[For Seniors] Recreational activities and games that let you have fun while strengthening your legs
Here are some fun recreational activities that help build leg strength.
We’ve gathered options older adults can really enjoy, like soccer, bowling, and golf using balls or balloons.
These friendly group games—where you practice controlling force and direction—strengthen the legs while creating opportunities to communicate with others.
Moving your legs gently and without strain can also make everyday movements smoother.
Find your favorite activity and put it to use for daily health and wellness!
- [For Seniors] Strengthen Your Legs! Recommended Training Items
- [For Seniors] Refresh Your Mood! Lively, Get-Moving Games
- [For Seniors] Enjoy safely even during the COVID-19 pandemic: Seated activities
- For seniors: Leg-strengthening exercises you can do without overexertion.
- [For Seniors] Simple Recreational Activities You Can Enjoy While Seated
- [For Seniors] Enjoyable Indoor Activities! Recreations and Games That Engage the Mind and Body
- For Seniors: Effective Recreation for Preventing Care Needs—Have Fun While Staying Healthy
- [For Seniors] Leg and lower-back training: Fall prevention
- [For Seniors] Exercises to Walk Again. Fall Prevention
- [For Seniors] Fun Exercises You Can Do While Seated
- [For Seniors] A Fun Sports Day! Recreational Activities You Can Do Safely
- [For Seniors] Recreational Activities Enjoyable in Large Groups
- [For Seniors] Balance-Training Exercises: Preventing Falls
Foot exercises and recreational activities using beanbags and towels (11–20)
Miyakumiyaku exercises with a towel
Improve your circulation! Here are some exercise ideas using a towel inspired by Myaku-Myaku.
Do you know the character Myaku-Myaku? It’s the official mascot created as the symbol of the Osaka-Kansai Expo.
Its distinctive shape and vivid red and blue colors are quite striking.
This time, playing on the name “Myaku-Myaku,” let’s try some exercises to get your blood flowing “myaku-myaku” (steadily).
All you need to prepare are two face towels.
Longer ones are preferable.
Towel exercise: leg pull-through
Here’s an idea for a towel exercise called “leg thread.” Try this to improve your seated stability.
All you need is one towel.
Hold one end of the towel in each hand and, while seated, thread your legs through the towel.
If maintaining balance while sitting is difficult, it’s helpful to lean against a wall or have someone support you.
As you get used to the movement, shorten your grip to increase the difficulty.
The key is to train enjoyably within a comfortable range without overdoing it!
Foot Beanbag Bingo
One activity option for events and parties is a bingo game.
Many older adults are already familiar with bingo, aren’t they? While bingo is usually played on paper, this time we’ll introduce a version that uses the feet and beanbags.
Prepare nine paper plates or cups, and have the older adults use their feet to toss beanbags into them.
Use colored tape to group the plates or cups by color, and change the score based on where the beanbag lands.
For example, award 20 points if the beanbag lands in a plate or cup of the same color, and 10 points if it’s a different color.
Because they lift their legs to toss the beanbags, older adults can enjoy the game while also training their legs.
Snail race
First, make a snail out of newspaper and colored paper, then attach it to a plastic bottle.
Prepare one towel, place the plastic bottle with the snail on the far end of the towel, and whoever reels it in to themselves the fastest without tipping it over wins.
The plastic bottle with the snail tips over easily, so if you don’t reel it in slowly and steadily, it will fall.
beanbag kicking
If you’re looking for a leg exercise activity, how about “beanbag kicking”? Arrange sheets of paper with point values in a vertical line, place a chair on the opposite side, and sit down.
Then balance a beanbag on the top of your foot and kick it up so it lands on one of the point sheets.
Decide how many beanbags each person gets to kick; the player with the highest total score wins.
If balancing the beanbag on your foot is difficult, you can place it on the floor and kick it with your toes instead.
If you want to increase the amount of exercise, add more beanbags.
Adjust the rules to suit the players.
Around the world with a towel! Full-body exercises
Let’s do towel exercises while feeling like we’re having fun on a world trip! First, tie a single knot at one end of the towel.
When “shoulder” is called, bring the knot to your shoulder; when “foot” is called, try your best to kick it up with your foot—this is how we’ll do the exercise.
Start with the shoulder and foot cues to get used to the movements.
Once you’re comfortable, to turn it into a world-travel version, assign country or continent names to each shoulder and each foot, and move the towel knot to the designated place when it’s called.
For example, if you make your right shoulder “the UK,” then when “UK” is called, you bring the towel knot to your right shoulder.
This way, you can train your brain at the same time!
Leg exercises you can do while sitting (1–10)
Foot Vitality Exercises
Among older adults, many may find standing exercises difficult or feel unsteady on their feet and at risk of falling.
For those individuals, here are recommended leg exercises you can do while seated.
They’re easy to do even from a chair, which also makes them safer.
Moving your body even a little each day helps invigorate both mind and body, so try to keep up with the exercises steadily.