Getting fit and staying fit is a common goal for many people. While this is important for overall health and wellbeing, older adults need to be careful about diet and exercise because of changes in the body that occur with age. For your safety, always remember to discuss changes in diet and exercise, including the following recommendations, with a health care provider.
Physical activity can help people of all ages, but may be especially helpful to older adults. It improves your mood and increases social interaction; it may help prevent, delay or improve conditions such as diabetes and heart disease; and it helps strengthen muscles and bones, which have a tendency to weaken as the body ages.
The National Institute on Aging (NIA) recommends the following:
- Stretch. Before you start any exercise and after you complete any exercise, you will want to stretch your muscles. This will loosen and warm your muscles and help prevent injury and cramping. It is also important to remember that even though you might not be thirsty during or after exercise, your body will need plenty of water, especially after exercising.
- 30 minutes. The NIA suggests that you should do something to increase your heart and breathing rate for at least 30 minutes most days of the week. The 30 minutes do not have to be all at once. You could do three ten-minute exercises. A good rule of thumb to see if you are doing enough is to try to talk during exercise. If you cannot talk at all, you are exercising too hard. If you can talk without any trouble, you are not exercising hard enough.
- Use your muscles. Every time you move a part of your body, you are using a muscle. When those muscles are not used they weaken. If your muscles get too weak, you may not be able to walk or even get up from a seated position. In addition, strong muscles help reinforce your bones, making it less likely that you will fall. Whatever exercise you do should include something that uses your muscles, whether you are walking laps or raking leaves in the front yard.
- Improve your balance. In addition to strengthening your muscles, it is also very important to strengthen your sense of balance. After all, many falls are caused by loss of balance. To do this, try standing on one foot, holding onto a chair for support if you are unable to stand alone. Also try standing from a seated position without using your hands or arms. Be very careful when trying these activities and have someone else present when you are doing them.
Your health care provider will be a key player in your exercise routine. Please remember to consult him or her before beginning any type of physical activity. Discuss with him or her how your personal health condition may be affected by exercise. Also, you will want to start slowly with any type of exercise routine. A good adage to remember is “start low and go slow.” Doing too much, too soon may seriously injure your body.
Some safety recommendations from the American College of Sports Medicine are:
- Do not hold your breath while straining.
- Use safety equipment to prevent injury. This may mean a helmet for bike riding or proper shoes for walking or running.
- Drink plenty of liquids unless specifically advised otherwise by your health care provider.
- Bend from the hips, not from the waist.
- Exercise may cause soreness or a little discomfort but should never cause pain.
The NIA publication Exercise & Physical Activity: Your Everyday Guide from the National Institute on Aging has information on exercise for older adults as well as suggestions and illustrations for exercises. You may access the publication at http://www.nia.nih.gov/HealthInformation/Publications/ExerciseGuide. You may view the information on-line, download it in Adobe PDF format or order print copies free of charge. Information from the NIA is also available in Spanish at http://www.nia.nih.gov/Espanol.
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