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For many people in this generation, retirement will be a stretch of time that is equal in length to one's working life, as much as twenty-five to thirty years. Retirement presents a seemingly endless cycle of twenty-four-hour periods of unplanned holidays, each similar to the one before it. The activities with which people fill those days will ultimately determine the quality of their lives. Those who seek positive, enriching, and helpful activities will find that those activities add up to a happy and worthwhile lifestyle.
Once you retire and your children have left home, it's easy to feel as though you have nothing left to accomplish. Especially after you have stopped your STRUCTURED job and there is significant spare time on your hands.
But older adults can still have career goals and direction, just in a different way. Be grateful for what you’ve done and where you’ve been, and look forward to more of the same.
Staying active and having fun doesn’t have to break the bank. These free activities for retirees are great to do by yourself or with others and keep you active, crafty and entertained on a budget.
Categories
GET OUT AND ABOUT
Getting
out and about is all about trying new things and putting yourself out
there. These fun activities for seniors will boost social interaction
and make a positive impact on overall mood and self-esteem.
1.
Try a New Restaurant
Break away from your go-to spots and try something new. Do a Yelp search in your local area and sort the results based on reviews. Results at the top will give you the best-rated restaurants. Make sure to avoid the "Ads" as those restaurants have paid to be pushed to the top.
2.
Plan a Movie Night
Going to the movies is an experience that will never get old. Nothing better than a cold dark theater and buttery popcorn fingers. Choosing the movie is up to you, try to see what movies times you can make after dinner.
3.
Visit Family More
As families grow older (and larger), schedules get busier and it can be difficult to visit with family. Set time aside to plan a family trip or gathering. It could be as simple as having everyone over for a LUNCH!
4.
Take Advantage of Your Landscape
Whether it's a trip down to the beach, a day at kainji dam, or a visit to obudu cattle ranch , forget the traveling and make most of the landscape that is in your backyard. WE DO HAVE THEM IN NAIJA
5.
Scour the Newspaper for Special Events
The local newspaper is a great resource to find upcoming special events or activities. Festivals, exhibitions, and fundraisers are commonly promoted in the local section weekly.
If you don't get the newspaper delivered, you can pick one up at a newsstand, or visit your favorite paper's website for the online version.
6.
Become a Member of Social Club
Joining an organization such as lion club or Rotary club, often come with many perks, such as; private events, social interaction, and access to resources like professional advice or information. It's a great way to meet new people, give back to the community, and stay motivated. You may also consider taking advantage of leadership opportunities.
7. Travel Where You Always Dreamed
Where have you always wanted to visit? Now's the time to take advantage. Use travel sites like Expedia, Kayak, and TripAdvisor to plan your overdue rendezvous.
HEALTH AND FITNESS
The importance of exercise for seniors is huge! As we age we must put forth a conscious effort to keep up with our health and fitness. Find indoor activities, recreational activities,& great exercises for seniors ONLINE.
Track Your Nutrition
Challenge yourself to monitor your nutrition. Sign up and download the MyFitnessPal app to enter your daily food log. You can even log your water intake and workouts. The app has lots of great nutritional and fitness information that can help you stay educated on what's good for your body.
Perform
Chair Exercises
Who says you need to stand up to exercise? Chair exercises designed for seniors are easy on the joints and have proven to provide many benefits for those seeking lower impact activity that gets the blood flowing
Explore a New Diet
There has been a lot of hype around new diets lately with talk of health and mood improvements across the board. Why not try following a new diet to help boost your health? Learn the science behind the diets and decide which one you think would suit you.
Some diets to research:
Atkins Diet
The Zone Diet
Vegetarian Diet
Vegan Diet
Paleo Diet
Weight Watchers Diet
South Beach Diet
Raw Food Diet
Mediterranean Diet
Track
Your Steps
You
can find and purchase a Fitbit at your shoprite, Spar or most local
supemarkets, or online at fitbit.com.
These sleek wristbands are designed to track your fitness all day long. It tracks your steps, heart rate, sleep activity, and workouts daily. It's great for setting goals and the information syncs up with the app on your phone to track your results.
Join
a Gym
Joining a gym gives you access to working out despite the weather outdoors. Not only that, joining a gym is like joining a small community. Get to know the other members, attend group classes, and enlist a workout partner!
Before signing up for a membership, check out all your potential facilities. Request a tour and a 3-day to trial before committing to an entire year.
Try
Yoga
Yoga is the perfect low-impact exercise packed with a huge list of benefits.
Work to improve your...balance, flexibility, joint health, stability, anxiety, blood pressure, and breathing
Yoga is available free online or some new age gyms in major cities in Nigeria are starting to offer yoga classes..
Proactively
Manage Your Health
When is the last time you visited your doctor? The first thing you can do is make sure you're up-to-date on all your appointments.
But don't stop there, start monitoring your vital signs regularly between visits. This helps to track health trends and alert you of any abnormal findings. Monitoring makes it easy to communicate results to your doctor and can also be beneficial for identifying your body's reaction to prescribed medications.
The most important vitals to monitor, on a regular basis, are oxygen level, weight, temperature, respiratory rate, and blood pressure.
*Look into purchasing portable medical devices that are small and easy to use on the go.
Just Stretch
Improve
your endurance, mobility, and flexibility by taking some time to
stretch. Look for areas of downtime throughout your daily routines.
You'll have plenty of opportunities without having to set aside time.
Throw it in during your TV time, right when you wake up in the
morning, or right before bed.
Get
a Massage
Massages
are a relaxing way to recover from sore or fatigued muscles. They do
wonders for your health and are great for relieving stress,
headaches, and in some cases digestive disorders.
Massages are mostly affordable nowadays ask around they start at 2,500 naira a session..
Start
Playing Table Tennis
Table
Tennis is known to be a social sport that you can play at any age.
It's a very challenging game, but easy to learn. If you don't have
the same pep in your step considering finding a doubles partner to
lighten the workload.
Become
an Umpire or Referee
Have
you always considered yourself a sports fanatic? Then why not become
an official for your favorite sport? check out opportunities to
officiate primary school or even secondary school games.
Pick
Up Golf
Got lots of time? Golf may just become your new favorite sport! Playing golf will burn calories, get your heart rate up, and reduce stress. It's a great source of exercise, and entertainment.
(Don't forget to wear your FitBit to count your steps on the course!!)
FIND A NEW HOBBY
Hobbies
are a great way to relieve stress and challenge yourself at the same
time. Anyone can find a new hobby and they make for great pastime.
Here's a long list of ideas for everyone.
Grow
a Herb Garden
Looking to gain a green thumb? Start with a small herb garden that you can keep indoors.
Find a location that gets decent sunlight throughout the day (at least 4 hours) and plant your herbs in small pots with loose soil for good drainage. Tend to and water once soil surface appears dry (indoor gardens need less water, because of the cooler air).
When ready, add your herbs to your signature dish!
Cook
New Recipes
Expand your recipe repertoire and cook something new! Check out sites like coutryliving.com, food.com, and Pinterest for inspiring ideas.
Get
on Social Media
Social media is more than reconnecting with old friends. Take to the online world to make new friends that share similar interests or express your feelings and allow others to relate. Try starting up your own group or participate in an existing one to gain access to content based on information you desire. Step into the social media world and follow your favorite brands, celebrities, sports teams, etc for endless entertainment.
Most popular social media outlets:
6. Whatsapp
Get a Pet
Skip the exhausting puppy phase and adopt a loyal companion...who's already house broken.
Start
a Blog
Bring
your thoughts and memories to life for others to enjoy. Become a
blogger!
WordPress.com is a site where you can start and host your own blog. Select "Get Started" to choose the layout and design of your site. Follow the steps and create an account and you're ready to get working on your first entry.
Learn
an Instrument
Did you know it's easier to learn an instrument as an adult than it is as a child?
As an adult you're set up much more conveniently, you've had a lifetime of listening to music, your attention span is longer, cognitively the concepts make more sense, and you actually want to learn the instrument- it's not forced or required.
You can teach yourself with help from the internet or DVDS or get a paid tutor to coach you most secondary offer after school classes, most tutors will typically offer private or group lessons.
Start
a Bucket list
No, you don't have to jump out of any plans, but write down everything you want to do with the rest of your life, and start fulfilling your dreams.
Learn
Photography
Capture a priceless moment and create a piece of art. Strengthen your cognitive abilities and improve your memory by learning how to use a new camera and editing software.
Take
a makosa Dancing Class
Spice up your life with some makosa lessons from you tube.com
Get
a Fish Tank
Put together an aquarium and soak up the tranquility. A fish tank can provide a calming and peaceful sensation to a room that will improve your mood. Pets maybe stressful but fish are low maintenance and easy to care for.
Volunteering
Help others out and feel good doing it! There are endless volunteering opportunities to take advantage of in your community, Consider childcare facilities, schools, churches, libraries, non-profits. Larger Charities and organizations will commonly list opportunities on their websites.
According to a study conducted over an eight-year period, retirees who were active volunteers were 40% more likely to be alive at the end of the study than non-volunteers [source: Wheeler]. That should be reason enough to consider volunteering. Not only does it keep you moving and engaged, volunteering also instils a sense of purpose and fulfilment.
Become a Mentor
Take your life skills and experiences and help others grow and learn. Mentoring can be done formally through programs that assign you to a mentee or informally through family friends or community members.
If you're considering being a mentor make sure you have:
dedication and the desire to be involved
the time and flexibility
listening skills
empathy
Teach a Class
If you have a specific skill or knowledge set that you would enjoy sharing with others, volunteer to teach a class on it! Do some research and check if you are eligible to teach, if not, tackle the requirements.
Fun
& Games
Fight against Dementia, Alzheimer's, and cognitive challenges associated with aging by trying out some new games online. They're fun, entertaining, and stimulate your mind. You're mistaken if you think fun activities for seniors are hard to come by...there's something for everyone in this list!
Online
Poker
Visit the casino without having to leave your house. Sign up for an account on a free site to play for fun.
Online
Chess
Find yourself destroying all your regular competition? Head over to Chess.com to test your strategies.
Checkers,
Cards, Board Games, etc.
Release your competitive side by dabbling in some classic games. Dust off the old boards and play the traditional way or hop on the computer and play against someone from across the world.
Download game apps directly to your phone so you can play from anywhere.
Free Apps:
Words with Friends (Scrabble)
Puzzles or Crosswords
Challenging our brains to a puzzle improves our thinking and can have positive effects on short-term memory you can find puzzles online.
Listen
to Music
Discovering new music has changed a little since the days of digging through crates at the record store.
Sign up for Spotify and get access to music across all your listening devices. This app allows you to download music & create your own playlists, or discover new ones put together by other users; just like social media you can follow playlists that you enjoy.
Pandora is another similar music app. You can compare the two and decide which you would prefer.
Note: Both apps can be accessed free of charge, but search will be limited and music will be interrupted by Ads
The
Wii
Look into purchasing a Wii, the video game console that simulates sports like tennis, golf, skiing, bowling, and even boxing. The catch...you get to be the controller. The sensors pick up your movements and reactions to the game play. Studies show that this gaming interaction has helped to improve balance, stability, and coordination.
Education
Take a College Class
Anyone can go back to school. If you genuinely enjoyed learning as you grew up, why not brush up on your knowledge? Recall the old adage “no knowledge is wasted..you can even take up sewing….
Learn
a New Language
Rosetta Stone is probably the most popular program for learning new languages. It's an interactive software that teaches languages with an instinctive and natural approach. Choose between 24 different languages and start mastering your skills today!
Learn
New Technology
Keep up with your grandkids on all the latest technology and learn how to navigate your way through the cyber world. Techboomers.com is an awesome website designed to teach proper use and function of the most popular websites and apps. Make an account and gain access to hundreds of helpful tutorials.
Explore
Online Courses
Skip the classroom and continue your education from your couch! Online colleges have becomes extremely popular for those returning to school or seeking education in specific fields or course. Run a quick Google search to pull up available classes around you.
Visit
Museums
Whether it's fine arts, war history, or science, enrich your life and expand your knowledge by taking a trip to the museum or whale watching in Lagos
Seminars
There is a seminar for just about anything these days. Whether you're looking to pursue an entrepreneurial dream or boost your self-esteem "there's a seminar for that". It really is a great way to learn from experts in the industry, meet new people, and gather the latest information. You can tune in online, but attending in person is a lot more motivating
You can do a search online specific to the seminar topic you're looking for.
Podcasts
Podcasts are both educational and entertaining. Listen while doing the laundry, cleaning the house, or driving in the car.
Download a podcast app to your smart phone. (Here's one for iPhones & one for Androids).
Top Podcasts to Explore:
Additional Income
If you're no longer working, but still interested in making money or holding a job in your free time here are ways you can earn additional income!
Leverage Your Skills as a Consultant/Starting a New business
Retirement is an opportunity to start that business you have always dreamed about. You get to be involved in some project you find interesting with prospects of financial reward.
If others consider you an expert, trying using the knowledge you've gained throughout your career as leverage to become a consultant. Help others who are working to achieve goals and skills that you have already mastered.
Learn
About Bitcoin
If you're unfamiliar with Bitcoin you can: It was created in 2009 and is a type of electronically held digital currency. Bitcoin is independent of large banks or other central authorities and transfers are almost instant.
Check out some of the most popular Bitcoin sites below:
Freelance Writing
If you enjoy writing for fun, why not make some money for it? Become a freelance writer and get paid by the hour or by the article.
Invest
in Local Companies
Look into investing in one of your favorite local companies. Locally owned businesses help to improve the economy more than global companies do..
Monitor
What You Spend
Take a day and dive into your finances. When you're not working, you're not bringing in any new income; so it's important to develop a plan for monitoring what you spend.
Cut
Clutter by Selling Online
Take inventory of the things you no longer use - the better the condition the more likely you are to make a sale. Consider anything from purses and shoes to furniture or gadgets.
There are several online platforms available. Apps likejiji.ng are mobile classifieds that allow users to buy from or sell to others locally. Upload pictures straight from your phone and allow buyers to negotiate.
Tutor
Students
If you have a flexible schedule become an online tutor and make your services available anywhere. If you work better face-to-face, check the schools, for potential tutoring opportunities. Good Teachers are in short supply Nationwide.
Become
an Uber Driver or an Owner of an Uber service
With Uber, you can make your own schedule. If you have a reliable car and clean driving record you're on your way to making money by the mile. Check out the other driver requirements and sign up to become an Uber Driver today.
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