Active Seniors and Good Exercise Habits
Exercise for SeniorsIn spite of the number of anti-aging products, one cannot neglect the fact that aging is inevitable and everyone will go through this process at some point in their lives. This is living healthy not only through eating healthy but through exercise as well is very important.
As with the number of exercise routines available from Pilates to weight lifting, the number of exercises for seniors is vast. From swimming to stretching and Pilates to strengthening, there are several exercise alternatives that you can apply. However, you must first ensure that the exercise you are about to embark on suits your age and the trainer is knowledgeable about which exercises best suit your age group.
Importance of Exercise
There are tons of reasons why exercising is important to the body, especially for the aging body. There are recent studies stating an emphasis on exercise for the elderly. Nowadays, the society is currently inundated with advertisements on billboards, television, magazines and the Internet, and the multitude of other places that stress the benefits of exercising to the body.
There is no question that the benefits of exercise being conveyed by the media reach the children and young adults. However, it is important to provide focus and extend the message to the continuously increasing baby boomer population.
The importance of exercise is not limited to providing balance to the body. It is also important to maintain cardiovascular health. Exercise also provides an improved sense of well-being and control over one’s life.
Almost everyone knows that aging is related to dementia. However with exercise, there is an evident decrease in the risk of dementia and the natural dulling of the mind or senility commonly experienced by elders.
Effects of Exercise to the Aging Body
The effects and benefits of exercise to the body is vast. Firstly, as a person grows older, there is an evident loss of muscle quality and strength in the body. Some scientists even claim that muscle mass declines about 4 percent each decade from the age of 25 to 50. As such, exercise is important to help maintain stability in your muscle.
Endurance exercises are also important because similar to the loss of muscle to the body, there is also a loss of aerobic fitness. It is believed that loss of aerobic fitness contributes to the reduction of mobility later in life. And so, if you want to continue doing to ADLs or activities of daily living yourself and live independently, exercise can help you achieve that goal.
As with muscles and oxygen intake in the body, the joints can also tend to lose their flexibility as a person ages. If not taken care of, this can lead to stiffness of the joints and a decrease in the range of motion and probably risk of further injuries.
Exercise can also improve and maintain your balance. It is estimated that there are 300,000 patients suffering from broken hips each year. Falling is sometimes that main cause of injury to seniors. However, this can be avoided through balance training to help you maintain your independence and mobility.
Body Strength for Seniors
One exercise routine that you can do is strength training. This kind of exercise has incredible benefits, especially for seniors. However, there may be some restrictions to this exercise if you are experiencing high blood pressure, osteoporosis or arthritis.
You can start by lifting weights for all the muscle groups at least two days each week; you are not required to do this consecutively. Begin with light weights, such as dumbbells but you can always opt for machines or resistance bands. Do the exercise at least for one set of ten to fifteen repetitions. You must also use enough resistance that you can only do in a 15-minute routine.
Body Stretch for Seniors
Another great exercise that you can delve into is stretching. However, like with any forms of exercise, it is important to consult your doctor first and see that you are allowed to perform the routine.
There are several kinds of stretching. There is the hamstring stretch that you can do while sitting on a chair and stretching one leg out on another chair. There is also the torso stretch, which you can perform while standing and clasping your hands straight up overhead.
