Exercise for People Over 60 Years
Doing exercise is very beneficial for people of all ages. These benefits include a healthy heart, strong bones, and improved flexibility. However, exercise offers a few additional benefits for people who are above 60 years old.
When people enter their forties, they tend to lose about 3–5% of their muscle mass and strength. They don’t get involved in physical activities or workouts for several reasons and take their health for granted without realizing the effects it could have on them.
Muscles are essential contributors to an individual’s bone strength and body balance. Weak muscles can compromise the strongness of the bones.
Key Benefits of Exercise for Over 60’s
There are many crucial benefits of doing exercise, especially exercise for over 60’s is considered very beneficial. For a clear understanding and proper knowledge, some of these are explained down below.
· Improved Function and Healing
Importantly, exercise for over 60’s ensure for them is faster healing of a wound. Regular training provides a healthy and strong body and gives you the strength to fight off infections. This also assures speedy recovery.
· Prevention of Chronic Diseases or Conditions
Various researches prove that the fraction of people (above 60) who exercise regularly will be less likely to catch chronic diseases. These diseases include heart diseases, cancer, diabetes, and strokes, etc.
· Increased Balance and Better Stability
With growing age, your leg muscles and bones get weaker. When individuals cross the age of 60, their bones and muscles get so weak that they face difficulties in walking. Moreover, they also tend to lose balance more often, leading to frequent falls and more injuries.
Regular exercise can help in improving muscle condition and functional balance. This will indeed reduce or even, in some cases, eliminate the injuries due to falls.
· Increased Expectancy and Improved Quality of Life
Many different studies show that the benefits of exercise are not only limited to the physical conditions of an individual. Regular exercise also proves to be psychologically beneficial in several ways.
It eliminates the symptoms of sadness and makes the person feel upbeat and happier. The increased mobility coming from the act of regular exercise also helps individuals maintain their independence.
· Social Engagement
Exercise for over 60’s can be a fun social event for elders if they join a walking group or fitness classes. Not only does it ensure the building of strong social ties, but it also adds a sense of objective.
What Workout Plan Should an Individual Above 60 Follow?
A diverse number of men and women older than 60 want to build up or improve their physical condition but are unable to do so. They are unable to improve their muscle strength properly because of different reasons. These include a lack of proper guidance and knowledge. In this article, we will provide you with an appropriate plan of workout that can be followed for exercise for over 60's.
If you’re someone suffering from any disease, it is advised to consult a health professional who knows your medical history. These individuals are only advised to go for exercise if their physician allows them to do so. After the green signal, the following workout plans and tips could be followed to improve the physical condition.
· Cardiovascular Activity
Before beginning the actual workout session, it is advised to do a low-intensity cardio workout as a warmup. This not only improves flexibility but also reduces the threat of muscle strain.
However, going beyond your ability to stretch may have adverse effects on the muscles. Some of the recommended stretches include toe touch, seated floor twist, tricep stretch, spinal stretch, and standing bicep stretch.
There are no limits to cardiovascular activity, but the options could be changed to prevent being bored. A list of some of these options is provided down below:
o Walking
o Jogging
o Aerobics
o Biking
o Rowing Machine
o Swimming
When carried out with friends or family, these activities can turn out to be pretty entertaining.
· Weight Training
It would be best if you performed slight stretching before the start of weight training. This will warm up the muscles and allow comfortable movement of the joints and muscles, hence avoiding injuries.
Ideally, it is recommended that weight training should be performed twice per week. The training sessions should range between 20 and 45 mins. In addition to that, the same level of intensity is advised to be sought later.
Muscle specialization and free weights are not necessary for people above the age of 60. Each muscle group, including Arms, Shoulders, Back, Legs, Chest, and Abdomen, should be kept in focus while exercising. The following two-day plan is advised for these people.
· Day 1
o 8–10 reps of Good mornings
o 8–10 reps of Dumbell Squats
o 8–10 reps of Cable Curl
o 8–10 reps of Triceps Pushdown
o 8–10 reps of Dumbell Shoulder Shrugs
o 8–10 reps of Chest Press
o 8–10 reps of Leg Extensions
o 8–10 reps of Overhead Machine Press
· Day 2
o 8–15 reps of Pushups
o 8–10 reps of Dumbell Lunges
o 8–10 reps of Lat Pulldowns
o 8–10 reps of Hyperextensions
o 8–10 reps of Seated Row
o 8–10 reps of Abdominal Crunch Machine
o 8–10 reps of Incline Chest Press
o 8–10 reps of Leg Press
Two sets are to be performed in each of the exercises provided in the two-day workout plan above. However, to avoid being overly exhausted, performing weight training on consecutive days is not recommended. As for cardiovascular exercise, it can be performed every day to warm up your muscles.
Conclusion
Exercise for over 60’s can prove very beneficial for these people. Hence, it should be made a part of daily routine. With a growing population, exercise has proven to prevent diseases and keep individuals healthy and strong. However, we sincerely hope that our article helps you and guides you appropriately.
