Best Exercises for People Over 50 and Out of Shape

Whenever you are getting older you might face the dilemma of how do I get into shape? There are plenty of exercises for over 50 that you can start to do and you need to know a few of the best reasons to make sure that you are working out. Keep reading on to figure out what the top workouts for senior citizens is, especially if you are hoping to keep your health up. Read Here: 15 Big Mistakes You’re Making on the Treadmill

Reasons to Exercise

The first thing that you need to know about is why you should start doing exercises for over 50. There are numerous diseases and illnesses that these workouts can help to prevent or that can be controlled by the workouts, such as:

Cholesterol
Breast cancer
High blood pressure
Arthritis
Osteoporosis
Colon cancer
Lung cancer
Alzheimer’s
Type 2 diabetes
Muscle and joint pain
Stroke and heart diseases

If you are struggling with any of these ailments, then you should definitely start working out to keep yourself in the best condition possible. Also, if you starting and then working out religiously, then this is the best way to keep some of these issues from coming upon you in a few years. If you simply feel that you want to look and feel better, then this is one of the best ways to do it. Read here: 5 Best Indoor Cycling Bikes For Your Money

Tips for Starting Exercising at 50 and Over

No matter what if you are looking into the exercises for over 50 you need to be aware of some tips that will help you when you are just starting out. Some of these tips include:

Determining your motivation for the workouts, including if you want to lose weight or if your doctor has prescribed it
Make sure that you are keeping up a regular routine to see the benefits
Start the workouts slowly until your body is used to the activities
Try out plenty of various activities until you find the one that works the best for you
Workout at home if you can’t access the gym
Ensure that you are doing flexibility and strength training

These are only a few of the main tips that will help you to get started when you are going to be working out, so ensure that you are using them to prevent injuries.

Aerobic Activities

For those who are just starting out with the exercises, one of the main types of workouts that you need to be doing is aerobic activities. This means a wide variety of exercises like dance, swimming, jogging or even walking that would get the blood to your heart pumping. This would make you start to breathe much harder, which helps to not only burn some calories but also to increase your endurance level.

If this is something that you are considering, then you should do this a few times a week when you are first starting out. The longest time period that you are going to want to do this for is around 20 minutes and you are going to want to stretch when you before you are starting and even after you are finishing. This can be done along with the other types of workouts to increase your stamina level, so make sure that you are considering it.

If you are swimming you should start out with a few laps around the pool and you should work up to more laps as time goes on. Ensure that you are stretching in the water so that your muscles are warmed up and this means just extending them and holding the muscles. This is one of the best types of workouts that you can for if you have a lot of joint pain or if you are looking for something that doesn’t require running.

Read More:

Strength Training

Another type of exercise that you want to do is strength training and this would help you to keep your muscle or build up more muscle density. This is also going to help you to prevent any injuries to your back, which is prominent in older people who are starting out with their workouts or everyday life. You should start out small when it comes to this and find out just how much weight you can easily lift up.

You need to use the hand weights when you are just starting and do around 8 repetitions and then increase to around 12 when that gets too easy. However, when the 12 repetitions get easier, then you are going to want to go up to the next hand weight that is available and start again at 8. This is vital since you don’t want to start with too much weight, but instead, you want to work up to it so you can increase your strength along with your posture.

There is also some advice and tips that should be implemented and used when you are doing strength and weight training, such as:

Start out with a smaller level of hand weights and increase over time
Ask someone to show you the proper form if you don’t know how to do it
Use the right tempo, including counting to 3 when you are either lowering or raising the weight
Make sure that you are exhaling as you are pulling, pushing or lifting and inhaling as you release
Challenge your muscles by increasing the resistance or weight slowly rather than increasing it faster or all at once
Keep a routine that should be done 2 to 3 times every week
Ensure that you are giving your muscles a rest and there should be around 48 hours between any weight training sessions

If you are using these tips, then you can ensure that you are getting the most out of your workouts without causing any more injuries. If you need help, then go ahead and ask someone since it will keep you from causing more problems in the future or doing your strength training improperly.

Stretching

You are also going to want to make sure that you are doing stretching exercises for over 50, which can help to increase your flexibility. Not only will it help your flexibility in general, but it can also help your joints and keep you from suffering a strain or other type of injury. There are many types of workouts that you can do in this sector like pilates, tai chi or even yoga depending on your interests.

There are also going to be other simple stretches that you can do when you are warming up before your exercise or even when you are cooling down. These include:

Arm pulls – Make sure that you are pulling your arm behind your head so that the elbow is at a 90° angle. Once it is in the proper position, then use your other arm to pull the arm down a bit so that it stretches. This should feel like the muscles are being pulled, but not too hard.
Back stretches – Another good stretch that you want to do is while you are sitting in Indian style on the ground. While you are sitting downturn your back to the left or right as far as possible while keeping your hands on the ground in front and back of you.
Leg stretches – You also want to stretch your legs and you can do this in a few ways, including by sitting with your legs in a V shape and then trying to touch your toes with both hands. Also, you can do lunges that would help you to get the muscles ready to go.

There are different stretches that you should do that are based on what type of workout you are going to be doing and what muscles you are going to be working. There is also some advice that comes along with stretching and this includes:

Make sure that you are stretching for around 10 minutes daily
Ensure that you are talking to your doctor or an expert before doing any stretches
Hold any sustained stretch for around 10 to 30 seconds
Only hold the stretch until you are feeling some mild discomfort

You want to ensure that these stretches are part of your everyday life since they can help to increase your flexibility. You also need to do these before you are working out so that you can be sure to warm up your muscles to prevent injuries

Balance Training

As you age there will be other exercises for over 50 that become vital to your health, including balance training. These will help to keep you standing up strong and help you to keep your balance for years to come. Some of the top workouts to make sure that you are doing includes:

Resting all of your weight on either the left or right leg and then raising the opposite leg behind you or to the other side
Walking so that the heel of your one foot touches the other, which should resemble walking on a tightrope
Sitting down and standing up from a chair without the use of your hands
Walking and lifting up your knees alternately
Doing yoga or tai chi

These are just a few of the best workouts to make sure that you are doing and there are some tips to help you improve your balance over time, such as:

Hold each position for a few seconds longer than you were before
Adding some movements to the poses
Closing your eyes
Letting go of the support you are using as a chair

You can do these exercises for over 50 whenever you feel like it, but you should make sure that you are doing them at least once a day. This is going to help to keep your muscle strength up and keep you from falling over while you are doing the basic things in life.

Read More:

Why Consult Your Doctor Before Starting to Workout

Whenever you are considering doing some exercises for over 50 you need to talk to your doctor before you do anything. They would be able to look at your fitness and overall health level and tell you if they think it would be safe for you to work out or not. They can also give you some tips that would help you to get the most out of your daily workouts and even let you know what you should be avoiding and what you should be doing.

This is important if you are suffering from heart disease, diabetes or any other ailments that workouts can affect. When you are older you need to make sure you are taking care of yourself and that means getting advice before you start heavier workouts. Here are a few questions you are going to want to ask your doctor during the consult, such as:

What are the specific activities that I should be avoiding?
What activities do you think would benefit me the most?
Will my current health condition have any effect on my ability to do workouts?
What do you suggest I do in case of any injuries or pain after my workouts?
Which activities would place the least amount of stress on my joints and heart?

These are only a few of the top questions that must be asked, so make sure that you are asking them when you head in for your appointment. If you have any health ailments you are going to want to get approval from your doctor before you start any workout regime and you might need a certificate from your gym or personal trainer.

It can be a new experience when it comes to looking at and finding the right exercises for over 50, but there are many that are available. You should make sure that you are doing strength, flexibility, balance and endurance training along with stretching to keep yourself in the best condition possible. Also, you should ensure that your doctor gives you the approval to workout, especially if you have any health issues.