According to Sport England’s yearly Active Lives survey, which asked over 177,000 UK adults about their fitness regimes, there are 1.3m more active people aged between 55 and 74 than there were six years ago, and more than half a million active folk aged over 75.
17th July 2023
Cardio-respiratory fitness, muscle and metabolic health, flexibility and balance deteriorate with age, but working out slows down the rate at which that happens. The study found there was a greater awareness among older people of the importance of staying fit – and that having a healthy body is essential for more quality years as we age.
Additionally, the range of options for working out has widened significantly, while an understanding has grown that exercise doesn’t have to be extreme or take the form of, say, a triathlon or marathon to be effective.
The key really is to find something you like doing and which suits your lifestyle. Try a variety, keep things fresh, but above all be consistent.
Peter Herbert, associate professor of the Centre for Health and Ageing at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David in Carmarthen, identified a trio of gym machine-based exercises that are enough to work the muscles needed to carry out functional movements including sitting, standing, squatting and balancing.
These three ‘multi-joint’ activities are:
These were found to be more effective than a standard gym regime of seven or eight popular exercises. What’s more, you don’t need to spend hours doing them each week. Two or three weekly sessions at the gym should be quite sufficient.
Additionally, given that lower-leg muscles can deteriorate more than others, squats are absolutely key exercises to do in middle age and beyond.
A study of people aged between 59 and 78 also found that some ageing effects, such as a decreased aerobic capacity, can be reversed by doing six 30-second sprints on a bike, interspersed with three minutes’ gentle cycling as recovery between each one, every five to 10 days.
Equally, balance and flexibility training is also important. You can do this with yoga, Pilates or tai chi classes, or simply by practicing standing on one leg as you brush your teeth.
Finally, bear in mind government recommendations that all adults should do some strength and resistance training twice weekly as a minimum.
Whatever your age, an al fresco workout at an outdoor gym can work wonders for keeping you healthy.
Fresh Air Fitness supplies outdoor gym equipment to councils, residential homes and other communities for senior fitness. Our outdoor fitness equipment include those to help people perform the multi-joint activities discussed above, strength and flexibility training and more, including products suitable for wheelchair users.
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