Senior Citizens Too Old To Exercise?
Just Make Sure You Undertake Safe Exercise
If you do consider endurance sports! Never too late!
Complete FitOldDog’s Sport Benefit-Risk Analysis
Come on! Get out here and do something. I had a lovely run in the rain today – wouldn’t have missed it for the world. Starting is the hardest part – and after you get to eat!
Hi folks, welcome to my thoughts!
For an enjoyable old age, or to weight the dice in your favor at least, stay active in mind and body.
This is especially important for senior citizens and major surgery recovery!
MRI images of thigh region to show effect of exercise on muscle mass. These images say it all when it comes to the benefits of exercise as you age. If you don’t work out, your muscles will turn to fat and your bones will wither to fragile, porous sticks.
From time to time, I think back on my long and enjoyable journey to completing my first full Ironman race in my early 60s – inspired by my youngest son, I hasten to add. I also have fond memories of qualifying for the Boston Marathon at age 66 – and I’m no runner, believe you me. Then I reflect on the adjacent image, and how many of my peers are faring – they seem to be aging before my eyes. One look at these remarkable MRI scans explains it all.
Study them carefully, and then look inside yourself with your ‘inner eye’ and think to yourself, “which one do I want to be when I hit my 70s?”
I am still amazed by this image, even the bone (femur) on the inactive person has wasted away – yes, withered is the word that describes it. I thank my lucky stars that I enjoy training, and eventually became interested in endurance sports.
Endurance sports are perfect for the older athlete – the family has grown, your career is fairly mature if all went well, and you are better at balancing family activities with other interests – endurance sports take time. The advantage is that you will smile more and have more energy for the family when you come in from a long workout. You also have less risk of injuries as you get to avoid those dangerous intensity workouts to a large extent.
Come on! Give it a try. If this old fart can do it, surely you can. I bet you can! You could start by following my aortic surgery recovery workouts on this blog, which go nice and easy (right now!).
Oh! Yes! Consider a few Feldenkrais sessions before you start; body awareness training will improve your chances of injury-free exercise.
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Happy trails!
-k @FitOldDog
Very interesting images. Absolutely exercise and ‘movement’ are key to us older people. I have a dear, dear friend who refuses to do anything for various shadowy pseudo-ill health reasons. Consequently, this person is having problems with basic locomotion.