As you age, you’re at a higher risk of suffering from injuries, falls, and many chronic diseases. Fortunately, regular exercise can strengthen your body and help protect you from these risks.
It’s quite possible to improve your health at any age. That’s why anyone, especially those over 40, should approach their exercise regimen with a plan. And that plan needs to include a disciplined strength training regimen.
Strength Training Prevents Injury
It’s no secret that strength training can boost metabolism, fat loss, and can help improve bone density. But your physical strength is also your primary defense against injuries, including arthritis.
Let’s say you enjoy running, but don’t regularly strengthen your muscles or take enough time to recover. Without proper strength training, you won’t have the muscular strength needed to mitigate the impact of the ground on your weight-bearing joints. Eventually, the wear and tear on your muscles and joints will develop into more painful injuries like tendinitis, osteoarthritis, and stress fractures.
To reduce your risk of injury, try adding a few strength training exercises to your daily fitness routine. With a good strength training regimen, you’ll be protecting your joints while improving your run.
Benefits Of Warm-Ups And Cooldowns
The warm-up and cooldown components of a workout program are also essential for older athletes. You should never skip a 10-minute warm up. For those over 40, the optimal warm-up should include a core resistance training component (ex: climbing stairs, using an elliptical, performing planks, lunges, or squats).
After any intense exercise, follow it up with an adequate cooldown. The soreness you feel after a workout is partly due to chemicals like lactic acid that build up in muscles, causing inflammation and stiffness. When we’re younger, our bodies can recover much faster, but as we age the recovery process also slows down. Adding a cooldown period to your workout routine can help your body adapt to the change in workout intensity and reduce muscle soreness after a workout.
Forming Daily Habits
For many, the first steps on the road to a healthier lifestyle are often the hardest. If you’re used to a more sedentary lifestyle and don’t know where to start, try developing healthy habits one step at a time.
Exercise isn’t just something that’s done in a gym. Movement is exercise, and even simple changes like taking the steps instead of the elevator can be a huge step towards a more active lifestyle. A workout can include housework, outdoor chores, or going for a walk with a friend. Develop lasting healthy habits by starting small and building your stamina and strength over time.
Active Recovery
If an injury or chronic pain has kept you from your favorite activities, schedule an appointment with us. We can find the root cause of your pain and fix it fast, so you can start working towards a healthier you. Pain shouldn’t stop you from living a healthy life, and with Airrosti, it won’t.
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