Finding the perfect space to call your own is a big victory when you’re searching for a senior living community offering independent living in Atlanta. Adequate storage, plenty of natural light, upgraded finishes that make your apartment inviting. These are all features to celebrate.
However, before you start imagining all the ways you’ll design and decorate your new apartment, remember that there’s more to a great senior living community than the private residences it offers. The social scene plays a vital role in your overall lifestyle, so once you find an apartment that fits, it’s important to explore the other ways living in a community will make your life richer.
Amenities and services are worth noting since they’ll have a significant influence on your lifestyle, but you’ll find even greater insight when you examine the social fabric of the community. A rich, vibrant social scene where residents are actively engaged speaks volumes about the quality of life you can expect to enjoy.
For example, the resident-led clubs, engaging programming and robust activities calendar at Canterbury Court, Atlanta’s premier senior living community, create a deeply engaging, connected and purpose-driven lifestyle for older adults. For older adults seeking an active senior lifestyle in Atlanta, it’s more than just a place to live; it’s a place to thrive.
Age Gracefully with an Active Lifestyle
For many seniors, the freedom from responsibilities and obligations is an important aspect of retirement — maybe even the part they look forward to most. In the early days of your retirement, you may welcome days spent doing a lot of nothing. No alarm to wake up to, no commute to navigate, meals on your own schedule. It’s a refreshing change.
Many retirees discover quickly that they enjoy adding a bit of structure and purpose back into their days. In fact, maintaining an active lifestyle can benefit you in numerous ways, from reducing your risk for certain diseases to extending your lifespan. There are also mental, emotional and cognitive advantages to staying active, and older adults who prioritize their body, mind and spirit in retirement tend to remain independent longer.
You won’t find a magic formula to determine how much time you should spend on activities and socializing, but it’s worthwhile to find a comfortable balance between the leisure time you spend in your private living space and the time you dedicate to participating in activities within the community.
If you’re a homebody at heart, ease into things. Start with a club or a class that interests you so it feels more like a treat. Also be sure to take advantage of resources within the community like wellness advisors who can offer recommendations that reflect your personality and lifestyle goals.
An Active Lifestyle Involves More Than Exercise
It’s no secret that physical activity is one of the keys to a healthy lifestyle, and it’s definitely an important one. But exercise is just one aspect of a well-rounded and active senior lifestyle. Filling your days with friendly encounters, opportunities to learn and meaningful interactions with the world around you all contribute to a rewarding retirement.
Make no mistake, the comprehensive wellness center at Canterbury Court is a busy place where residents can take advantage of numerous options to boost their physical activity, from senior-specific cardio and strength-training equipment to personal training and more than 40 fitness classes each week.
Physical wellness aside, nurturing a well-rounded lifestyle means focusing on strengthening other areas of your life as well:
Social connections
At first, you may not think your social life has much to do with an active lifestyle, but the reality is, social ties and active living go hand in hand. You may have fewer close friendships in this stage of life, but quality connections with even a few others can make a meaningful difference in your life.
Older adults’ risk for mental and emotional challenges increases as they navigate the changes that come with age. Loneliness can be a major factor in conditions like depression and anxiety, and the physical impact of conditions like anxiety can increase your risk of health-related problems.
Aligning yourself with a senior social community can offset your risk by minimizing feelings of loneliness, but it can also help in other important ways. For example, seniors with strong social ties tend to be more physically active because they’re out and about doing things with their friends. They also report having higher self-esteem, greater quality of life and stronger sense of belonging than those with limited social networks.
In other words, social connections support emotional well-being, while also promoting resilience and encouraging overall wellness.
Educational enrichment
Consistently engaging with others is a natural way to keep your communication and cognitive skills sharp, but humans are learners by nature, and as a retiree, you may find yourself craving new ways to fuel your brain. Lifelong learning is another potentially rewarding facet of an active lifestyle.
Pursuing new knowledge puts your brain to work, helping promote memory, problem- solving and other cognitive processes. You may not go back to the classroom (although you certainly could!), but learning in retirement can take many forms. And in many cases, those learning opportunities open doors for you to develop social ties with those who share your intellectual interests.
You might join a book club, attend seminars on topics that interest you, explore a new hobby or revisit one from your past. Keeping your brain active and engaged may not be as visible as other examples of active living, but its impact is no less important.
Purposeful activities
If you’re simply walking through the motions of living each day, you may find yourself feeling unfulfilled. However, pursuing an active lifestyle with intention and purpose ensures you feel more connected to your surroundings. It empowers you to create a new identity as a retiree that feels as gratifying as the previous roles you held in your family and career.
Rather than whiling away the day with idle pursuits, building structure and substance into your routine will help you maintain a sense of significance in the world. You may find purpose by taking action to fulfill a lifelong dream or tackling your bucket list. Your calling may be in volunteering and sharing your talents with others.
It may be something else entirely.
There’s no one way to bring greater purpose to your existence; rather, it’s a matter of active self-exploration to find your sense of purpose.
Active Living at Canterbury Court
Visiting Canterbury Court gives you a glimpse at what those who live within the community know: the residents are the community’s greatest assets. You’ll find inspiring, friendly people throughout this retirement community in Atlanta, and their fellowship makes it easy for new residents to settle in.
The vibrant energy residents bring manifests in countless ways, from the volunteer opportunities they champion to social gatherings where all are welcome. Residents come together to sing in a choir, while others lead spiritual study groups and educational endeavors.
You can see the residents’ rich and varied backgrounds reflected in the clubs for seniors, myriad activities and programs they bring to life, sharing their passion with their neighbors.
There’s Wayne James, whose love for woodworking and handy work keeps him busy in the Foxhole, a 1,000-square-foot shop on campus. It’s a spot where residents can continue pursuing their hobbies, but also where residents can rely on their neighbors for generous help repairing fixtures and furniture for their apartments.
Artist Ruth Rockwell keeps boxes of photographs from her travels that inspire her paintings; Willem Westerman has been building ships for more than 50 years and carried his craft with him to Canterbury Court. Haydee and Ernie Bundschuh enjoy a hand of cards and camaraderie just as much as a hand-held walk through the Legacy Gardens.
There truly is something for everyone — including you. Make plans to tour and start planning your active, engaging retirement so you add your own thread to the tapestry of this thriving community.