You’re never too old to start training
Whether you’re 30 or 80 years old it’s never too late to start an exercise program. Staying healthy, fit and injury free is essential for all of us. As for the older generation who want to remain independent and active in their golden years then I cannot recommend some form of exercise program enough.
Let’s take a quick look at some of the advantages of exercise
There are so many benefits to exercising from having enough strength, balance, mobility and flexibility to help you maintain a greater quality of life. These benefits translate into being able to play with the grandkids on the ground or simply just keeping up with them. How about putting socks and shoes on without pain in your back or hips. And let’s not forget the importance of being more resilient to trips and falls
We all know someone that has taken a fall, maybe they have fractured their hip or torn the muscles in their shoulders while trying to save themselves from a fall. That visit to the hospital is often longer than expected and recovery is never as quick as it was in those earlier years of life.
One of the main reasons we need to exercise is because strength training increases our bone mineral density. It keeps our joints, ligaments, tendons and cartilage strong and durable. Meaning less likelihood of falls and if we do fall we typically bounce back far easier.
Here are 3 principles to get you started in your fitness and health journeys
1. First we must move well, then we must move often
What we don’t want to do is load dysfunction. By performing an easy movement screen we are able to see if you have any underlying limitations. Once these limitations are identified we can then work to clear them up and take them off the table. Many of us have underlying limitations that we don’t even know about…Until we do! (straw, camel, back anyone) Having a movement limitation doesn’t make you a bad person 😉 In fact knowing you have a limitation is great because you can now do something about it. At Results Personal Training we use a performance pyramid.
First we need you to have “good enough’’ movement fundamentals. Have you got enough mobility, balance and control to “own’’ your own bodyweight
Once the objective makers are hit, we then start to look at performance measures. Older generation or the ageing athlete as I like to call it. Performance is having the strength to get up and down from the ground. It’s having the endurance to keep going and the reactions to keep you sharp.
2. Strength is the fountain of youth
Strength training is the first line of defence when we are managing sarcopenia and dynapenia.
As we age our muscle mass and strength naturally deteriorate. Two conditions associated with these declines are sarcopenia and dynapenia.
Sarcopenia is the loss of muscle mass and strength as a result of ageing.
Dynapenia is the age-related loss of muscle strength not caused by neurological or muscular diseases.
These age-related conditions increase the likelihood of falls, fractures, social isolation amongst many others
Strength training done regularly (2-3x per week) has been shown to be the antidote for these age-related conditions. Free weights and bodyweight exercises increase strength, muscle mass, bone density and ultimately keep one’s independence.
In addition strength training reduces the risk of osteoporosis, arthritis, chronic health conditions like type 2 diabetes, heart disease amongst others.
3. One must prioritise multi-joint, full body exercises using bodyweight or free weights
Multi-joint exercises refer to exercises that use groups of muscles at one time. For example a squat uses the quads, hamstrings and core muscles. On the other hand a leg-extension (single joint exercise) just uses the quads.
For the ageing athlete, function far outweighs aesthetics. Exercises like squats, deadlifts, push ups, turkish get ups and hanging prepare you for real life demands. For example gardening is often lots of hinging (deadlifts) and squatting down. If we want to be strong enough to get up and down from the chair we need to squat. Sitting on a machine doing leg extensions simply won’t cut it.
Here at Results Personal Training we train people of all ages and fitness levels. The above guidelines are a great place to start. If you have any questions on the above or would like some advice on how we can help you with your fitness goals then don’t hesitate to get in contact with us