Valentin Bosioc
Adults over the age of 70 still need to exercise every day. If your mobility is affected you should still try to do some type of exercise. In fact, the more that you do the better.
Be Active Every Day
Those who are over 70 years of age should try to be active every day. Even if you can only engage in light activity it’s better than nothing. Ideally, you should do exercises that work to improve your strength, flexibility, and balance. These exercises should be undertaken at least two days a week.
If you can, try to do at least 2.5 hours of moderate intensity activity each week. If you are active enough, you should try to do at least 1 hour and 15 minutes of vigorous activity each week. Alternatively, you could do a combination of the two.
Try to spend less time lying down or sitting. Alternatively, try to move around a bit more so those long periods of sitting are broken up with a bit of activity.
Taking Care of yourself
It’s important that you take care of yourself. We all know how to eat properly, and we all know we need to look after our teeth or dentures, and we all know we need to stay warm. However, not everyone knows how to get enough exercise. What exercise do we need to do and what is light, moderate, and vigorous activity? We’re going to take a look at this now.
What is Light Activity?
Light activity involves moving around rather than lying down or sitting. Some examples of light activity include:
- Cleaning
- Dusting
- Getting up to make a drink
- Moving around the home
- Standing up
- Walking slowly
- Vacuuming
What is Moderate Activity?
Moderate activity involves anything that will increase your heart rate. This will ensure you feel warmer and you breathe quicker. If you can still talk while you’re undertaking activities but you cannot sing, you’re likely to be engaged in a moderate activity. Some examples of moderate activity include:
- Dancing
- Hiking
- Mowing your lawn
- Playing doubles tennis
- Riding a bicycle
- Walking quickly
- Water aerobics
What is Vigorous Activity?
Vigorous activity is any activity that makes you breathe fast and hard. When you’re engaged in this type of activity you will not be able to talk much without pausing to breathe.
It’s thought that 1 hour 15 minutes of vigorous activity gives has the same or similar health benefits as 2.5 hours of moderate intensity.
If, when you’re participating in moderate activity you choose to work harder, you could find yourself engaging in vigorous activity.
Some examples of vigorous activity include:
- Aerobics
- Dancing energetically
- Doing martial arts
- Hiking up hill
- Playing singles tennis
- Playing soccer
- Riding a bike on a hill
- Riding a bike quickly
- Running or jogging
- Swimming quickly
Strengthening Your Muscles
As we age, we start to lose some of our muscle mass. This is why you should try to strengthen your muscles if you can. Ideally, you should engage in muscle strengthening exercises that require you to take a short break before you repeat them.
Some examples of muscle strengthening exercises include:
- Bodyweight exercises such as sit-ups and push-ups
- Carrying heavy grocery bags
- Digging in your garden
- Doing Pilates
- Doing Tai chi
- Doing yoga
- Lifting weights
- Using resistance bands
Many people go to the gym to exercise but you don’t have to do this. If you do engage in weight lifting, please make sure you lift correctly. Failure to do so could result in injury. When it comes to strengthening your muscles, you can strengthen all your muscles on the same day you undertake other activities. However, you can also choose to do the exercises on different days should you wish.
Please note, if you wish to strengthen your muscles, you should be aware that this type of exercise is not considered to be an aerobic activity. You should, therefore, need to do them in addition to your aerobic activity.
Speak to your Doctor
Please speak to your doctor before you engage in any exercises. This is especially important if you have a heart condition or your blood pressure is high. Your doctor might suggest a range of exercises that could help you.
As with any exercise routine, when you start your new routine you should start slowly. Working too hard could cause injuries and they’re likely to put you off from attempting the exercises again. Go steady, take your time, and build up slowly. After a while, you should find that the exercises start to become easier. Please speak to your doctor if you have any concerns about the exercises.
