{"id":38846,"date":"2025-04-14T10:03:00","date_gmt":"2025-04-14T14:03:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/?p=38846"},"modified":"2026-04-21T14:33:17","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T18:33:17","slug":"7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking\/","title":{"rendered":"7 Fun Ways to Get Your Senior Residents Up and Walking"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"senior<\/p>\n

Recognize the observances throughout the year that celebrate exercise \u2013 like National Senior Health & Fitness Day in May, or Global Running Day in June \u2013 to encourage your senior residents to get up and moving. Here are seven fun activities to encourage your seniors to walk more.<\/p>\n

Scavenger Hunt<\/strong><\/p>\n

Pass out scavenger hunt photos<\/a>\u00a0for teams of residents to find as they walk. Use the indoor photos for when your residents walk your hallways and common areas looking for objects, and use the outdoor photos for when your residents walk your facility\u2019s grounds in search for the objects in nature.<\/p>\n

What Do You See That Is\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

To break up the monotony of a seated exercise class, pick a day to lead residents on a fun walk through the hallways to get their exercise. To keep residents engaged, play the game What Do You See That Is\u2026 To play, simply name a color, and encourage residents as they follow you to call out items that they see along the walk that are that color. To keep the game competitive, be sure to award a point for each correct answer.<\/p>\n

Hallway Track<\/strong><\/p>\n

Use streamers<\/a> to create an indoor track in the hallways and common areas of your facility for residents to walk. Award your participants with\u00a0track medals<\/a> to wear and deliver trophies<\/a> to those who are able to complete all the laps.<\/p>\n

Puzzle Stations<\/strong><\/p>\n

To encourage more walking, set up several jigsaw puzzle stations throughout your facility, and encourage residents to walk the halls during the day to go to each of the stations to work on the jigsaw puzzles.<\/p>\n

At each puzzle station, set out several jigsaw puzzles on tables for residents to stop by, sit, and work on. Use both small piece puzzles<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0large piece puzzles<\/a> at the puzzle stations.<\/p>\n

Walking Bags<\/strong><\/p>\n

Encourage residents to do more walking to show off their newly decorated\u00a0walking bag<\/a>\u00a0that they can decorate with markers, paint, and\u00a0adhesive gems<\/a>. In fact, host a walker bag-decorating contest and have your facility\u2019s Administrators judge the most interesting walking bag and award a fun prize.<\/p>\n

Carnival Games<\/strong><\/p>\n

Set up three to four fun carnival games throughout your facility and encourage residents to walk to each game to play. Set up fun carnival games, like ring toss<\/a>, can knock down<\/a>, and washer toss<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Color Match<\/strong><\/p>\n

Invite residents to match colors to items in nature with a fun color match game. To play, pass out a paint chip to each resident to use to find items in nature that match their paint chip card. Encourage residents to walk the back patio and the gardens to see how many items in nature they can identify that matches their color card.<\/p>\n

Find more ideas from Notjustbingo\u00a0on the S&S blog here<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

About Not Just Bingo:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n
\"senior<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Not Just Bingo<\/a>\u00a0is an online resource of fun, senior activity ideas for activity professionals of assisted living facilities. They have been providing fun activity ideas online since 2009, and continue to assist activity professionals across the country by creating meaningful and engaging activity ideas for their residents that go \u201cbeyond bingo.\u201d Not Just Bingo feels privileged to help activity directors better the living experiences of their residents while demonstrating that a senior\u2019s quality of life can actually improve when they move to a senior facility!<\/p>\n

Want even more ideas each month? Visit\u00a0www.notjustbingo.com<\/a>\u00a0for how-to activity ideas, monthly newsletters, and daily holiday ideas. You can also sign up for the\u00a0Notjustbingo Membership<\/a>\u00a0to receive specialized activity ideas to keep your residents and staff engaged, active, and having fun!<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Recognize the observances throughout the year that celebrate exercise \u2013 like National Senior Health & Fitness Day in May, or Global Running Day in June \u2013 to encourage your senior residents to get up and moving. Here are seven fun … Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":39089,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[457,3793,224],"tags":[495,463,398,326,314,471],"yoast_head":"\n7 Fun Ways to Get Your Senior Residents Up and Walking - S&S Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Recognize the observances throughout the year that celebrate exercis to encourage your senior residents to get up and moving.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"7 Fun Ways to Get Your Senior Residents Up and Walking - S&S Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Recognize the observances throughout the year that celebrate exercis to encourage your senior residents to get up and moving.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"S&S Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SSWorldwideCatalog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-04-14T14:03:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-21T18:33:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/senior-residents-walking.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"950\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"634\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@ssworldwide\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@ssworldwide\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"S&S Worldwide\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"S&S Blog\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking\/#primaryimage\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/senior-residents-walking.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/senior-residents-walking.jpg\",\"width\":950,\"height\":634,\"caption\":\"senior residents walking\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking\/#webpage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking\/\",\"name\":\"7 Fun Ways to Get Your Senior Residents Up and Walking - S&S Blog\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking\/#primaryimage\"},\"datePublished\":\"2025-04-14T14:03:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-21T18:33:17+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/12b4fa1eca646ce50f8cdbfdccb2f1dc\"},\"description\":\"Recognize the observances throughout the year that celebrate exercis to encourage your senior residents to get up and moving.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"7 Fun Ways to Get Your Senior Residents Up and Walking\"}]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/12b4fa1eca646ce50f8cdbfdccb2f1dc\",\"name\":\"S&S Worldwide\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/#personlogo\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/13fddae63d6f28c29294df0528274b24?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/13fddae63d6f28c29294df0528274b24?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"caption\":\"S&S Worldwide\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"7 Fun Ways to Get Your Senior Residents Up and Walking - S&S Blog","description":"Recognize the observances throughout the year that celebrate exercis to encourage your senior residents to get up and moving.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"7 Fun Ways to Get Your Senior Residents Up and Walking - S&S Blog","og_description":"Recognize the observances throughout the year that celebrate exercis to encourage your senior residents to get up and moving.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking\/","og_site_name":"S&S Blog","article_publisher":"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SSWorldwideCatalog","article_published_time":"2025-04-14T14:03:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-04-21T18:33:17+00:00","og_image":[{"width":950,"height":634,"url":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/senior-residents-walking.jpg","path":"\/var\/www\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/senior-residents-walking.jpg","size":"full","id":39089,"alt":"senior residents walking","pixels":602300,"type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@ssworldwide","twitter_site":"@ssworldwide","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"S&S Worldwide","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/","name":"S&S Blog","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking\/#primaryimage","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/senior-residents-walking.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/senior-residents-walking.jpg","width":950,"height":634,"caption":"senior residents walking"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking\/#webpage","url":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking\/","name":"7 Fun Ways to Get Your Senior Residents Up and Walking - S&S Blog","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking\/#primaryimage"},"datePublished":"2025-04-14T14:03:00+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-21T18:33:17+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/12b4fa1eca646ce50f8cdbfdccb2f1dc"},"description":"Recognize the observances throughout the year that celebrate exercis to encourage your senior residents to get up and moving.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/7-fun-ways-to-get-your-senior-residents-up-and-walking\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"7 Fun Ways to Get Your Senior Residents Up and Walking"}]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/12b4fa1eca646ce50f8cdbfdccb2f1dc","name":"S&S Worldwide","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/#personlogo","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/13fddae63d6f28c29294df0528274b24?s=96&d=blank&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/13fddae63d6f28c29294df0528274b24?s=96&d=blank&r=g","caption":"S&S Worldwide"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog"]}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/senior-residents-walking.jpg","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p5ZmKf-a6y","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38846"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38846"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38846\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":39090,"href":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38846\/revisions\/39090"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/39089"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38846"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38846"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38846"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}