Exercise has so many benefits for your aging family member, but that doesn’t mean those benefits are enough to make her excited about moving more. What can help is to understand why she doesn’t want to exercise so that you can help her to find ways around those barriers to moving more.
Exercise Seems Complicated
For people who aren’t used to exercising, it can seem really complicated and even intimidating. Your elderly family member may believe that she has to do something really specific for it to count as exercise. But the reality is that she can do almost anything that involves movement and have it count toward her exercise goals. This doesn’t have to be really complicated.
She’s Worried She’ll Hurt Herself
It’s not completely out of left field for your senior to worry about injuring herself. The big solution here is that she needs to talk with her doctor about whether exercise is okay and what her limits are. From there, she needs to choose exercise that fits her abilities and that she’s able to do without harming herself. Much of this involves knowing when to push things a little bit and when to just rest.
She Doesn’t Have the Energy to Exercise
If just talking about exercising feels exhausting to your senior, she’s not alone. A lot of people feel that way, but if they stick with it, a funny thing happens. Energy levels actually can increase, partly because people who exercise regularly tend to rest better. Your elderly family member may also start to crave healthier foods, which also increases her energy reserves.
She Just Doesn’t Want to Exercise
Don’t be surprised if the biggest reason of all for your senior to avoid exercise is that she really just doesn’t want to do it. There are a lot of people who spend their whole lives experiencing exercise as something that is not fun or enjoyable at all. This doesn’t have to be the case, though. Work with your senior to find activities that help her to move more and that she enjoys doing. Taking a nature walk could be a lot of fun, for instance, or playing with kids or pets that she loves. These are ways for her to move more without being bored.
It might be a good idea for your elderly family member to have a caregiver with her when she’s exercising. This can help her to feel and to be a lot safer while she’s exercising.
If you or an aging loved one is considering caregivers in Big Timber, MT, please contact the caring staff at SYNERGY HomeCare Billings today at 406-839-2390.
