FITNESS & EXERCISE
Being fit, happy and healthy is the best reward you can give yourself!
QUESTION: HOW FIT DO YOU THINK YOU ACTUALLY ARE?
- If you were hanging from an edge by your fingertips, could you pull yourself up and over to safety?
- Could you run ½ mile to catch a train or bus your about to miss?
- Could you bypass a lift and walk up 6 floors of stairs without stopping?
- How many “strict form” (chest hits the floor) press ups can you do? Ten should be a bare minimum (however old you are).
- Could you play football (or any sport for that matter) with your grandchild for 30 minutes without making excuses to go and sit down?
- Are you comfortable in your own body to strip down to a pair of shorts or bikini for a trip to the beach or pool with friends or family?
How do you feel about the challenges above?
Do you feel embarrassed or ashamed that they are out of your reach?
Most people do, and most people just bury their heads in the sand and hope they never have to encounter these potential scenario's.
I am 56 years old, carry a little extra weight around my midriff , adorn battle scars from past operations and have a body which creaks and groans whenever I move. However,
I CAN DO ALL OF THE ABOVE!
I am genuinely proud of the fact that, if required to do so, I could quite comfortably complete any of those challenges.
It makes me feel good, gives me confidence and helps me go about my daily activities feeling happy about my fitness levels and general wellbeing.
Getting yourself to a decent level of fitness is hard work at times, it takes motivation, drive and enthusiasm, especially on days when your struggling to find any and you just cant be bloody bothered.
But take a minute to think why its hard work!?
I strongly believe that good things in life, should not always be easy to achieve. Life should be a challenge at times, it builds character and is good for the soul.
It makes you feel good about yourself when you achieve something, you feel confident and proud of yourself.
Its good for you to be challenged, and extremely gratifying and rewarding when you achieve success.
HOWEVER!!
Never, ever lose track of the fact that your over 50, possibly much older. You’re not trying to break world records or attain the body shape of Mr/Mrs Olympia.
You are getting on a bit, you’ve lived over half your life, which in turn, does make it harder to get back into shape and maintain motivation.
The fitness levels required to complete said challenges are easily achievable with application.
But you do have to WANT TO DO IT, and FOR THE RIGHT REASONS!
Just before we start then!!
As stated above, we are over 50, some of us well over that age, hence, we are no longer the spring chickens we once were.
We all know our bodies go through several changes as we go through life, but do we really know as much as we should about this, and how important is it that we are aware?
Its actually VERY IMPORTANT!!
So lets take a closer look at what happens to our bodies as we age:
- Sarcopenia:
It’s a fancy name for loss of muscle mass.
I genuinely believe, muscle loss is one of the biggest causes of overall functional decline in older adults.
- Muscle facts:
Our bodies are 30 to 40% muscle.
By the age of 80, up to 50% has gone.
- Metabolism:
This is already down 10 to 15% by the age of 50.
Loss of muscle mass = Decrease in metabolism.
Muscle burns more calories at rest than fat does
- Osteoporosis:
Fancy name for bone density loss
By the age of 50 you have more broken down bone cells than the body can replace.
- Memory loss:
Scans have proven that people who exercise and eat healthily have bigger hippocampus (ooooeerrrr).
Its just a fancy name for the brain region responsible for memory and learning.
In a nutshell, there are some very significant changes going on in your body once past the 50 mark.
Is just sitting back and doing nothing really an option?
All these changes are both preventable and reversible.
I honestly don’t want to sound to apocalyptic, however, by leading an unhealthy lifestyle, with a poor diet and lack of exercise also increases the risk of further diseases such as cancers, strokes and heart attacks, not to mention the chronic disease and illnesses such as arthritis, diabetes and heart/kidney disease.
There is another huge consequence of succumbing to one of these illnesses in later life.
One which can devastate people and rapidly send them into a severe mental downward spiral.
Personally, for me, this is MY biggest fear as I get older and one of my biggest motivators to stay healthy, happy and positive as I age.
So what is it???
LOSS OF INDEPENDANCE !!!!
Any or all of those aforementioned health conditions could bring about a significant loss of independence to your life.
Stop for a moment and think about some of the impacts on your daily life this would have:
- Not being able to just get up and go when you wish
- Dependant on family members or friends and neighbours for bare essential necessities
- Turning down family events because your not fit and able, or you just don't want to be a burden
- Holidays and weekends away, or a lack of them
- Significant impact on your mental health and wellbeing
DO YOU REALLY THINK JUST SITTING BACK AND DOING NOTHING IS AN OPTION??
IS THIS REALLY HOW YOU WANT TO LIVE THE REST OF YOUR LIFE?
YOU CANNOT AND WILL NOT OUTRUN A SEDENTRY LIFESTYLE AND POOR DIET!!
There is an old saying which I think pretty much puts things into perspective:
EXERCISE IS KING, DIET IS QUEEN AND TOGETHER YOU HAVE YOUR KINGDOM!!
So if exercise is king, what's the answer when your 50 and beyond?
What type of exercise and how much?
FIRSTLY AND MOST IMPORTANTLY:
PICK SOMETHING YOU ENJOY!!
Think about what your trying to do when your over 50:
- Raise your hear rate and get the blood pumping to improve cardiovascular health
- Add some sort of weight bearing resistance to build up bone strength and density
Its not difficult and its not technical, HOWEVER:
PICK SOMETHING YOU ENJOY!!
So, we are of a certain age, and we want to raise our fitness levels, what sort of exercise do we do? Aerobic or strength training? Do we buy a push bike or a set of kettlebells?
It doesn’t matter where you look, or who you talk to on the subject, or which rabbit hole your research takes you down, you will get an amazing amount of conflicting advice on this subject.
This is the main reason people become confused and literally give up before they even start.
Not withstanding the conflicting advice on which sort of exercise you should do when you get over 50, I think its safe to say, that everyone agrees, doing any sort of exercise at this stage of life has amazing, life changing benefits.
THE BIG QUESTION FOR OVER 50s:
AEROBIC OR STRENGTH TRAINING?
ANSWER:
BOTH!!!!
I have taken part in physical activities for as long as I can remember, so well over 40 years. My philosophy has changed and diversified over that time to suit my needs and requirements. However, I have always maintained the following:
- Exercise to achieve your goals
- Be flexible and don’t be afraid to change your routine
- Never overdo it, listen to your body
- ENJOY IT!!
AEROBIC EXERCISE:
Benefits:
- Increases bodily blood flow
- Improves brain and organ function
- Offsets slower metabolism
- Boosts cardiovascular function
- Improves stamina
- Strengthens lungs
STRENGTH TRAINING:
Benefits:
- Maintains and increases bone density
- Maintains and builds muscle
- Improves body shape
- Improves testosterone (in men)
- Supports memory and cognition
- Building muscle = Losing fat
So, as you can clearly see, there are significant benefits in carrying out both Aerobic & Strength training when over 50 and well beyond.
This is the exact strategy I have adopted when I hit the big FIVE O.
In the past, over many years, I have utilised several different exercise programmes and workout schedules.
I have done bodybuilding, running, cycling, HIIT Workouts, regular weight training etc etc etc.
You must NEVER lost track of the 2 big hitters your trying to avoid as you get older:
· Loss of bone density
· Loss of muscle mass
Lots of research and many many trials and I eventually found what worked best for me.
The exercise programmes I settled on were a deliberate challenge to the big 2 above, and the results were fantastic.
Oh, and I really enjoyed it too, which helps.
SOLUTION!!
I loved both Aerobic and Strength Training, so I incorporated them both. I have used HIIT Training (High Intensity Interval Training) in the past, with some very good results, however, personally, I felt this was getting “a bit much” as I went into my 50’s.
If I did the workouts with the correct intensity I was struggling with recovery periods and my rest days became more in number than my actual workout days.
So, I looked at the opposite: LIIT (Low Intensity Interval Training), but, guess what? I found this too easy and not intense enough.
I didn’t feel challenged enough and always felt I could do more, and should be doing more.
I then created my own personal workout program and called it MIIT, I bet you can’t guess what that stands for?
It worked very well and I fell in love with it, and have used it consistently over the last 5 years or so. I feel challenged, I enjoy it, I look forward to doing it, and it covers all the bases.
So, without further a due, this is my current MIIT workout:
1) WARMUP
2) STATIONARY BIKE (3 MINUTES AT A QUITE VIGAROUSPACE)
3) 20 STEP UPS ONTO A BENCH (OR ANYTHING 12” HIGH)
4) 20 MOUNTAIN CLIMBERS
5) 10 FULL PRESS UPS
6) 10 FULL SQUATS (HOLDING DUMBELL IN EACH HAND)
7) 10 DUMBELL BICEPS CURLS
8) 10 DUMBELL SHOULDER PRESS
9) 10 BENT OVER DUMBELL ROWS
10) 20 STEP UPS ONTO A BENCH (OR ANYTHING 12” HIGH)
I complete this sequence twice, and that’s me done!
20 to 25 mins all in and I'm fully worked out, aerobic & strength training complete.
What could be simpler?
Admittedly, there is a small on cost to setting up a home gym environment, however, just think of the money this will save you in the long run?!
Equipment Required:
- Exercise bike (these aren't expensive if you look around). Dirty and cheap will do you, after all, your only spending 6 minutes a workout on it.
- Set of dumb bells (again, you can pick up a pair really cheap: think of Lidl and Aldi and you wont go far wrong.
- A bench to do "step ups" on. This could be anything 12" high. You can literally make it from anything.
Benefits to training at home include against joining a gym:
- You can put whatever music on you want
I wouldn’t recommend heavy metal or jazz! Not that this music is bad for exercising, they just don't sound nice!!
Reggae, Madness or Northern Soul are my faves to workout too. (Even if you stop exercising and start dancing to them: its still exercise, and no one is watching you)!
- You don’t have to drive there
- You don't have to wait your turn to use the equipment
- You can train at your own pace
- You can wear what you want (this one is for all you mankini guys and thong loving ladies out there)
- You can train whenever, however you want
- No monthly gym fees to pay out
Never look at the cost when setting up, look at it as probably the best investment you will ever make.
Once bought, they are bought, and unlike gym membership, there is no ongoing cost.
REMEMBER:
Once over 50 its really important you try to combine both aerobic & strength (resistance) exercises too.
Aerobic exercises need to get your heart rate up, and consistently over a 20 min period.
Strength building exercises need to make up at least half of your workout regime and must include resistance exercises.
The strength section can include light weights and/or body weight exercises.
I will go into other workout plans in future blog posts, however, to start with, you can either use mine above, or just mix and match to make up your own.
BLOG SUMMARY
What have we covered in this blog post?
- What happens to our bodies as we get older and why exercise is so important when over 50.
- The benefits of exercising as we get older, and the consequences of not doing so.
- The type of exercise required when over 50 and why.
CALL TO ACTION:
- You cant just sit back and do nothing anymore!
- Think how important your independence is to you in the future!
- Self assess yourself right now and be brutally honest about how you look and feel!
- Get your butt off the couch and write down a few exercises you know you can do now!
- Don't think of exercise as hard work, think of it as a celebration of what your body can do!
- Do your first workout!
Your actually doing it.
Your actually beginning to change your life for the better.
Top Tip:
- Utilise WHATEVER it takes to keep your motivation levels high.
- It really doesn't matter what, but find what works for you, and use it.
- For example, I have used movies, u tube videos, music and even other people to help motivate me.
- Motivation is very personal, just do what works for you, and keep doing it.
FINAL THOUGHT:
Being fit, happy and healthy is the best reward you can give yourself!
