603 living / health
Active Aging Think you’re too old to exercise? Think again. by Karen A. Jamrog illustrations by nadia Divakova
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ir Isaac Newton said that a body in motion stays in motion. He might have had physics in mind, but you could say the same principle applies to the human body. Research shows that physical activity, even in adults who don’t develop an exercise habit until late in life, supports overall health and well-being as it helps prevent or even reverse disease and disorders that can occur with age. So, although you might need to scale back your athletic ambitions over time, you shouldn’t give up and resign yourself to the couch. “When I work with older adults, they might still be just as active, but their goals are reshaped” from, say, running a 7-minute mile to simply staying active to maintain health and fitness and feel good, says Summer Cook, Ph.D., associate professor of exercise science in the department of kine-
siology at UNH in Durham. “Absolutely, we should continue to exercise all throughout our lifespan.” Indeed, there are lots of benefits related to physical activity at any age, says Masooma Athar, M.D., C.M.D., medical director and section chief of the department of geriatrics at Elliot Health System. “I tell my patients, ‘If you don’t use it, you lose it.’ ... The more active you are, the more benefit you’ll see over time.” What about body parts that ache, creak, groan or pop — which is common in older bodies? Most often, they are not a reason to skip exercise, although in some cases workout modifications might be necessary. Consult with your doctor, and do not exercise through excruciating pain, of course, but some discomfort during and after exercise is acceptable and even expected, especially if you work muscles that have been neglected for years. “A lot of times, those little aches will get better as we exercise,” Cook says. “As our body gets warmed up, there’s more
blood flow to the muscle,” and over time, we gain better mobility. Exercise can also combat the natural declines in muscle and bone density that begin when we are relatively young. Strong muscles support joints, and minerally dense bones help protect us from bone fractures, which are a major problem among older adults. “Weight-bearing exercise is the most important thing that older adults can do to slow the loss of bone-mineral density,” Cook says. “If we exercise all throughout our lifespan and do weight-bearing exercises, we’re going to have a pretty slow loss of bone-mineral density.” Examples of weight-bearing exercises include walking, jogging, dancing, playing tennis or pickleball, and strengthening activities such as working out with dumbbells, weight machines at a gym, or body weight to perform push-ups, lunges and squats. If you’re new to exercise, check with your doctor about which types of exercise are safe for you and then gradually build up to what you can tolerate, Athar says. Individuals who are unsure of which exercises to do or how to do them might also want to work with a physical therapist or certified personal trainer to develop a program that is tailored for their needs. Beginners and longtime exercisers alike should aim to perform weight-bearing exercises at least twice a week. In addition to strength training, don’t forget to include in your workout regimen exercises that require balance. Just as muscle mass and bone density decline as we age, so does our ability to balance, which contributes to the falls that are common among older adults. Balance exercises become important, Cook says, especially by the time we enter our 50s or 60s. Even people who have osteoporosis and worry about injury during workouts can benefit from exercise. After receiving guidance as to which activities are safe for them,
“I tell my patients, ‘If you don’t use it, you lose it.’ ... The more active you are, the more benefit you’ll see over time.” — Masooma Athar, M.D., C.M.D. 102
nhmagazine.com | March/April 2021
