Stay Active and Stay In Your Own Story

Get Up and Go!

As we age the importance of maintaining physical exercise increases which busts a common myth.  Some people believe that physical fitness is no longer appropriate, older people are frail and weak and exercise is indead a health hazardous.  This of course is incorrect and almost half of the population over 50 years of age experience physical decline and ill health as a result of no exercise.  Some of these problems include reduced muscle strength, coordination, balance, endurance, mobility, flexibility, cardiovascular disease, respiratory illnesses and the list goes on.

So why are the older members of our community opting for a sedentary life?  There are a number of precursors that we are aware of that include a feeling of not being welcome in a younger person’s domain (think health club or gym), little or no transportation, not being able to afford memberships and the natural preference for more passive past times like reading and cards.

There are many benefits of regular exercise for older people.  These include the maintenance of muscle and tone, bone density, heart and lung function, joint movement and the stabilisation of body fat levels.

At Ten Years Younger Home Care the importance of regular, physical exercise is a high priority and one of our services in which people may not expect us to offer.  It is not the case that we are personal fitness instructors, the secret in what we offer is accessibility – be it an escorted daily walk on the esplanade, supervised exercise, transportation to and from the swimming pool and more.

Important to note – before you start a new exercise program, be sure to see your doctor first for the all clear.

The medical fraternity used to think that strenuous exercise was the only way to improve health and slow down the physical decline.  Fortunately that way of thinking has proven wrong and new research suggests that as little as 30 minutes of moderate exercise per day – think walking, washing the car, riding a bike, playing a round of golf or gardening – is enough.  The key is moderation and even the low-intensity movement is better than nothing.  While some people prefer participating in a programmed exercise regime like a yoga class, others can get exactly the same benefit, free of charge, by upping the ante on their daily output or activities.  I don’t know about you but I reckon a morning of shopping in Cairns Central will have just the same effect!

Don’t Become a Statistic

• One in 10 Australians over the age of 50 exercise enough to gain any cardiovascular benefit.
• Half of the physical decline associated with old age may be due to lack of physical activity.

Source

http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/healthy_ageing_stay_physically_active?open

http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=a00103