By 2021 more than one million people in the UK will be diagnosed with dementia.

Our abilities, such as conceptual reasoning, memory, and processing speed will decline gradually over time. I, for one, am not prepared to let this happen to me or my loved ones without a fight! Studies increasingly show that regular mental and physical exercise can help delay the onset of dementia as we age.

So the fact that more than a third of 60-70-year-olds are now dangerously overweight, with the statistics for obesity in adults not getting much better, I cannot understand why there isn’t more awareness being raised – especially about the positive relationship between outdoor activity and getting healthier.

There is potential for long-lasting positive effects regarding thinking and reasoning in older adults, so surely a little bit of effort and getting off the sofa now to give you a longer, healthier and happier older age is worth it.

For example, dementia centre research has shown the health of people with dementia who spent as little as 10 to 15 minutes of activity a day outside improved significantly. Walks outside, ‘green’ walks, reduce stress levels and increase people’s self-esteem, allowing for activity and sociability, as well as contact with nature.

Getting more active should be about more than just exercising the body!

So what can we suggest, maybe to the older members of my family? Yes, maybe bowls and walking or jogging groups or joining the gym. But why would I encourage wasting money on an expensive gym membership or repetitively jogging the same paths when the sport of orienteering perfectly both combines physical and mental stimulation and could be the perfect answer?

Orienteering involves the use of a map to follow a route by walking or jogging. You have to read a map and reach all the ‘control points’, which can often involve a cognitive activity, maybe answering a question or writing a number/letter. This will also positively help to keep minds sharp and alert into old age.

Orienteering is not just about using a compass and getting lost in forests either – there are friendly orienteering clubs and more than 400 permanent orienteering courses in Great Britain, many in town and country parks.

With permanent orienteering courses you can get outside and go orienteering at a time and place that suits you. Courses offer a huge range of variety, from urban courses in city centres to rural routes through beautiful scenery. They are on your doorstep or further afield, helping you to discover new places.

Maybe I am prejudiced as I work for British Orienteering – the governing body of the sport. At British Orienteering we want more people to have a go at orienteering.

We are conscious that often people think of orienteering like a really tough Duke of Edinburgh camping experience. But it so flexible and offers the obvious development of individual skills in navigating, problem solving to locate points and is a fantastic way to get active in the outdoors and get healthier.

So next time your Sat Nav takes you the wrong way and you are ask yourself is it left or right at these traffic lights, or you are lost on a walk or worried that you don’t do enough exercise as you should but don’t want to do a ‘sport’ in the traditional sense - then why not think of orienteering and decide to give it a try?

You don’t need to use a compass, understand a map or be fit to try it – just a sense of fun and adventure and to see the benefits it could offer both now and into older age!

www.britishorienteering.org.uk or contact Natalie Weir nweir@britishorienteering.org.uk Tel: 01629 734042 or Mob: 07891091662