Current recommendations for exercise are at least 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week. How well do your parents do with this? They may not have found an exercise they love. Have you thought about dance?
Dance programs like Zumba or dance classes are good ways to get exercise and have fun. The physical activity helps ease stress, improve balance and muscle tone, and builds concentration and memorization skills, too. Here are the key benefits of dance as a form of exercise.
It Can Lower the Risk of Dementia
Dance works more than the muscles and joints. It also requires the brain to exercise as dance moves and counts are memorized. A waltz requires footwork to be completed in a series of 1, 2, 3 steps. That count and repetition help the brain with memory retention and recall.
It Helps With Balance and Muscle Tone
As you age, your muscles can weaken. Balance issues often occur and increase the risk of a fall. Dance helps keep the muscles toned. It also helps with balance skills.
One of the most important muscles in the body gets a workout during a dance. Dance is a cardio workout that helps protect and strengthen the heart. Thirty minutes of dance each day is a good start to improving heart health.
Arthritis Pain Decreases With Dance
Dance helps keep the joints exercised and limber thanks to a variety of movements. This can help ease arthritis pain and discomfort. As the pain decreases, dependence on medications like ibuprofen or aspirin also decreases.
It Eases Stress, Anxiety, and Even Depression
Exercise is good for the body, but it also helps the mind. Several studies took a look at how Dance Movement Therapy helped adults who were diagnosed with depression. The different groups ranged from having mild depression to severe depression. Each participant took some form of dance, and each group reported their depression eased.
Groups who were diagnosed with severe depression dropped to moderate depression. Some participants dropped to being diagnosed with minimal depression.
Learn to Dance
Your parents may need someone around to help them start a dance instruction or Zumba video. They may need someone to drive them to a studio for a dance class. Home care aides can do this.
With home care, your parents have someone to provide companionship, help with housework, and meal preparation services. That’s just the start. If there is a specific service you think would help your parents get more exercise, call a home care agency to discuss it.
Sources:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6509172/
If you or an aging loved one is considering home care services in Yalaha, FL, please contact the caring staff at Golden Heart Senior Care of Clermont today. 1-888-423-4046.
There’s a moment when you might suddenly realize that you’re a family caregiver and you didn’t expect it. You might have known that you would eventually be your senior’s caregiver, but things change quickly when it comes to helping someone you love with the challenges of aging. Getting started the right way, even if you’ve been caregiving longer than you realize, is important.