Active Aging Week

Active Aging Week® is a national observance organized by the International Council on Active Aging® to highlight the diverse opportunities available to older adults. This year, the weeklong observance was held Sunday, September 27 through Saturday, October 3, 2015. The theme this year was “Live Your Adventure,” and encouraged older adults and the organizations that serve them to focus on wellness.
At Springmoor, the Pathways Wellness Directors planned several events for the community in celebration of Active Aging Week®. The main events included a Preserving Memories Fair, Carnival Day, Annual Health & Wellness Fair, and Fitness Friday.
The week started with a kick-off event highlighting the eight dimensions of wellness: social, intellectual, physical, nutritional, spiritual, vocational, emotional, and environmental. At this event, Springmoor’s Medical Director, Dr. Wells Edmundson spoke, and encouraged the community to be active in their everyday lives. He also discussed the importance of the four components of fitness: aerobic, strength, balance, and flexibility. Afterward, eight residents shared their personal experience with the various dimensions of wellness while living at Springmoor. It was a great afternoon of encouragement, and reminded everyone that it’s possible to pursue whole person wellness, no matter our age or health condition.
The Preserving Memories Fair provided great resources to help residents recall, restore, and preserve the many adventures that they have experienced. Carnival Day was a great day of fun and games. The event started out with some games in the Wellness Center Pool that required the residents to use their brains as well as their bodies. They also had a little fun with a friendly game of water volleyball. The afternoon was filled with a plethora of big and small games, including corn hole, basketball, fast-pitch baseball challenge, ring toss, and many others.
The 9^th Annual Health & Wellness Fair took place in the beautiful Pathways Wellness Center. Residents and staff had the opportunity to explore numerous vendors that provided education and services, including balance assessments, blood pressure and blood glucose checks, bone density screenings, free massages, and more! A fitness challenge got everyone moving to see if we could beat the world cup stacking record of 1.4 seconds! While we may not have set a new world record, we certainly had a lot of fun trying. We also were able to give away some great prizes, including a variety of gift cards and an I-pad mini.
Fitness Friday was a fun day of fitness for all levels and abilities, with three different morning exercise classes focusing on the four components of fitness. The afternoon followed with fitness assessments and exercise equipment orientations.
The busy week finished with a visit from Cold Mountain author, Charles Frazier. Dr. James Clark, N.C. State University Professor of English Emeritus interviewed the famous author and the residents enjoyed the book signing that followed.
Although we celebrate Active Aging Week® only once a year, every week is an opportunity to stay active at Springmoor. It is our goal to use the national observance as a celebration for those who are doing their best to stay active, and to motivate or encourage others to discover their inner athlete.