Physical Activities to do in retirement.
Retirement means change!
Sometimes the change is welcomed and sometimes it’s a problem. The once structured activates of getting up, going to work and then coming home are the very thing that will change most. How you cope with change is the key to a successful and happy retirement.
In addition, old age means you are more susceptible to some diseases. So therefore, it is vitally important to do what you can, to put off, for as long as possible, a future of declining health. One step for everyone in coping with this is replacing the former regular pattern with another regular pattern. In the process doing things that if you choose wisely, it sometimes helps put off the possibility of health problems. You just need to remain active. Some people remain active until they are well into their 90’s so what’s your excuse?
Here is my list of 23 physical activities to try when you retire. Select the most attractive activity and set your sails for an active retirement. Keeping fit will help you keep your mind active, take you outside and strengthen your muscles. It may even provide the vital social contact we all need and it certainly beats sitting on the lounge and watching daytime TV.
1 Get fit and do this before attempting any of the activities below.
Our local Police and citizens youth club runs seniors fitness classes, several times per week, for $3 per class and our local public swimming pool, has water aerobics classes for seniors for $5. Some of these are sponsored by our local city council so, contact your council, and ask if they run these classes and how to get involved.
2 Go white water rafting.
3 Take every bush walk within a 2 hour driving radius.
4 Train for, and run, a half marathon or triathlon. Or walk around the block often!
5 Join a martial arts club.
6 Join a surf club.
7 Enter an amateur bodybuilding championship.
8 Coach junior soccer, rugby league, cricket, baseball – anything that takes your fancy.
9 Swim across any local waterway that’s not polluted or filled with sharks or crocodiles. You had better train well and tell someone what you are doing!
10 Go canoeing. You can buy a blow up canoe for less than $200 and some have fishing rod holders, so you can do two things at once.
11 Go surfing or learn to surf. You’re never too old!
12 Go water skiing.
13 Go paddle boarding.
14 Go fishing.
15 Get your golf handicap down by 2 strokes. You may need to take a lesson or two to get this going but you certainly will have to practice more.
16 Play touch football.
17 Go geocaching (requires a GPS). Look it up – it looks great.
18 Learn how to roller skate or ice skate or ski if it’s cold where you live.
19 Learn scuba-diving.
20 Build and fly kites. There’s hundreds of designs around the web. Try a few and work out which is the best. Look here – http://www.my-best-kite.com/how-to-make-a-kite.html
21 Fly model aircraft. Find your local club. If you try to fly a model aircraft alone, it may be a fleeting exercise – (my experience was short lived as was my aircraft!)
22 Learn juggling. This is supposed to be good for your brain too.
23 Find and use every picnic spot within an hours drive.
So, get into it today. I believe the exercises you to today are setting in place a pattern for the next 10 years of your life. You responsibility is just to start.