Older Adults
Supporting Older Adults in embracing health and well-being
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Well-Being For Older Adults
Building Health and Well-being
As older adults, our sense of health and well-being has changed and evolved through different life stages, responsibilities, and experiences. Balancing, family, relationships, new opportunities, limitations and transitions influences health through both joyful and challenging moments. So, when caring for health and well-being in later years, finding your focus is important. PowerUp is here to make it easier to build on your experiences and explore your priorities for health and well-being, with ideas and resources to support you along the way.
Why it matters
There is no question that taking care of our health and well-being is key to helping us thrive throughout our lives. Building or rebuilding health sometimes also means sorting through our past experiences and a constant stream of health messages, from headlines to the latest trends. Mixed guidance around nutrition, fitness, and well-being can make it hard to know what to trust and what fits your lifestyle at this stage.
PowerUp is here to help you get started on your own journey, right where you’re at. Start small and focus on one or two realistic areas of interest, then take time to plan and practice some changes. Pay attention to what feels good and sustainable, then build from there, one step at a time.
Ways to Support well-being
There are meaningful ways to support health and well-being by building supportive lifestyle practices around food, movement, rest and connection into everyday life.
What do healthy eating patterns look like? Healthy patterns include a focus on variety, plenty of colorful plants, simple whole foods, protein, hydration, and regular eating patterns that fit your life and preferences.
Staying nourished everyday means:
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Variety — including many different foods to get plentiful nutrients, support balanced nutrition and keep meals interesting
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Plenty of plants —filling your plate with colorful fruits, vegetables, beans/legumes to boost nutrients, fiber and phytonutrients
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Protein — including yogurt, edamame/beans, cheese, milk, fish, nuts/seeds throughout the day at meals and snacks for long-lasting energy
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Simple, whole foods — finding ways to include more foods in their natural form or with just a few ingredients, while balancing convenience and what’s available
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Hydration — drinking water throughout the day to support energy and overall body and brain function. Aim for 8 cups, adjusting for activity
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Regular eating patterns — aiming for eating 3–5 times per day for energy and overall well-being, and don’t skip meals
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Supportive environments — creating a calm and supportive eating environment that supports healthy choices
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Lifelong movement and activity support both physical and mental well-being. Stretching, strengthening and staying active, whether big or small, all movement counts. This means finding a combination of: Lifelong movement and activity support both physical and mental well-being. Moving more, stretching, strengthening and mindful movement all counts. Start exploring each of these ways to build your health through movement:
Daily activity
Finding ways to move throughout the day can boost energy, improve sleep, mood and overall well-being. Being active is key to improving heart health, circulation, and regularity. This can be walking, dancing, cycling, swimming or anything you enjoy. Start slowly if you’ve been inactive for a while. Even shorter sessions of 5–10 minutes can add up over time.
Aim for 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity each week. What matters most is while finding a rhythm that works for you.
Strength
Muscle-strengthening activities 2–3 times per week are key to build and maintain strength, make daily activities easier, and support overall health. This can include bodyweight exercises (like push-ups, squats, Pilates), or using resistance bands, a weighted vest or hand weights.
Starting later in life is actually powerful. For example, muscle-strengthening activities are especially important for women during perimenopause and menopause, helping support bone health and reducing muscle loss.
Stretching and balance
Gentle stretching and balance activities several times per week can help improve flexibility, prevent injury, reduce stress, and simply feel good. This might include stretching routines, gentle yoga, gardening, or even walking on varied terrain.
Mindful movement
Intentional movement, like walking, stretching, yoga, dancing, or any movement that feels good can help calm your mind and be present. It supports both physical and mental well-being. Mindful movement can be especially helpful during times of stress or when things feel overwhelming.
Think about a time when a small moment of connection made a difference for you. Maybe someone checked in, sent a card, asked a question that felt meaningful, listened or showed they cared. How did it make you feel?
Humans are wired for connection and belonging. Feeling seen, heard and supported helps us navigate through life. Our relationships and sense of belonging shape how we feel, cope and thrive. Spending time with friends, family and community strengthens social bonds and support networks. Experiencing grief and loss is a part of life, especially in later years, and feeling connected and supported is important when coping with loss. Connection is core to our health and contributes to a greater sense of self, belonging and overall well-being.
Maintaining, deepening or developing meaningful relationships can happen in many ways. Explore opportunities and join activities or roles that feel meaningful, provide direction and motivation. Volunteering, learning something new with others or joining an interest or support group creates shared experiences. Spending time with people who inspire, support, and encourage you makes a big difference in how you feel, and your overall health.
Sometimes it takes a little courage to get started building connections, but it can begin with small moments of reaching out, which might look like:
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Noticing: Seeing and acknowledging someone
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Asking: Starting with a simple, genuine question
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Listening: Being present and curious
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Supporting: Being encouraging, offering care
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Rest and reset are practices of creating space. Taking moments to slow down helps restore energy and reconnect with what we need. In a world that is moving fast, these pauses are essential for sustaining both mental clarity and physical well-being.
For older adults, rest doesn’t always happen automatically. It requires intention. Building small, consistent moments throughout the day can support focus, energy, emotional regulation and long-term health.
Indent:
Did you know? Consistent waking time is more important than bedtime. Most adults benefit from at least 7 hours of restful sleep a day.
This can look like setting up a wind-down routine at the end of the day, setting boundaries around using screens, and finding a consistent sleep schedule that works for you. Spending time in nature or natural settings, whether walking through a park, sitting near water or simply noticing fresh air and sunlight—can offer powerful restorative benefits, helping to reduce stress and improve mood.
Rest can also come through connection and purpose. Engaging in creative activities, or giving back through small acts of volunteerism, can gently shift attention outward and support a sense of balance and fulfillment.
Sometimes, it’s as simple as pausing to breathe, noticing tension, or asking “What do I need in this moment?” It might also mean grounding yourself through gratitude, meditation, prayer or other mindfulness practices that strengthen awareness and help you stay present.
Over time, these small moments of rest and resets help calm the body and mind and create a steadier, more balanced way of moving through daily life.
We welcome your ideas for PowerUp
As PowerUp continues to grow, expand and evolve, we also want to hear from you! Take a moment and tell us a little about what kind of resources you would appreciate from PowerUp by taking a very quick survey!