Bored of the bingo hall? Parting ways with puzzles? Finding exciting new hobbies for the older generation to partake in, whether yourself or your loved ones, can sometimes be challenging. How do you get the right balance of exercise and engagement whilst ensuring interest is piqued? Metal detecting, whilst being a hobby enjoyed by all the family, is an excellent activity for senior members of society to get involved in. Below, we explore why getting out with a detector can truly enrich the lives of the elderly.
1. It’s marvelous for the mind
If you’re often looking to get involved in activities that will keep your mind engaged through learning new things and overcoming fresh challenges, metal detecting can provide you with just that! Getting to grips with the tools and learning all about the hobby will be interesting, engaging and fun too. The activity requires problem solving, patience and perseverance - a brilliant brain workout that will prove to be rewarding.
2. It makes for excellent exercise
Not only is metal detecting mentally engaging, but it also gets you up on your feet. The slow pace, wherever you choose to do it, provides essential low impact exercise for senior citizens. If you are hoping to get in a short amount of exercise daily, then taking along a metal detector can make that effort a lot more inviting, breaking up the monotony of the same routine everyday. There is no time limit, no expectations and detecting can be done at your own pace.
3. It gets you out in nature
Whilst getting up and about in the great outdoors is excellent for us physically, being out in nature is also good for your mental and emotional wellbeing. Even just viewing scenes of nature has been proven to reduce anger, stress and fear whilst increasing pleasant feelings - and there is nothing better than being out the real thing. Being exposed to nature can reduce blood pressure, heart rate, muscle tension and the production of stress hormones. This makes getting out there an important thing to add to all of our lives, and metal detecting in it is just one exciting way to do this.
4. It encourages super social interaction
Metal detecting is only a solitary activity if you want it to be. In fact, partaking in the hobby as part of a group can really add to the enjoyment. For many elderly people, loneliness can often become a sad reality, so any opportunity to interact with others and even make new friends will be welcomed with open arms. As the hobby is also very appealing to kids, it provides the chance to spend quality time with your grandchildren, and little ones will love having the chance to share treasure hunting adventures with their grandparents.
5. You can learn more locally
If you’ve lived in the same area for a long time, you probably feel like there is nothing new to see and little left to discover. Equipped with a metal detector, however, there could be many more treasures for you to discover. Aside from the inevitable rush of coins that will set off your sensor, there may just be some little local gems just waiting to be discovered. These could tell more about the area you are living in and will prove to be wonderful discoveries for veteran historians.
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6. You can start a new adventure
“Getting older is an adventure, not a problem.” This quote from American writer Betty Friedan perfectly sums up why we believe metal detecting is a great hobby for seniors. It provides adventure: gets us out into nature and engages our brains and bodies too. So next time you’re looking for your next old timer activity - why not consider metal detecting?