In Campbell County, Kentucky, approximately 1,600 individuals aged 65 and older are living with Alzheimer's disease, representing about 10.1% of the county's senior population. Statewide, around 80,500 seniors are affected by Alzheimer’s.  Both physical and mental exercise play a significant role in the prevention and management of Alzheimer’s disease.  

To address this disease, the Campbell County Extension Service taught Exercise for Your Body and Brain to twenty individuals. Most of the individuals attending were 65 years and older.  The seven-week series utilized curricula from the University of Illinois Extension Wits Workout and the Arthritis Exercise Program.   The Wits Workout promotes brain health and social interaction among older adults, providing structured and engaging activities that support cognitive well-being. During the sessions, participants learned and discussed brain-health topics from the Wits Workout (memory recall, food and nutrition, sleep, physical activity, social engagement,) and completed several challenging written and verbal puzzles. Their discussions lead to them building connections with each other and developing new friendships. Each class also included physical activity by participating in exercises from the Arthritis Foundation. 

            The following end of the series evaluations showed the following after attending the Exercise for Your Body and Brain series:

1. 89% pay closer attention and stay focused to remember better. 
2. 89% have become more physical activity in their lives.
3. 78% challenged themselves by doing something new or intellectually stimulating.
4. 78% gained friendships, as they’ve been able to socialize with others.
5. 72% have used strategies to help them remember things in their daily lives.
6. 72% have better range of motion with their joints.

One participant said, “I have worked on the puzzles in the handout booklet at home daily and have done the exercise workouts with the bands.”  Another said, “I have enjoyed getting out of the house in the winter and interacting with others.”