[For Seniors] Fun Brain Training! Lively Mind Exercises
Activities like games and brain training exercises conducted in senior facilities—often called “mental workouts”—are said to help prevent dementia or slow its progression.
So this time, we’re introducing “mental workouts for seniors”!
Mental workouts not only provide a sense of accomplishment when a problem is solved and activate brain functions, but they also play an important role in creating opportunities for communication with other seniors.
They are also recommended as a way to relieve stress for seniors who may fall into repetitive daily routines.
By adjusting the difficulty level to suit each senior’s condition and adding creative touches to make the activities easier to engage with, you can further increase their sense of satisfaction.
Try incorporating them into your recreation time or daily routine.
- [For Seniors] Fun and Engaging Brain-Training Recreation
- [For Seniors] Guaranteed to Liven Things Up! A Collection of Brain Training Activities That Will Spark Laughter
- [For Seniors] A Brain-Training, Crowd-Pleasing Word Search Game
- [Brain Training for Seniors] Recommended Hand-Play Recreation for Dementia Prevention
- [For Seniors] Brain Training Recommended for Dementia Prevention
- Fun Brain Training! Memory Games for Seniors
- [For Seniors] Brain-Training Recreation Using a Whiteboard
- Simple games for preventing and improving dementia
- [For Seniors] Find daily brain training. Today’s recommended brain workout.
- [For seniors] Fun brain training! Let’s get excited with the “Aru-Nashi” quiz
- Recreation Activities Effective for Long-Term Care Prevention for Seniors
- Hand games that liven things up for seniors—also great brain training
- [For Seniors] Enjoyable Brain Training! Finger Exercises That Help Prevent Dementia
[For Seniors] Fun Brain Training! Exciting Mental Exercises (121–130)
Cognicise with A I U E O

Sit in a chair and practice vocalizing the Japanese vowels while marching your feet.
We’ll go from the A-row to the NA-row, and we’ll add movements besides foot marching.
For example, raise one finger for “u, ku, su, tsu, nu,” and add a handclap for “o, ko, so, to, no.” As you get used to it, try increasing the pace of the exercise or adding different movements.
The key is to gradually introduce movements to suit older adults.
Applying a slight physical challenge can increase effectiveness, but it’s important to keep it within a comfortable range for seniors.
Please try adding your own variations and give it a go.
Finger exercise with rock-paper-scissors (gu-choki-pa)

The Rock-Paper-Scissors exercise is highly recommended for preventing dementia in older adults.
Finger exercises are something we do casually, but many people may not realize that they’re directly connected to the brain.
By moving your fingertips a lot, you can stimulate and activate the brain.
The Rock-Paper-Scissors routine introduced here includes plenty of fun variations, so it’s likely to get some laughs too.
Exercising while having fun is great for building a healthy body.
Let’s laugh from the belly and aim to relieve stress.
In conclusion
We’ve introduced some easy brain teasers you can enjoy in everyday life.
From nostalgic topics and calculation problems to rock-paper-scissors, place-name hunts, and picture shiritori, there’s plenty to get everyone excited together.
While spending time that brings smiles to everyone’s faces, it also helps activate the brain, so be sure to incorporate these into your daily routine.



