Staying physically active, according to the National Library of Medicine's Medline Plus, can help you live longer and feel better. Exercising on a regular basis can delay or even prevent such conditions as diabetes and heart disease, reduce the pain from arthritis and provide more independence. For those over 65, the Centers for Disease Control recommends a weekly exercise regimen consisting of moderate-intensity (300 minutes, or 5 hours) or high-intensity (150 minutes) aerobic activity and at least two days of muscle-strengthening activities. Get your doctor's approval before you embark on any new exercise routine.
Aerobic Exercises
"Aerobic activity or 'cardio' gets you breathing harder and your heart beating faster," according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Find an activity you'll enjoy: Try tennis, jogging or swimming--or sign up for a low-impact aerobics class. Even walking, adds the CDC, provides "the aerobic activity you need, as long as it's at a moderately intense pace." Remember that aerobic exercises won't be effective if you do them for fewer than 10 minutes at a time. Begin slowly and work up to 30-minute sessions.
Strength Training
According to the National Institute on Aging, even a small improvement in your muscle tone through strength training will make tasks such as carrying grocery bags and lifting grandchildren easier. Choose weights that you can easily lift at least eight times to begin with, then gradually increase the weights as you get more comfortable with the exercise.
Wrist curls: Rest your forearm on the arm of a chair, keeping your hand over the edge of the armrest. Hold a weight in your right upward-facing palm and lift it up and down 10 to 15 times, then switch the weight to the left hand and repeat. Make each upward wrist motion last about three seconds, hold the weight for about a second, then make the downward motion last another three seconds; rest for one second and repeat.
Chair dips: Sit in a chair that has sturdy armrests. Keep your feet on the floor about shoulder-width apart. Keeping your back and shoulders straight, lean forward slightly and, grasping the armrests with your hands, lift yourself slowly off the chair. Breathe out as you do so, hold the lifted position for one second, then breathe in as you slowly lower yourself back into the chair. Repeat for 10 to 15 times, rest and do another set of 10 to 15 chair dips.
Flexibility Exercises
Stretching exercises will provide you with better range of motion for such everyday activities as getting dressed and reaching for items on a shelf. Move into a stretch slowly and smoothly rather than bouncing into it. Remember never to stretch to the point of pain. Take a beginner's yoga or t'ai chi class to increase your flexibility, or learn some stretches to do at home.
To stretch your neck, sit or stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Turn your head to the left until you feel your muscles resisting slightly, but avoid tilting your head backward or forward. Hold this position for between 10 and 30 seconds, then slowly turn your head to the right until your neck muscles engage slightly, and hold for 10 to 30 seconds. Repeat the entire right/left cycle three to five times.
For an entire upper body stretch, stand with your feet at shoulder width and face a wall that's slightly farther than your arms' reach. Lean into the wall and place your palms flat on it about shoulder-width apart and at shoulder height. Now walk your hands up the wall, keeping your back straight, until your arms are above your head. Hold this position for about 10 to 30 seconds, then slowly walk your hands back down. Repeat three to five times.
