Aging is natural and beautiful. It shows the life you’ve lived and catalogs everything you’ve experienced. But as people get older, they sometimes feel they’ve learned everything and should settle down to simply observe life’s sweetness. Your brain says otherwise.
When you stop your brain from actively learning, you might find your memory and physical fitness aren’t what they used to be. Here’s how a brain fitness program like Ageless Grace® can train your brain for memory strength, boost your wellness, and improve your quality of life.
Understanding Ageless Grace and Neuroplasticity
Ageless Grace is a series of seated brain training exercises that use movement and physical exercise to activate your brain’s neural pathways. Developed by Denise Medved, Ageless Grace is designed for anyone — including older adults — interested in preventive and supportive brain stimulation. What’s unique about this program? Apart from the fun exercise names — more on those soon — you can do each exercise while seated in your chair.
This brain fitness training program uses 21 body and brain exercises in different combinations, firing up the neurons and strengthening your muscles, joints, and other body parts.
The 21 Exercises for Ageless Grace
Let’s look at each exercise in detail:
- Juicy Joints: moving your joints in different directions. You might move the joints on one side of the body and then the other or use mirrored movements.
- Spelling B: using your body parts to spell words. You could move your knee or elbow to form the word or use your body to create different letters.
- Try Chi: a variation of tai chi that uses slow movements to build strength and stability, improving balance and body function.
- Dive In: for upper body strength that engages the brain. Here, you move your body to mimic paddling, swim strokes, and other pool-based movements.
- Front-Row Orchestra: when you mimic playing musical instruments to practice “multi-skilling.”
- Zoology: when you use systemic body movements to move like another animal.
- Spaghetti Spine: building flexibility by moving your spine, joints, and muscles.
- Balancing Act: leg and head movements for better balance, focusing on your center of gravity.
- Gentle Geometry: stimulates neuroplasticity by moving your body in geometric patterns, such as squares with one knee and circles with your elbow.
- Saving Face: moving your facial muscles in fun ways to release tension.
- Yo Baby: different yoga-like stretches that focus on flexibility and movement. You use modified stretches from a seated position.
- Power Tools: physical activity that mimics using the power tools you push, pull, or grab. You focus on squeezing muscles to improve bone density.
- Grab Bag: using your hands to grab imaginary items and improve dexterity.
- Rockin’ Rockettes: step movements to train the hips and lower limbs.
- Body Math: uses body movements to boost brain speeds as you respond, react, and recover from surprise. Common techniques might include touching your nose or clapping your hands at different intervals.
- Team Fit: mimicking sports actions to boost your coordination and muscle mass.
- Dance Party: personal expression of dancing to music, whether moving your whole body or one part at a time.
- Express Yourself: uses the hands, arms, and shoulders in fun, spontaneous movements.
- Breathe Out Loud: chanting, singing, and other vocalizations to help bring oxygen into your cells and brain.
- Shake It Up, Baby: shaking different parts of your body to strengthen the myofascial tissue surrounding your muscles.
- Get Down, Get Up: alternately raising your arms and reaching down to the ground, strengthening your heart muscle.
Neuroplasticity and Your Brain
Now, what’s neuroplasticity? Essentially, this term means that your brain is forever adaptable. Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to change its form and function when enough physical movement stimulates it. In other words, by moving your body and teaching your brain something new, you can boost your physical fitness and mental health.
Neuroplasticity also highlights the five functions of the brain. These brain functions are:
- Strategic planning
- Memory and recall
- Analytical thinking
- Creativity and imagination
- Kinesthetic learning
Even though most brain development finishes by your early 20s, your brain can still grow new pathways and learn new things. Ageless Grace neuroplasticity exercises stimulate these functions, engaging natural neuroplasticity and increasing processing speed and mental skills.
5 Benefits of Ageless Grace for Body and Brain Health
Neuroplastic fitness, which includes child’s play, can be one of the best forms of learning and has health benefits. It’s time to invite the fun of kinesthetic learning back into your life through Ageless Grace exercises. Here are five benefits of training your mind.
1. Prevents Memory Loss and Cognitive Decline
Stimulating your brain cells through exercises like Spelling B, Gentle Geometry, and Breathe Out Loud helps keep your memory and recall sharp. Whether spelling different words in uncommon ways or using your cognitive functions to act out shapes or sing lyrics, you can strengthen your brain health using neuroplasticity training.
2. Fosters Strategic Planning and Analytical Thinking
Your brain also loves to organize tasks and create logical solutions. That’s where exercise tools like Body Math and Front-Row Orchestra come in, testing you to keep track of timing and know when to take action.
3. Boosts Creativity and Imagination
Working on seated exercises requires more creative thinking. So do activities that play games with your brain. From Zoology, where you pretend to be different animals, to Power Tools, where you act out using hand-based gardening or construction tools, Ageless Grace exercises get your imagination fired up and inspire plenty of right-brain activity.
4. Improves the Learning Process Through Kinesthetic Learning
All 21 exercise tools use body movement, but certain ones — like Team Fit, Body Math, and Gentle Geometry — bring increased learning. When you learn by doing, you’re firing up your brain regions and helping them grow neural pathways — exactly what neuroplasticity describes.
5. Provides Regular Exercises That Anyone Can Perform
Although an Ageless Grace activity is excellent brain fitness for seniors, it’s universally fun yet simple enough for anyone to do. You can enjoy regular exercise with simple movements like Try Chi, Dance Party, and Yo Baby, along with many others. The seated position suits those with mobility or balance issues, but it’s also a less conspicuous way to exercise your brain and body in more public places — like the office.
What To Look for in an Ageless Grace Coach?
You’re eager to try Ageless Grace, but what should you look for in the best coach? Patience, encouragement, creativity, and an outgoing nature are essential for success. At Plentiful, you can book inspirational Ageless Grace sessions with Yvette Gorman-Holmes from Greatness in Action Wellness Coaching and Consulting. Each session is held online and lasts for 30 minutes as Yvette takes you through a curated selection of the 21 exercise tools.
Improve Your Mental and Physical Health With Plentiful
Wellness is around the corner when you get in on the fun of the Ageless Grace exercise program on Plentiful. Do your body and brain a favor and check out our other fitness sessions!
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