4 Workouts Suitable For Seniors

Would you be surprised to hear that as people age, their level of activity, and frequency of exercise decreases? Actually, as much as 60% of people over the age of 50 report decreased exercise frequency, for one reason or the other, but at a time when it becomes much more important for healthy aging.

The number one reason people quit working out? Pain. This can be arthritic joint pain, or muscular, but one thing that is sure is the fact that this pain will only get worse the longer it is left unchecked.

This is where exercise comes in. Performed sensibly, (yes, we’re not advocating you work through an arthritic joint) working out can significantly improve your level of comfort, mobility, and health.

Interested to learn the 4 best workouts that seniors can perform, all the while being low impact and joint friendly? Then let’s jump into the fun!

Swimming

Swimming should be a universal exercise, owing in part to its ability to work the entire musculature of the body and being extremely low impact on the joints. Can’t swim? That doesn’t mean you can’t take advantage of other water sports.

Water aerobics are popular as well, and soothing to the joints, if anything. Try to find an aquatic center of community pool and get in some degree of activity three times weekly. Your body will thank you.

Walking

Is it any surprise that our most primitive mode of exercise is also one of the best? Low intensity walking is suitable for anyone, regardless of pre-existing health or joint conditions. Low intensity walking is also low impact, as the force of your feet hitting the floor or road is very subtle compared to jogging or running when the force is much higher. One of the major contributing factors to muscular and joint pain is inactivity in the first place, so a little walking is just about the simplest thing you can do.

Be sure to find appropriate, comfortable footwear before you start to make walking that much more comfortable. If you haven’t worked out in a while, a good idea is to start with a simple 5 minutes session, to get your muscle accustomed and anticipating your next session.

Then, your next session, go for 10 minutes if you can. If not, continue doing 5-minute sessions until you believe you are ready. Be sure to do light stretches after your session, to prevent extended sessions of muscle soreness, likely to break your motivation.

Yoga

Many people discount yoga as not being exercise, but nothing could be further from the truth.

In fact, apart from getting a caloric burn, yoga delivers benefits that standard exercise does not. Its numerous benefits for seniors include:

• Improved Flexibility is important, as seniors tend to lose balance as a result of muscle rigidity and atrophy.
• Improves Blood Pressure via relaxation of blood vessels
• Promotes Joint Health by improving blood flow to microvascular structures in bone and joint and stimulating collagen synthesis
• Helps Improve Mood via release of endorphins (feel good brain chemicals)

Since meditation is an important part of yoga as well, a greater sense of appreciation is also developed, making for enjoyable senior years.

Pilates

Though confused as a type of yoga by many, Pilates involves stricter resistance movements, makes use of specialized equipment, and seeks to strengthen the body. As such, it involves many static hold positions and resistance movements, but can greatly improve back pain and other muscular maladies associated with advancing age.

Core strength is at the heart of Pilates training, which translates well to maintaining movement functionality well into your golden years. Be sure to get in touch with a Pilates instructor, as it may be difficult to start on your own from scratch.