Best Exercises for over 50 Women & Men

If your fiftieth birthday is fast approaching, or you have already passed this age, you have probably noticed that certain things have slowly started to slow down. One of the consequences of aging comes in the form of your body being slow to respond to workouts, as well as a notable increase in muscle joint pain. You also likely to become fatigued very fast.

Immediately you hit fifty years, there are workouts that you may have done with ease throughout the course of life, which will now become a bit dangerous for you—for instance long distance runs, crunches, HIIT workouts, and deadlifts.

Your body will start to change when you hit fifty years, this is something that you can take to the bank, but this does not mean that you should stop working out. With the right workout plan, you should remain fit for as long as possible. In this article, we are going to look at workout plans for men and women above fifty years, and the do’s and don’ts for them when working out.

Facts about working out over 50

Many say that the life after your fiftieth birthday is your second chance at starting a new life. It is a time for you to make a decision on how you would like to continue spending your life, as by now you are already done with the better part of your professional life.

By this juncture, you should pat yourself in the back for being able to raise a family, live the way you have lived all along, and having survived years of having to work hard.

Whatever this second act of life means to you—taking up a new career path, spending time on your hobbies, or even traveling around the globe—an important factor to consider in all this will be your health, and how you want to continue living.

By the time you are thirty or forty years, there is a very big likelihood that you will have already developed either one minor or major health condition. By this point, even healthy people need to start being careful pertaining to the activities that they engage in. They also need to start ensuring that they are taking proper care of their internal functions, e.g., the muscles, heart, spine, lungs, and joints.

As you continue to age, the body will stop running as smoothly as it used to do when you were younger. And when this happens, you can expect to start experiencing problems associated with aging.

However, you should not allow yourself to become this person. This is when exercising will start to matter more than ever before.

Medical experts state that working out is a great way for you to stave off healthy problems that may be starting to develop. Working out also allows you to remain young, well into your elder years. By exercising, you get to:

1. Ensure that the joints in your body remain mobile and flexible

Exercising frequently is recommended as it helps in ensuring that the connective tissue found in your joints will not start to tighten, which may end up limiting your mobility. Exercises increase your flexibility helping you move with ease even when you are in your sixties and seventies.

2. You get to protect your spine

Rest assured that your back problems will only get worse as your year’s advance. However, by exercising, you are making sure that your spinal erector muscles get to remain strong. When you have strong muscles, it means that your spine will be receiving proper protection.

3. Reduce your chances of gaining extra weight

By the time you are fifties years, your body’s metabolism will not be in the same state as it was twenty years ago. And this is something that will continue to progress even as you become older. As a result, you have increased chances of gaining weight. The only way to ensure that you will not gain fat weight will be to exercise. This will help you burn the extra calories as well as the unwanted fat. Your body will thus be unable to store it in your arms, butt, or belly.

4. Lessen your chances of getting a heart attack

Cardiac disorders, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure are all problems associated with getting older. Regular exercises can help you strengthen your heart, eliminate the cholesterol, lower the blood pressure, and make certain that the cardiovascular system continues working as is expected of it.

5. Stop bone and muscle loss

The older generation also have to face problems related to bone and muscle loss. Working out helps maintain their bones and muscles by guaranteeing that they will not start to waste away. Studies have actually shown that with the right exercises, you may be able to gain some muscle, even in your advanced age.

6. Preserve your energy levels

A reduction in the amount of energy being used on a day-to-day basis means that the body also lowers the amounts of energy that it is producing. Using more energy also means that additional energy will be produced by your body. For you to remain energized and active, there is a need to make sure that the body understands that it is required to continue producing lots of energy with each passing day.

7. Ensure the muscles do not start deteriorating

When you are younger, you get to work your muscles more often. When you stop doing this due to age or health problems, the muscles automatically start to deteriorate and become weak. Frequent exercises will assist you preserve your energy and strength even when you are in your golden years.

From the points above, you can clearly see that working out is probably one of the few things that you can still continue doing even as you age. You, therefore, need to be smart, and consider the exercises that should be added to your everyday routine to help you enjoy some of these benefits.

Exercise for men over 50

As a man who has already hit the fifties, this is the time to stop concentrating on certain aspects of your body, e.g., leg day, biceps day, and back day. Research indicates that training the whole body a few times each week is much better for men over fifty, as it helps help them lose fat and build some muscle. Concentrate on the following exercises:

1. Weight training

At this time of your life, you will need weight training so as to be able to protect your bone density. For those that may not have been to the gym in a long time, they may need to start slow by first making use of the light dumbbells. From here, gradually proceed to the kettlebell and so on.

2. Walking

This may sound simple, but in reality it is quite essential. By walking, you get to enhance your cardiovascular fitness, ensure your weight does not get out of hand, and boost your mood levels. Additionally, walking has very low risks.

3. Core Strengthening exercises

As we become older, we gradually tend to lose our core. Given that poor core strength often leads to all kinds of ailments, it may take longer for you to recover as you get older. Therefore, ensure that you are not neglecting your core in any way.

To strengthen your core, you can:

• Perform ab moves on a stability ball
• Do crunches
• Do sit-up’s
• Front and side planks

Exercises for women over 50

Aging has the same effect on women as it does for men. It is, therefore, recommended that they consider performing the following exercises:

1. Core-toning

Many women will normally start core-toning with the hope that they will end-up with much flatter belly’s-what they do not realize is the fact that their core’s in fact do wrap up around their torso’s. It is, therefore, essential to focus on toning all the muscles at a go.

One exercise that can help with this is known as the canoe. Just as the name suggests, the actions involved normally mimic those performed when one is paddling a canoe. Additionally, it may also be essential for you to take part in a yoga class for women that are above fifty years.

2. Yoga

Regardless of whether you have been practicing yoga for many years, or you have never been in a yoga class all your life, it has been seen that taking part in a yoga class can help you enjoy a number of benefits. You get to protect your joints, enhance your balance, and in some cases, you may also be able to control chronic pain, while developing your memory.

3. Planking

Barbara Hannah Grufferman, a popular author says the plank is one of the best exercises for those that are above fifty years. With this workout, you get to move your glutes, arms, back, core, and your hips. It is a workout that will prove beneficial to both men and women.

Over 50 exercises for overweight and Out of shape Male and Females

The following are activities that you should incorporate in your workout if you are above fifty years, and happens to be obese:

1. Aerobics

This is an activity that has been known to increase the heart’s rate. During this activity, you need to be between fifty and eighty-five percent of your body’s max heart rate. Some of the activities that you should consider including in your workout include the following:

• Brisk walking
• Kayaking
• Jogging
• Rowing
• Swimming
• Tennis
• Dancing
• Stair climbing
• Cycling
• Jumping rope
• Water aerobics
• Heavy gardening
• Skiing

2. Stretching

Stretching has been known to enhance your balance and flexibility. It also assists you support flexibility in your muscles and joints, while ensuring that your balance and posture remains in the correct position.

Ideal workouts for people over fifty years that include stretching are pilates, tai chi, and yoga. For those that may be suffering from certain joint or back issues, they may need to first hold consultations with their physiologists to learn how they can go about performing the right type of stretches to help them loosen their joints, and muscles. And at the same time lose the unwanted fat in the muscles.

3. Weight training

It helps you strengthen your muscles and bodies while at the same time helping you burn unwanted calories. This should be an essential part of your training regimen regardless of your age. Here, you can incorporate everything from machines to weights. If you’re too weak to stand with of weights, you can also try out resistance bands training while sitting

Strength training exercises for Over 50s

According to Holly Perkins, a strength trainer, strength training is no longer about one being skinny or buffed out. If you want to feel happy, healthy, and strong, then you must be willing to pick up the weights.

The following are some strength training exercises that you should consider trying out:

Squat to chair

A good way for you to be able to preserve and enhance your bone density would be by performing exercises targeting your lower body parts.

How to do it

• Stand with both feet being placed shoulder-width distance from each other. The toes must be turned out slightly.
• Start extending your arms forward while ensuring that they remain parallel with the ground
• Slowly bend your knees and attempt to reach the hip section back, as though you are attempting to sit on a chair
• Continue lowering the hips until you are able to feel the chair that is beneath you. However, do not sit on it fully
• Use your butt to touch the chair
• Use your heels to press into the ground before going back to your standing position
• You should aim to repeat this exercise for between ten and fifteen times.

Dos and Don’ts

When you are in your senior years, even the smallest amount of exercise may have some health benefits. For those that have already been staying healthy, being active in your senior years may help you generate extra muscle reserves.

The following are the Dos and Don’ts for exercising in your golden years:

• Do start walking—a good way to get started would be to walk for thirty minutes each day, for at least four days in a week. If you are not comfortable walking for that long, start with fifteen minutes and then build up from there.
• Do start taking the right precautions—if you have not exercises in a long time, then you need to be extra careful. Be sure to start slowly, and then build up on this to a point where you are more comfortable.
• Do not limit yourself—many elderly people tend to limit themselves to exercises that have been designed for seniors only. Try and perform activities that are beyond this scope by trying something new every week.
• Do not let fear come in the way of you taking part in physical activity—although you have to take some precautions, taking regular walks will help you build strength and confidence to a point where you no longer fear falling.

References:

• http://www.fitnessnetwork.com.au/
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMHT0022447/
• https://www.news-medical.net/life-sciences/What-is-Metabolism.aspx
• https://blog.aarp.org/2013/06/13/the-best-all-around-exercise-for-every-post-50-body/
• http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/fitness/multimedia/core-strength/sls-20076330