Staying fit is a difficult enough endeavor at any age. It is a constant journey. For the elderly, the customary problems are often magnified by an immobility, which is in part a by-product of retirement, but also a reaction to the body’s natural decline. According to the National Institute on Aging, loss of strength, elasticity, and other normal bodily attributes need not be unavoidable.
Obesity appears to be on the rise within our aging community. For both biochemical and social reasons, a certain degree of weight increase is to be expected. Sedentary habits, which often arise among retirees, enable these natural gains in the resistance to frequently curative forms of exercise.
The cycle is indeed vicious. A once potent desire to move has been adversely affected by physiological changes, complicated by an often-unacknowledged feeling of uselessness, resulting in a malaise, which feeds the inactivity.
The slower metabolism associated with seniors translates into diminished expenditure of calories consumed; daily requirements decrease while appetites do not. Adults over 70 experience as much as a 15% loss of reaction time due to reduced neurological efficiency.
As early as age 30, cardiovascular functions begin to deteriorate by approximately 0.5% annually, and muscle mass at an estimated 1%. Such declines accelerate after 50 but slow down in the seventies. They are neither inevitable nor even, necessarily, irreversible. Regular exercise modifies the aging process to reduce the likelihood of disabilities or certain chronic ailments such as coronary artery disease.
Osteoporosis, that much too common malady among seniors, has responded most favorably to the introduction of a controlled physical regimen. Balancing routines help to prevent injuries. Weight training has resulted in increased bone density among many (overwhelmingly female) patients afflicted with the illness. Working out with dumbbells at only 10 to 15 repetitions per set twice a week can stabilize and even reverse the symptoms.
Regardless of an individual’s specific health concerns, seniors are encouraged to walk habitually and participate in water aerobics for maximum results with minimum effort. Many find the controlled atmosphere of a health club or spa most conducive to self-improvement with its organization and trained supervisors. Unencumbered by bone, joint, or muscle problems, the increased mobility, which is invariably the result, whatever the setting, allows for a less strenuous completion of the selected activities.
Diet, of course, plays a major part in weight loss. As with an overweight person from any age bracket, seniors will be required to make sacrifices. It is fairly common knowledge what to omit. Better to concentrate on what to include.
Replenishing the system cannot be overstressed. Water, water everywhere, and not just to drink. Foods with high fluid content like lettuce and soups serve to keep one sufficiently hydrated. Fiber is similarly essential and can be found in whole grain breads and rice, whole and dried fruits, and raw, dark-colored vegetables. Eggs are excellent sources of protein as are lean meats. Bone brittleness being prevalent in older women, making them odds-on candidates for hip replacements, calcium is a necessity, coupled with the previously mentioned calisthenics.
Consult a nutritionist to learn what other nutrients may be needed and what foods provide them. Try to get them from eating and not from swallowing supplements. Talk to your family doctor to avoid the possibility of negative interactions from specific foods and drinks with your prescription medications.
Following these basic rules will put you on the road to a longer, fitter, slimmer life. So don’t just sit there.
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