Strength Exercises Benefit People Over 50
Do you thinK strength exercises or weight training is only beneficial for the younger generation? The American College of Sports Medicine recommends for everyone. Strength Exercises Benefit people over 50 and its never to late to start.
Benefits of Strength Exercises:
The benefits of strength exercises for people over 50 include increased muscle strength as well as muscle mass. Improved strength,endurance and flexibility leads to a better quality of life during the retirement years when lack of strength often hinders the activities older individuals can take part in. Strength exercises also lead to an increase in bone density lowering the risks of osteoporosis and fractures so many older individuals are likely to experience. Regular exercise leads to better sleep and is also great for relieving stress and depression.
In addition to doing strength exercise 2-3 times per week, moderate-intensity cardiovascular exercise should be done for 20-30 minutes per week. You know if you are in that correct intensity level when you break a sweat but are still able to carry on a conversation. For those individuals looking to lose weight gradually increasing the cardiovascular portion of their exercise plan to 60 or even 90 minutes may be necessary. However, start out with the recommended 20-30 minutes (or less if needed) and increase your time no more than 10% a week to avoid doing to much to soon.
The benefits of strength exercises to people over 50 provides plenty of reasons to get started. Several ways to get started may include joining a class, gym,or finding an online plan that you can follow at home. Some community centers offer free or low cost classes as well.
Most people over 50 think strength exercises are for the younger generation. After the age of 40 people begin to lose muscle mass, bone density and strength. Often these issues are dismissed as simply part of getting older. The benefit of strength exercises for people over 50 is the ability to slow or possibly reverse these changes while increasing overall health and fitness to enjoy the retirement years.
Recommendations:
The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends people over 50 strength train 2-3 times a week in such a way that they exercise all major muscle groups. Ideally you should work with a weight that you can use to do 10-15 repetitions of an exercise, with the last 1-2 being difficult but not impossible to complete. While some muscle soreness is expected the day after a strength workout, you should never experience sharp sudden pain while doing the individual movements. A feeling of excessive strain on a muscle or joint may be a sign of improper form or that you are using a weight that is to heavy to begin with.
Begin with Strength Training:
For individuals who haven’t been physically active in a long while, overall muscle weakness and flexibility problems can lead to injury. Beginning a strength exercise program before other activities can strengthen muscles, improve flexibility and lessen the chance of injuries from falls or over use that are a risk to anyone just starting a more prolonged type of workout.
The ACSM suggests that strength exercises done for 20-30 minutes 2-3 times per week combined with 20-30 minutes of a cardiovascular exercise such as walking,running or biking 3-5 times a week. Stretching is also recommended after exercising when muscles are warm rather than before exercise sessions as is commonly thought.
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