Why Exercise Is Important For The Elderly
Age creeps up on each one of us very slowly and suddenly you realize that, what you took for granted and enjoyed doing, seems to have become a wee bit harder! Simple pleasures you enjoyed pursuing with your grandchildren. meeting up with friends, going to the neighbourhood store and indulging in your favourite leisure activities, will need pre- pondering and planning.
Are You Leading A Sedentary Lifestyle?
Little pains and issues you have never experienced seem to have surfaced and you feel your energy ebbing away. Changes in your balance seem to bother your confidence levels, as you wonder on, why is this happening! Take the time to reflect on a typical day in your life. Are you amongst those who spend an average 10 hours or more each day sitting, lounging or lying down? Think about it – you are one of the 67 per cent of the older population who is sedentary for at least eight and a half hours each day. Treat this as a wakeup call. for the need to add physical activity to your daily routine.
Exercise To Remain Fit
What is physical activity anyway? Why is there so much hype in the media now, on aiming for at least 150 minutes of moderate activity every week, to ward off and postpone the ravages of ageing on your physical, emotional and social well-being? When you grow older, your body functions tend to decline gradually and even physical activities slow down.
You may even feel that what you used to do with ease, cannot be done now at the same pace. Hence. you need to keep yourself engaged in some form of physical activity or some other form of activity which keeps you busy and engaged. This process can also keep you fit and health issues due to ageing won’t affect you much. as you remain active.
It’s Never Too Late To Get Fit!
What you do will depend on your own circumstances. your ability and your environment You take up activities that you enjoy so that sustainability of your routine gets in-built without much effort. Ideally, it should be a daily affair which you can do in about 10 minutes, maybe some kind of activity with a fixed target in the mind and spread over the week, or 30 minutes for five days per week.
Research shows it’s never too late to adopt and reap the benefits of exercise and an active lifestyle. As well as regular physical activity, it is equally important to reduce the amount Of time spent sitting in a day. One important aspect to remember is that daily household tasks like cooking, shopping, cleaning do not fall under the category of physical activities, as these activities do not help in an increased heart rate. However, these activities do help in breaking sedentary time.
Simple physical activities like dancing. walking, swimming, yoga are all beneficial. as they do not need special equipment nor space. but they do need your willpower and persistence and desire to keep at it, rain, sunshine, winter or summer!
Physical activity is vital at any age, but as you grow older, changes set in and this makes exercise even more crucial Exercises harm you as you grow older and even though you won’t be able to work out like earlier due to physical constraints, you can still remain active. Chair yoga, stretching. chair aerobics etc. can help in fighting illnesses and improve your health, it will also keep you mentally alert.
Physical activity is vital at any age but as you grow older changes set in and this makes exercise even more crucial
Benefits of Exercise
Longer Life Expectancy
You can increase your lifespan (up to five years) if you are active and include regular exercises like brisk walking or swimming in your daily routine.
Helps Prevent Falls
Improving bone and muscle strength through exercises can in preventing falls. Also, regular exercise can help prevent falls, as you remain fit and active
Reduced Risk Of Diseases
Regular exercise can help maintain proper blood supply to your entire body and thus, the risk for serious diseases are less.
Better Bone Density
You bone density will be comparatively better, if weight-bearing exercises are practiced regularly. The chances for is also decline.
More Confident And Independent
You will have more confidence and will also be more active and capable of doing daily tasks faster, When compared to elderlies who lead a sedentary life.