Aging is a fact of life but it doesn’t mean that we have to give up living independently. It is possible to continue living normally well into retirement. The way to make sure this happens, however, is to stay active. Active seniors see a much better quality of life and have fewer limitations than peers who live a more sedentary lifestyle. Overall health is improved when you are active as the immune system is reinforced and works much better.
It isn’t always easy to make sure that you are active. Not only that but there is also a worry that the activities that you may be doing could be the wrong type. Although there is no wrong type of activity per se, there are some that are going to give you greater benefits than others will. In this article, we will go over several ways that you can stay active and live a healthier and more vibrant lifestyle.
1 – Consult with your doctor
Although your doctor will certainly recommend that you stay as active as possible, it is still important to have a consultation before you start any new routine. This is because they will need to check you out and make sure that you are not going to injure yourself or cause an illness to be exacerbated.
You may have some issues lurking that you aren’t familiar with such as high blood pressure. In this case, you will likely still be allowed to do some exercise but you will likely have some restrictions on what type. Usually when you have some issues like this then the doctor will tell you to do exercises like walking or yoga and give you some indication on how long you should be doing them.
If you are given the all clear then the doctor may even help you come up with a routine and schedule that is going to work best for you. You’re likely to also get other advice to take care of yourself and protect yourself when you are out exercising. Devices such as medical alerts with fall detection will be recommended so that you are protected in case you are out and about and you become injured. These devices alert the emergency services right away without you even needing to press a button.
Whatever your doctor recommends, make sure you follow their directions so you can exercise safely and without worrying about injuries.
2 – Work on strength training
Maintaining your strength when you are older is important since staying strong means having more balance. If you move a certain way and are not strong enough to stay on your feet then that fall is inevitable.
Since falls are the leading cause of losing one’s ability to live independently it is important to find ways to avoid it happening. There are many exercises that will help you stay steady on your feet.
Try to focus on some exercises that will help you retain your muscles and keep your bones strong. Resistance training is a particularly useful exercise since it is low impact and will help you gently build your strength. Using weights is ok too but it does require a trainer to help you learn how to use them properly. Improper use of weights could lead to an injury.
Resistance bands are the best product to use instead of weights and they offer the benefits.they are much cheaper, easier to store, and can be used anywhere. You’re able to try a lot of different exercises with them.
3 – Try some yoga
Yoga gives up some benefits that are important for anybody to achieve but seniors in particular have the most to gain. Gentle stretching will help your joints which are typically the area that most seniors experience pain in. The tendons tend to be very tight and difficult to loosen up in the joints of senior citizens. Yoga will help you painlessly loosen them and get the blood flowing back into that area.
Inflammation in the body is a common source of pain and discomfort which yoga can alleviate. It is a great way to get the blood flowing into areas of the body that are starved of nutrients and will naturally decrease inflammation.
There are yoga poses and stretches that are formulated specifically for seniors so look into some of them. Take around thirty minutes a day and you will have far more flexibility and pain free movements.