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Regular physical activity is one of the best ways to reduce the health risks that accompany growing older. However, many people fail to meet their daily movement needs. Here’s how you can embrace healthy aging by fitting exercise into your lifestyle and finding an activity you love.
How to Make Fitness a Habit and Fit It Into Your Lifestyle
A lack of time is the number one reason people give for not working out, but even the busiest older adults can hit their weekly quota with a little creativity. Try these ideas:
- Walk or bike daily tasks or change up your daily commute.
- Take active breaks using an app like Apple’s 7-Minute Workout
- Propose walking meetings or walk in the park when meeting friends.
- Invest in home equipment, like a treadmill you can walk on while watching your favourite tv programmes or a mini cycle beneath your work desk.
If you have the time to work out but lack motivation, try bringing a friend. You’ll have more fun, and it’s much harder to give in to your urge to binge Netflix when your BFF awaits you.
Why Staying Active as You Age Matters
Staying active as you age preserves your health, cutting your risk of catastrophic and chronic diseases. It also saves money. Weaker bones and muscles increase the fall risk for older adults.
Experts project that older adults will outnumber children by the year 2030. The financial cost of poor older adult health won’t only affect individual families but entire economies.
8 Ways to Stay Fit as You Grow Older
There are scores of ways to stay fit as you age.
1. Walk
Walking may be the most accessible form of exercise, requiring only a sturdy pair of shoes. A set of trekking poles or a walking stick helps with wobbly balance and can make you feel like an athlete — or a wizard.
2. Dance
If you have music, you can dance. Crank the tunes right in your living room, or take tango lessons and reignite the spark with your partner.
3. Group Fitness Classes
Group fitness classes for older adults are a breed apart. For example, many Silver Sneakers members form close friendships that extend beyond the gym.
4. Biking
Many older adults like biking, as the lack of impact goes easy on joints. If your area lacks safe bike routes, advocate for some — if you succeed, your legacy will last for generations.
5. Hiking
Hiking kicks walking up a notch for nature lovers. Work those trekking poles and carry a bell and bear spray where necessary.
6. Swimming and Aquacise
Swimming is ideal for aging adults with arthritis. The water supports a large percentage of your weight, making movement easier on joints.
7. Toning
Keep some light hand weights and resistance bands under your couch. Use them during commercial breaks to meet your weekly toning requirement.
8. Yoga
There’s a form of yoga for everybody, from gentle Yin to challenging Ashtanga. YouTube is a fabulous resource for free workouts you can preview before trying.
Staying Fit Is the Key to Healthy Aging
Physical activity is crucial to healthy aging. There’s a style of exercise for everyone and many ways to fit it into the busiest schedule. Get inspired and get moving!
