FITNESS FOR THE OVER 50S

I hear so many times the more mature generation lamenting,

"I am too old to work out now"
or,
"it is too late to start to working out now"

and yet at Body By Design over 50% of our clients are in the fifty plus age bracket and many are in their 60s or 70s!

 Obviously as we age our reasons for exercising change and many of my older clients are no longer chasing the "body beautiful" but instead are simply seeking some weight loss, more mobility and flexibility, some strength and muscle tone and ultimately a better quality of life. Lack of fitness can lead to immobility and this then reults in a lack of independance. Increasingly in the fitness industry, training with these goals in mind is being recognised as ‘functional fitness’ and there are specific ways to achieve this as opposed to the more traditional weight training methods which put so many of us off from joining  gym!

 Functional fitness is training the body to perform as a whole  intergrated unit. We need this because as we get older our physical activity decreases but we are now living longer leading to a poorer quality of lifestyle. This lack of exercise results in a loss of muscle mass, connective tissue, muscle fibre and flexibility. Bone and joint diseases also increase. Some muscles are affected more than others, especially the glutes and quads (butt and thighs!), trapezius( back of the shoulders) and core muscles, which affects posture often causing injuries and giving the appearance of a loss of height. Back pain is very common in many of us as we age making this core training so important.

 From teenage maturity until the age of 45 our strength remains fairly constant but from then it declines about 5% a year until we die – unless we actively maintan it!

 Training for functional fitness should  work on muscle strength and muscle endurance, balance, stability and power. It should help improve the range of motion of the joints which includes flexibility and mobility. This is the foundation of postural alignment, gait (how you walk) and a healthy mind-body connection. These should be, and usually are, the goals of my over fifty clients.

 Research however has proven that the gains made in strength training by the sixty plus population is as effective as in younger groups. You can google studies by Fiatrone (1994) ,Fronterra (1988) and Mccartney (1995) for more details of these clinical trials. So it is never to late to start under the guidence of a fitness professional experienced in working with these age groups.
Make sure your trainer screens you properly as a recent medical history is vital. As we age so does our likelihood of a collection of hereditory diseases such as high blood pressure, joint problems, heart disease etc and these will effect the type of training program you need. Although you can be pumping iron alongside the ‘twenty somethings’, your workout program will be very different as your goals and physical limitations are taken into account. It is also for this reason that you shouldn’t attempt the program you did twenty years ago at college! Just because it worked then does not mean it is the routine for you now!
Isometric training (holding a weight in a fixed postion with no joint movement) is not suitable for those with high blood pressure for example but is good for anyone suffering from arthritis. The amount of weight lifted above the head should be reduced and exercise with sudden postural changes should not be part of your routine. Warm ups need to be longer as you get older and lower body stretches are important as part of the warm up as well as the cool down. These are just some of the considerations of wich to be aware.

 

 However just because you are older does not mean you have to lift less weight! Lifting heavy providing the technique is correct produces better results in a reduced time just as in younger groups.  As we get older you will also find gains appear to be in strength rather than in obvious muscle size.

 Increased muscle strength results in improved posture, gait speed(walking!) and reaction time even with just basic weight training exercises. Bone density, especially for women, can be maintained after menopause with regular strength training. A lifestyle that is largely immobile can lead to a loss in bone density so this is important.

  Research indicates that our individual cells have a life expectancy of about 120 years. After about the age of 30 everybody has the ability to alter their life expectancy by as much as 50 years by participating safely and sensibly in regular physical activity so if you have got out of the habit or you have not started yet it is never too late!

 If we stay fit and healthy then less money is spent on medical care and this expense is rising as we now expect to live longer. The healthier we are as a population then the more financial resources we can generate for other purposes which also makes good sense. Age should be no excuse. Improve and maintain your quality of life – see you in the gym!