning, and paying attention. Also, there is increasing evidence that activities such as Yoga or Tai Chi that involve the mind/body connection may be very beneficial to the brain as an addition to the more traditional aerobic exercises.
Local Resources:
- Local Motion – a campaign to encourage active living in Charlottesville and Albemarle County. Walking is highly recommended as an easy way for us to stay in shape. Go to Local Motion to calculate the distance of your walks.
- Hiromi T’ai Chi - a non-profit organization dedicated to teaching and promoting the health benefits and art of T’ai Chi Ch’uan in the Charlottesville community. We offer training in the Cheng-Ming System as taught by Grandmaster Wang Shu-Jin as well as other related internal martial arts.
- Yoga Laughs - Laughter (Haysa) Yoga is an ancient, new concept — giving you the ability to laugh yourself to health, without relying on humor. We initiate laughter as creative exercise. With childlike playfulness, our laughter becomes spontaneous and contagious. We laugh to bring more oxygen to the body, resulting in new levels of energy and relaxation.
Online Resources:
- Shape Up America! – Healthy Weight for Life
- NIHSeniorHealth - easy-to-use website features health and wellness information for older adults from the National Institutes of Health. Use the buttons at the top of each page to make the text bigger, change text color, or hear the text read aloud.
- Growing Stronger – Strength Training for Older Adults - If you’re interested in feeling stronger, healthier, and more vital, this program is for you. This strength-training program was developed by experts at Tufts University and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
