Senior Workout

There are many Septuagenarians who are continuing active lives that directly contribute to their fitness.  For them, not much has changed that physically taxes their bodies.  As a result, their muscles, bones, mobility, flexibility, and stamina may not be what they once were, but they are still robust and functioning effectively.  However, for those of us who stopped or significantly reduced our work, relaxed into a more casual and less physical lifestyle, the activities that once fueled our fitness are likely less frequent, less strenuous, and possibly gone.  Yes, while more time to play pickle ball, golf, and walking are embraced by some, there are generally less hours per day that we are moving.  In my opinion, this has only contributed to the aging of my body.

When I was younger and working full time, effectiveness was paramount but efficiency was the route to getting more done in a shorter time.  If I could carry all of the items from my car to the kitchen, why make two trips?  If I could park close to the store, I’d save time walking from my car to the door and have more time to do all those things that needed to get done.  However, as an older man I now realize that I have more time and less things to get done.  What I do need to do is to attend to my fitness and health.  What was once efficient and effective may no longer be effective…for me.

So, given the fact that I am noticing declining strength, stamina, and flexibility despite the fact that I’m relatively active for my age, I have begun to notice daily activities that can further contribute to my well being simply by making a few changes in my environment and in my behavior.  The following are some of these adaptations that work for me.  I would love to know what others you may have that I could incorporate into my routines.

• When working in the garden, bringing in groceries, or moving items from one place to another, be less efficient.  Take items one or two at a time and make as many trips as possible to increase your step count for the day.  This includes parking as far away from the storefront as you are comfortable with.
• Place items you use daily (like pills for instance) in a cabinet or shelf that requires you to stretch!  (Up or down)  Alternate arms each day to increase your flexibility.
• When carrying items, consider them as weights and pump them up and down as you are walking.  (Wear a hoodie or make sure your neighbors aren’t watching while doing this!) 
• When I make or receive a phone call, I stand and begin walking around my house or yard.  One time I recorded an almost 2 mile phone call!
• Alternatively, when on the phone, get up and practice standing on one leg at a time.  (This way, if you fall, you can get immediate help from the person on the other end of the call!)
• Actually, I just thought of another phone call health activity that I haven’t tried but will be sure to do.  Leave a 5 or 10 pound weight in a place accessible to you when you are on the phone.  Then you can alternate hands while walking and talking while you pump iron! (Of course if you’re like me and can only concentrate on one thing at a time, you’ll likely have no idea who you talked to or what you said after you hang up.  Either that or you’ll crash into a chair or trip over the dog…ugh!)  Author’s note:  I am not responsible for any damage or injury caused by following these suggestions.  These are done entirely at your own risk.

I’m excited to hear of any you have come up with!

“I’m at an age when my back goes out more than I do.”

-Phyllis Diller

You Got To Move It, Move It!

Hen poses the challenge of maximizing opportunities for healthy activity now that we are sliding into the eighties. Good thoughts! You know, I actually feel as though I’m more active now than during my working years. That’s because my occupational life was spent at a computer workstation and on endless telephone or video meetings. When not at work, a good portion of my time was devoted to commuting fairly long distances or waiting in airports. In between, Linda and I sandwiched in child rearing, chores, and more active pursuits. 

My pursuits are less intense than they used to be, but I scurry around a lot during the day – I hate to sit still. My new health tracker routinely repots 7-13k daily steps, without any particular intent to do so. I’m learning what sharks and King Julien (Madagascar, the movie) already know – you’ve got to move it. Sitting is the enemy.

I don’t have any exercise hacks to report. I believe that it is important for older folks (or anyone) to focus on aerobics, strength training, and flexibility. Weekly tennis or pickleball provides some aerobics, although I need to find more opportunities like that, outside of jogging or planned walking (Sorry, I still need to have a real purpose or destination in order to walk). 

But aerobic activity is only part of the equation. One of the real issues for seniors is avoiding physical frailty. I believe that weight training is critical to maintain functional musculature and balance. I work out with free weights every other day: nothing special or impressive — five-to-ten-minute upper-body routines followed by five minutes on the stationary bike. It’s a longstanding habit. My goal is not to gain strength, but rather to ward off precipitous loss in tone. Flexibility is a real shortcoming for me – I need to improve my attention to stretching. I tried chair yoga and felt better,  but I’m too impatient to follow the discipline. 

Clearly, I’m no role model. I still have a weight issue and it is easy to lose commitment when a meeting or social engagement gets in the way. However, I see that consistency is really important. We can’t control our environment, but we can control our choices, especially when unforeseen events impede physical maintenance.  For example, injuries can hamper a routine. Last year, a wrist injury and a damaged shoulder prevented certain weight training activity. For the first time in many years, I had to lighten weight, but increase reps for particular exercise. It brought home the need to keep doing what you’ve always done, because it is difficult to regain a capability, as we age. 

A flexible attitude works wonders. When I was younger, I really resented wasted steps and rework. Everything needed to be done efficiently. But just as Hen relates, now I see taking extra steps as an opportunity. In addition, I find myself grateful that I have the ability to pick something off the floor that I dropped; go back to the car for things I forgot and should have remembered; and work in a very serial fashion, rather than multi-task. After attending to some ageing friends, a real take-away is that we have to constantly reassess how we will accomplish the daily necessities of life as we age. Preparation today is key for independent living in the future. That thought reminds me that I need to move it, move it!

Mind Over Body

Hen and Wally stress the value of movement.  I know it, I believe it, I feel it, but I can’t always convince myself to do it.  One reason is arthritis! It hurts to move! Feet and hands are especially difficult for me to move at times!  It pisses me off.  As a younger version of me I could never sit still. I would run instead of walk, ride a bike instead of run, dance whenever the radio was playing and generally my body was always moving, wiggling, twisting rather than remaining still and motionless!  That’s how I kept slim. As a young father we would go roller skating, ride bikes, play tag, race the kids up the stairs to go to bed!  Watching TV was done while folding the laundry, cleaning the dishes, always multi tasking where one of the tasks was movement of one variety or another. But that was then!

Most of my life was spent in perpetual motion! Standing still was boring!  It was inconceivable to spend a night on the sofa in front of the tv!  But back then movement didn’t mean hurting! Being an elementary teacher meant moving all the time!   Running around the room to work with kids, doing projects on the floor, playing with the kids on the playground at recess, always moving.  And then after retirement from 35 years of teaching I owned a bed and breakfast in Vermont. Serving food, In and out of the kitchen, helping folks up to their rooms with suitcases, stripping beds, lugging soiled laundry two flights down to the basement, lugging clean laundry back up to the rooms. Lifting mattresses to make the beds, cleaning bathrooms and doing the same thing over and over again. It was routine, automatic, had to be done, thoughtless!

Then retirement came and Covid struck! People stopped doing things, stopped socializing and life became more sedentary.  No one socialized, you only went out when absolutely necessary and I started becoming stationary.  Not because I wanted to but because there was no one to do stuff with.  The couch became your assigned seat. Activity consisted of moving from the couch to the refrigerator and back again.  The long walk to the fridge did not make up for the snacking that occurred out of boredom!  And over time the mind adjusted to the inactivity and the body accepted the lack of mobility.  Which brings me to today.

I have to do the things Wally and Henry talk about. I have started walking when the heat isn’t intolerable. Each time I walk I try to extend the walk by a block or two. I walk around my neighborhood and am meeting new neighbors and other walkers.  When I go to a store I park in distant spots so that I have to hike to get in.  I walk through the aisles a couple times just to get more steps in. When I have doctor appointments I park around the block so that I have to walk a ways to get there and I climb the stairs instead of using the elevator.  I really try to make an effort to move!  And sometimes it hurts. But here’s the thing…..it isn’t my body that is fussing, it is my mind!  I am constantly fighting my mind.  It doesn’t want to send my body out on motion responsibilities. Why bother when the couch is so comfortable?  In this heat is it really worth the effort?  It will cool down later and I can go for a walk then unless it rains!  You get the picture!  Living alone I don’t have someone to debate these issues with!  My arguments for inactivity are weak, yet effective.  I try not to succumb to my immobile thoughts but sometimes they are so strong they simply overpower logic!  With 80 approaching very quickly I understand the consequences of inactivity but with age comes wisdom and I can often push that off to the side and  say what the heck, I want to finish this book!