| Price : $279.65
At this moment, you have two choices. You can continue the
process of becoming weaker, day by day, as your muscles
atrophy from disuse. Or you can choose to become stronger
and to maintain your strength and independence as long as
possible.
After we reach maturation at about age 30, we begin the
long process of aging as we lose half a pound of muscle
each year--unless we work at keeping that muscle from
atrophying. This choice is even more critical as we reach
our 60s and 70s and the process of becoming weaker
accelerates.
Strength training --strength exercise--is one of the best
methods to retain muscle. Its definition is "moving the
muscles dynamically against resistance--usually weights
or body weight--to strengthen muscles, bones and
connective tissues." Strength training is also called "weight
lifting" or "resistance training." The goal is to cause muscles
to increase in size and strength, and also to increase
tendon, bone, and ligament strength. If you are over 70
years of age, you have probably never lifted weights. And you
may not know that doing so can help retard the aging
process in your body
.
Before 1900, strength training was thought to be a form of
exercise that was not meant for the average person. It was
believed that weight training would actually diminish athletic
abilities and the only men who lifted weights were circus
strongmen.
In the 1930s, athletes began to experiment with weight
lifting and now every professional sports team has trainers
on staff and almost all athletes lift weights in order to
perform better in the sport of their choosing.
However, until the 1980s it was still believed that loss of
muscle and strength as people got older was inevitable and
nothing could be done about it. Strength training programs
for older participants placed them on a program of lifting
weights that were only one-half as heavy as the maximum
they could lift one time. Younger participants lifted at least
80 percent of the amount they could lift only once, but it was
believed that using heavier weights for older people would
cause injuries or cardiac problems.
In the late 1980s scientists at Tufts University in Boston,
Massachusetts decided to strength train a group of
volunteers--men in their sixties and seventies--at a higher
intensity than had ever been done before. They worked the
volunteers at 80 percent of their capacity--and the results
shattered myths about aging. There were no injuries or
cardiac episodes. In twelve weeks, the muscles they had
been exercising became 10 to 12 percent larger and 100 to
175 percent stronger.
These results inspired another researcher to work with the
frail elderly in a nursing home environment. Six men and
four women volunteered for this program, ranging in age
from 86 to 96. In eight weeks, they increased their strength
by an average of 175 percent. Two participants discarded
their canes because they didn't need them any more.
From this research has evolved a new interest in weight
lifting--strength training--for older adults. But it is more
than merely a new interest--it offers older adults an
alternative to the expected decrease in physical abilities and
susceptibilities to illnesses and injuries. In other words,
seniors now have hope of remaining strong and
independent as they age. The downward spiral to the
nursing home can be bypassed or at least delayed.
I became interested in weight lifting for older adults when I
decided to become a certified personal trainer. I researched
the various organizations who offered certifications and
chose International Sports Sciences Association (ISSA)
because they stressed weight lifting. I attended the two-day
training, passed the test and received my certificate.
I loved lifting weights--seeing my arm muscles become
defined and my body become firmer. I decided to share this
with other older adults, so I contacted a local continuing
education program for seniors and asked if they offered a
class on weight lifting. The answer was "no," so I submitted
a proposal for a class which was accepted.
The first class had only a handful of participants, but it was
offered again the next quarter and more people signed up.
Attendance continued to grow. I had originally envisioned
that people would take the eight-week class to learn how to
work out at home. But soon I had a core of class members
who signed up each quarter. They enjoyed the camaraderie
and encouragement of the class. They began to tell me how
strength training was changing their lives. Ordinary tasks
that had been difficult were now easy. Women told me that
they could lift bags of top soil from their vehicles without
having to wait for help. Shoulders became less painful;
knees didn't hurt so much.
To continue learning about working with older adults, I set
up a pilot program at a local assisted living home. The
residents there experienced the same results: stronger
legs, increased independence, improved self-esteem.
Most exercise programs for "senior citizens" are done while
seated in a chair. I do not know when or where this idea
came from, but it remains prevalent. I am thankful that I
never learned how to teach exercise this way.
Because I was a personal trainer, I designed my workout
from a trainer's point of view using strength training
principles and from the information I received from Tufts
University. I had class members do squats, ballet squats,
side kicks (lift the leg out to the side) and mule kicks (lift the
leg up behind the body). These exercises use only body
weight. With dumbbells we did overhead presses, two-arm
upright rows, biceps curls and triceps extensions. And I
encouraged them to move up in weight as they became
stronger.
Often women are afraid to lift weights because they think
they will get huge muscles--but that doesn't happen to
females. What does happen is that the "bat wings" hanging
below their upper arms become firmer and less saggy.
Another concern is that they will have to get hot and sweaty
while they exercise. But doing a simple strength routine with
light and medium weights doesn't have that result, either.
Many people who are unfamiliar with the concept of strength
training are hesitant to venture into this unknown arena.
They tell me that they are afraid they won't do the exercises
correctly and may injure themselves. Others say "I know I
should exercise, but I'm just too lazy" or "I worked hard all
my life and I'm not ever doing anything hard again."
I am asking you to reconsider this attitude and investigate
strength exercise. My web site http://www.strongover40.com
contains much information about aging as does my book
"Over 40 & Gettin' Stronger" It also has instructions on how
to do a simple workout using inexpensive dumbbells that
you can buy at a discount store such as Walmart.
Why not grow old with a strong body?
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
