Older Adults & Exercise
As you get older, it becomes even more important to remain active if you want to stay healthy and maintain your independence. If you don't stay active, all the things you've always enjoyed doing and taken for granted may start to become that little bit harder. You may struggle to pursue simple pleasures, such as playing with the grandchildren, walking to the shops, leisure activities, and meeting up with friends. You might start to get aches and pains you never had before, and have less energy to go out - you may also be more vulnerable to falling. This can all lead to being less able to look after yourself and do the things you enjoy.
There are lots of ways you can get active, and it's not just about exercising. "As people get older and their bodies decline in function, physical activity helps to slow that decline," says Dr Nick Cavill, a health promotion consultant. "It's important they remain active or even increase their activity as they get older."
What is considered to be physical activity?
Physical activity is anything that gets your body moving. It can include anything from walking and gardening to recreational sport - aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate activity every week.
Ideally, you should try to do something every day, preferably in bouts of 10 minutes of activity or more. One way of achieving 150 minutes of activity is to do 30 minutes on at least five days a week.
Examples of moderate-intensity aerobic activities include:
walking fast
water aerobics
riding a bike on level ground or with few hills
playing doubles tennis
pushing a lawn mower
Daily chores like shopping, cooking, or housework don't count towards your 150 minutes because the effort isn't hard enough to raise your heart rate, although they do help break up sedentary time.
In addition to your 150 minutes target, try to do some activities that work your muscles.
This can include:
weight training
carrying heavy loads
heavy gardening
For tips and advice on keeping fit and how to stay active as you get older see AgeUK
You can also see my Older Adults page for benefits of exercise, myths and facts and ways I can help you
Archive
Pregnancy and exercise
The more active and fit you are during pregnancy, the easier it will be for you to adapt to your changing shape and weight gain. It will also help you to cope with labour and get back into shape after the birth. Exercise is not dangerous for your baby – there is some evidence that active women are less likely to experience problems in later pregnancy and labour.
If you weren't active before you got pregnant, don't suddenly take up strenuous exercise. If you start an aerobic exercise programme (such as running, swimming, cycling, walking or aerobics classes), tell the instructor that you're pregnant and begin with no more than 15 minutes of continuous exercise, three times a week. Increase this gradually to at least four 30-minute sessions a week. Remember that exercise doesn't have to be strenuous to be beneficial!
For more tips on exercising whilst pregnant see the NHS.UK website. Also check out the NCT website for ways to maintain your exercise programme or start a new one
Post Pregnancy and exercise
When you're feeling tired, being active may seem like the last thing you need, but regular activity can relax you, keep you fit and help you feel more energetic. It can also help your body recover after childbirth and may help prevent postnatal depression. When to start exercising will depend on how active you were during pregnancy and how your recovery is going - it will also depend on the birth i.e. natural birth or C-section. If you have any doubt you can discuss this with your midwife or GP during your six week postnatal check.
For more information on getting more active see the NHS.UK website for post natal advice and also your post-pregnancy body
You can also see my Pre/Post natal page for benefits of exercise and ways I can help you
Physical inactivity amongst the middle-aged population
You have probably seen in the news that the middle-aged population are being told to walk faster! Its quite shocking to read that 4 out of 10 middle-aged people (40-60 year olds) don't manage a 10 minute brisk walk per month - this is around 6 million people! Just 10 minutes a day can reduce the risk of an early death by 15% along with all the other health benefits, this can make such a huge difference to your life.
The government agency have developed a free app called Active 10 which can monitor the amount of brisk walking you are doing and show you ways of incorporating this into every-day life. Take a look at the links below for further information on this initiative and lets get walking!!
Article from the government agency
Article from the BBC
Download the App from the NHS website
Walking for Health
Walking is one of the easiest ways to get active and as long as it’s at a good pace i.e faster than a stroll, you can benefit from a reduction in the risk of chronic illnesses, such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, asthma, stroke and some cancers. See NHS website for loads of information on how to include walking in your everyday life
The Walk All Over Cancer challenge is to walk 10,000 steps every day in June. Doing this distance will make a huge difference to your health and you will feel amazing! There are various ways you can track the steps - for more information on this and how to get involved, click here
Should exercise be compulsory at work?
The news this week that more than 20 million people in the UK are physically inactive has led to a lot of discussion over how to tackle the problem. But with no easy solution and rates of obesity rising fast has it come to the point that exercise should become part of our working day? See here for the full article on the BBC website
There are plenty of exercises that you can do at work including chair dips, walking, leg lifts and calf raises - see here for 10 exercises you can do at work that don't make you look silly :-)
The NHS has a great section on Health & Fitness and suggestions on how to fit exercise into a busy lifestyle - see here for full details
Five-a-day of fruit and veg is good, but '10 is better'
A major review found people who regularly ate 800g of fruit and veg a day – 10 portions – had a significantly lower risk of chronic diseases, such as heart disease.
Article from NHS UK
Article from The Guardian
Article from BBC
LATEST RESEARCH ON CANCER AND EXERCISE
Cancer can be deadly. However, research is showing promising data on how physical activity helps the body and mind heal—and prevent—this disease. See here for the full article