Written By Alan Good
We have discussed the many ways we, as seniors, can move. Even if you are at home or in a hospital there are ways to move each day that will benefit your life and even aid—enhance—healing. Movement of any kind can help us with day-to-day activities, allowing for a fuller life. Here are some reasons to move.
Under various intensities, strength training actives are one of the best, as opposed to sitting around. Stronger muscles allow you to pick up things, lift objects, help someone else with a project that may be too heavy for one person. Working muscles against resistance with high effort, including bodyweight exercise, can bring changes to your strength within eight weeks. Counter push ups, sit-ups, squats are other examples.
Activities, like Aerobic activities, that typically make you sweat and breathe a bit harder are good. You can go from there to work up to aerobic activities that make you sweat and breathe the most and make it hard to talk. These kinds of exercises will give you endurance, and endurance means you can stick it out longer while shoveling snow or working up your garden.
As examples, standing, walking, wheeling, gardening, cooking, showering jogging, skating, downhill skiing, vacuuming, or brisk wheeling are great to get your heart and lungs working.
Running, soccer, hockey, cycling, wheelchair sports may be a bit harder, but the harder you go, that is, the more you “gently” stress your body, the more you will gain.
Exercises that challenge stability are great, especially for those over 65 years of age, but everyone can benefit. These activities can be completed while using very little energy and in a seated or reclined position. You can hold onto a wall, chair, or sit on the floor to benefit from some of these balancing sets. Yoga, tai-chi, standing on one leg, getting up and down from a chair without using arms, are some examples of balance exercises.
Overall, these activities will make you feel rested upon waking up each day as good quality sleep is a return on movement and balance exercises. More on sleep, keeping the same bedtimes and wake up times, even on weekends, helps with a good rest.
What are the reasons though as to why you should put in the effort? Well, have you wanted to pick up a grandchild but were too weak? Can’t bring in the groceries because the bags are heavy? How about being able to choose for yourself where and how long you will walk?
Just feeling good is a benefit, but wouldn’t that feeling greatly improve if you could just accomplish a little more? I’m not suggesting you run a marathon or climb a mountain—although some seniors have done that. Just start small and add to your routine each week. Of course, consult your doctor first if you have medical challenges.
Next up, is there more to life than physical exercise?
