[For Seniors] Enjoyable Indoor Activities! Recreations and Games That Engage the Mind and Body
Have fun moving your body together while giving your brain a workout, too! If you’re looking for games that train balance, indoor recreation is highly recommended.
We’ll introduce ideas you can fully enjoy even while seated, such as the Chopstick Pick-Up Game, the Balance UFO Game, and Ping-Pong Ball Transfer.
In particular, the actions of carefully pulling out chopsticks and placing items on a disc naturally build concentration and a sense of balance.
These ideas are perfect for seniors to enjoy together, so why not give them a try?
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- [For Seniors] Exciting Team-Based Recreational Activities
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- Hand games that liven things up for seniors—also great brain training
- [November Health Topic] Indoor Recreation Ideas for Older Adults
- [For Seniors] Recreational Activities Enjoyable in Large Groups
- [For Seniors] Fun Small-Group Recreation
Ball games (11–20)
Great for brain training! Recommended for recreation too: hand and foot exercises
This is a recreation activity where everyone forms a large circle and passes a ball around inside the circle.
The person throwing the ball can strengthen their shoulder and arm joints, while the person catching it can train their focus and dynamic visual acuity.
If you make it more challenging by adding variations—like incorporating footwork when throwing—you can also gain brain-training benefits from planning movements.
Playing music and having participants pass the ball in time with it can make it easier to find a rhythm.
There are various tips, such as keeping the shoulders and arms moving smoothly and getting a feel for the rhythm, so offer advice as you go and let everyone enjoy passing the ball.
Seated Throwing/Rolling Activities (1–10)
Bound Bowling
Speaking of bowling, it’s one of those easy indoor recreational activities.
It’s also a classic game that kids and adults alike can enjoy.
But in this version, instead of rolling the bowling ball, you bounce it to hit pins placed at different heights.
You try to knock down pins on chairs or tables by bouncing the ball; of course, the higher the pins are, the harder they are to hit, so they’re worth more points.
It’s a score-based game called Bounce Bowling, and adding pins with negative points makes it even more exciting!
LINE Golf
LINE Golf is a team-based recreational game.
A row of holed putting cups is lined up straight down the middle.
From your perspective, the nearest cups are your team’s color, beyond them are white cups, and beyond those are the opposing team’s color.
Sinking a ball into your team’s cup earns 1 point, and into a white cup earns 2 points.
But if you overshoot and sink it into the opposing team’s cup, they get the points.
Aim for the high-scoring white cups, but be careful not to end up scoring for the other team!
Bottle knocking game
All you need is a plastic bottle and a uchiwa fan to enjoy this simple game: Plastic Bottle Knockdown.
First, thread a rubber band or string through the fan and secure it so you can quickly retrieve it after throwing.
It’s a seated game, making it easy to tailor to older adults’ physical and mental conditions.
Since the bottles are empty, they’re easy to knock over, so anyone can have fun.
Compete to see who can knock down the most bottles, and consider preparing a prize for the top scorer.
Let’s enjoy it together!
Waa-pon!
Wa-pon: a game you can play with things you have at home, like newspaper and clothespins.
Roll a sheet of newspaper into a tube, connect the ends, and make ring-toss-style rings.
Scatter clothespins randomly on the floor.
Prepare about three colors of clothespins and assign different point values to each color.
While seated in a chair, toss the newspaper rings; if a clothespin lands firmly inside the ring, you earn the points for that clothespin.
If it isn’t fully inside the ring, you don’t score.
Decide in advance how many throws each player gets and compete on total points.
Paper Core Bowling
Back in the Showa era, there was a time when bowling was hugely popular.
Some older adults may have been into bowling back then.
Let’s rekindle those memories and get our fingers moving with a bowling game.
Use toilet paper rolls as pins, and a lightweight rubber ball that doesn’t feel heavy to knock them down.
Since it can be played on a table, people who have difficulty standing can participate as well.
Keeping score like in real bowling will make it even more exciting.
disk hit
Let us introduce Disk Hit, a game you can enjoy using paper plates and paper cups.
Use empty milk or juice cartons as pins and throw paper plates like a flying disc.
Each person throws seven plates, and you compete by the number of pins you knock down.
It’s fun for individuals or groups, and it can be played either sitting or standing, so anyone can join.
Throwing paper plates engages everything from the shoulders to the fingertips, making it a functional exercise while you play.
It’s highly game-like and exciting, so it’s also recommended as a recreation activity for senior care facilities.
