Over the past year, I’ve written a few posts on Alzheimer’s and dementia in general, touting the benefits of both physical and mental exercises for delaying the progression of this horrible illness. However, short of mall-walking or shuffle board and playing chess, what can the elderly do for exercise and mental stimulation? Well here’s a short list non-traditional activities the 60+ crowd is doing right now to stimulate their minds and bodies;

1) Think old people can’t “get-down”? I guess you haven’t seen The Zimmer’s new video, a remake of Pete Townsend’s song, My Generation. This geriatric band has a median age of 79; the youngest member is 64, the oldest 100! The band also has a MySpace page which you can view here.

2) I’m pretty sure I can’t run a marathon and I’m considerably younger than 101 year-old Buster Martin, a man from the UK that is doing just that. Check out this article the BBC news ran on Martin. By the way, Buster is still working three days a week as a plumber.

3) Check out this article about 62 year-old Marlene Limmer who’s favorite out door sport is white water rafting. She also enjoys canoeing and hiking, but she’s most looking forward to trying rock climbing and rappelling.

4) Okay, you’re not into rock bands or extreme sports, but you still need to get some exercise. If you’re thinking Wii is only for the grandkids, think again. Check out the Erikson Sports Wii bowling championship which features four teams of elderly people who are serious about Wii bowling and seriously talking trash to their elderly opponents.

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    Last reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 9 Mar 2008
    Published on PsychCentral.com. All rights reserved.