To promote longevity and healthy aging, your exercise program should incorporate a variety of exercises that target your different body systems. The exercises you perform on a regular basis should boost or maintain your endurance, strength and flexibility, and they should preserve your ability to perform your activities of daily living in a pain-free state. According to the American Association of Retired Persons, or AARP, performing exercise may add years to your life.
Endurance Training
According to a 2004 study published in the journal “Clinics in Geriatric Medicine,” there’s an increasing amount of evidence suggesting that the beneficial adaptations to exercise that were once believed to be restricted to genetically endowed elite athletes now occur just as reliably in seniors with chronic disease, which means that, if you’re an elder, you can improve your physical function and reap other exercise-related health benefits. Engaging in endurance training, which involves your participation in aerobic activities such as brisk walking, running or bicycling, is an essential component of your longevity plan. The AARP states that 30 minutes of aerobic activity performed at least three days per week can reduce your likelihood of dying in the next eight years by 40 percent. It can also boost your mental acuity, reduce your risk of chronic disease, and alleviate symptoms of depression and anxiety. Endurance training exercise guidelines for those of you 65 years of age and older published by the American College of Sports Medicine suggest you should perform moderately intense aerobic exercise 30 minutes a day, five days per week or higher-intensity aerobic exercise for 20 minutes a day, three days a week.
Strength-Building Activities
The AARP states that loss of muscle strength is the most significant aging-associated decline you’re likely to experience. For every decade of inactivity after your 50th birthday, you should expect to lose 6 pounds of muscle, which is why engaging in regular strength-building activities is crucial as you age. Sedentary living and failure to engage in strength-building activities alters your body composition and slows your metabolic rate while increasing your risk of developing chronic disease. Loss of muscle mass, along with the accumulation of body fat, puts stress on your heart and other organs, boosts your likelihood of developing diabetes, and could predispose you to a stroke or other cardiovascular events. The AARP states that building muscle is easier than you might think. Consider engaging in strength-building activities for 20 minutes a day, several times each week. Over a span of three to four months, if you’re performing your strength-building activities consistently, you should expect to gain 3 pounds of muscles and up-regulate your metabolism by 7 percent.
Mind-Body Exercises
Mind-body exercises, such as yoga and tai chi, help you integrate the mental, physical and spiritual aspects of your being while promoting your optimal health and well-being. Yoga and tai chi exercises are safe, cost-effective and easily accessible activities that can be performed by most people, regardless of age, level of coordination or past history with exercise participation. According to Dr. Joseph Mercola, an osteopathic physician and renowned health activist, if conventional forms of exercises are too strenuous for you, you should consider lower impact exercises, such as tai chi and yoga, as these mind-body activities will still give you the physical benefits of exercise while adding higher-quality years to your life. Dr. Mercola adds that daily exercise—including tai chi, aerobics and even open-air ballroom dancing—among seniors is an integral part of Chinese culture, and that it emphasizes social interaction while combating the isolation so often experienced by American seniors. The combination of mind-body exercises and social interaction is a potent way for you to improve your longevity and retain a high quality of life as you age.
