How to Exercise - Part12 Elderly Routine

1 Devote time to exercising. You will want to set your goal for exercising at least ½ an hour a day. Slowly, over time, you should draw this out to 1 hour. This time period, however, can be broken up into sections and spread over the course of the day, however, those sections should be no less than 10 minutes. When you begin, exercise at least 2 days a week. Over time you should stretch this out to up to 5 days a week.

2 Walk. Walking is the best thing you can do for improving your health. As discussed above, a study found that a mixture of intense and relaxed walking in senior citizens decreased the likelihood of certain diseases by 20%. You can walk with your friends, family members, or by yourself. If you want to walk in the comfort of indoors, you can walk around the inside of your apartment building or you can walk the inner corridor of the local mall. You can also walk outside if you prefer.

• Try to walk for at least half an hour a day and go at a pace that gets your heart rate up. If you do not push your body at least a little, you will not gain nearly as much from the exercise.

3 Do balance exercises. As we age, we tend to lose a lot of our balance. This is normal. However, you will want to work on your balance to help ensure that you can move around without hurting yourself. Do balance exercises to protect yourself and prevent injury.

• A good, basic balance exercise is to try standing on one leg. Make sure to do both legs in turn and to also have a chair nearby to hold on to if necessary to prevent falling.

4 Do flexibility exercises. Muscles lose their elasticity over time, which can make it difficult for you to move around or get up if you fall. Do flexibility exercises like stretches to maintain your muscles and keep you safe and independent.

5 Do strength exercises. Lift small, 2lb weights (more if you can). This will help you maintain the strength in your hands and arms, allowing you greater independence for longer.