How Older Adults Benefit from Exercise
Physical exercise benefits everyone. It doesn’t matter your age or your capabilities but the more active you are, the better chance you have of living a longer and more enjoyable life. But it does much more than benefit your physical health. Exercise as you age helps your mental health as well.
If you’re starting to look and feel your age, in addition to making more healthful choices with the foods you eat, start getting some exercise in. You don’t need to run for miles and miles, but daily walks, yoga or dancing for seniors can do wonders for your body and mind.
Count off the ways exercise in your later years can benefit your health!
- Maintain or lose weight
Your metabolism naturally slows down as time ticks onward. By keeping active with exercise, you help your metabolism speed up. Plus, that muscle mass you build by even doing the simplest exercises burns more calories.
- Reduces chances for disease
With more exercise, your immunity and digestion function better. Plus, your blood pressure and bone density stay stronger for longer. You’ll additionally have less likelihood for developing certain types of cancers, obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and more. Simple strength training exercises can help alleviate the pains of arthritis too, so get moving!
- Better balance and mobility
If the thought of growing old and losing your independence scares you, start exercising. It helps you stay strong and flexible, plus it keeps your posture upright. This improves your balance and coordination which keeps you from falling.
- Improved sleep
Sleep is an important time for cellular renewal throughout your body. Lack of quality sleep can cause problems for your health by leaving you fatigued and causing distress for your hormones. With exercise on the regular, you will fall asleep faster and get into a deeper sleep. This deeper sleep allows you to wake up feeling more alive than ever before.
- Boosted confidence and mood
Exercise is always good for relieving stress and boosting your endorphins. Those endorphins help battle feelings of anxiety and sadness. When you feel more naturally lifted from exercising, you’ll feel more confident in your abilities and get more pleasure out of your golden years.
- Improves brain function
Your morning crossword is a great way to engage your mind, but getting physical with exercise also helps it. Studies have shown that it improves creativity and the ability to multitask as well as prevents memory loss and cognitive decline. You’ve got a better chance of enjoying your senior years if you exercise.
Start walking with your friends at the park or join a seniors’ exercise class. If you need help getting started with exercise or want to do so safely to avoid injury, consider hiring a personal trainer to help you train the right way in the privacy of your home. Whatever you choose though, getting active is the first step in making sure you keep control of your independence and function.
Senior woman sitting on exercise ball with dumbbells at home
