As a person gets further into old age, they don’t have to give up on fitness and exercise. Contrary to some popular viewpoints, fitness is not a young person’s game, and it is even more important for an elderly person to continue with exercise, as it reduces the risks of cardiovascular diseases and heart attacks, as well as keeps you feeling active and lively for years to come. However, there are some exercises that you want to avoid doing, as your joints get older. For example, anything involving jumping or any sort of hard impact is going to be highly risky for your joints. Here are some safe exercises that you can utilize, as you get older…
Rowing
One excellent exercise for people of all ages is rowing. Using a rowing machine is a thoroughly beneficial exercise that is a great workout for both your upper and lower body. As a matter of fact, rowing on a machine burns more calories than running, biking, swimming, or practically any other form of cardio exercises. Best of all, there is absolutely no impact on your joints, meaning you can use a rowing machine for years to come.
Swimming
Swimming is a classic exercise that people turn to when they get older, and for good reason. Swimming laps is an excellent cardio exercise that works out your entire body, since there is natural resistance to every movement. However, because of the fluidity of moving through water, there is very little opportunity to accidentally hurt your joints from a hard impact. Taking a little bit of time during the week to swim a few laps makes swimming is a great way to keep in shape and improve the health of your heart.
Biking
If you’d rather not work out on a machine or get wet, then biking can be a great alternative to running or jogging that allows you to get out, zoom around, and exercise throughout nature. Using a bike to get around your town also gives you a great opportunity to get some exercise in during your transportation time. Although biking isn’t inherently an impact exercise, there is still the added risk of falling off or getting in a collision.
Chair exercises
If you find yourself sitting down or working at a desk for much of the day, there are still plenty of ways that you can keep active and improve your cardiovascular health by doing chair exercises. You can get up and use a chair to do squats, leg raises, stretches, and even lunges, in order to stay active.