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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 21, 2002)
The INDEPENDENT, November 21, 2002 Page 15 Healthy Aging—You’re never too old (or too young) to get physical By Diane Lindsey You are never too old -- or too young -- to reap the bene fits of physical fitness! Regular physical activity has a multitude of benefits, both physical and psychological. The human body repairs itself and performs more efficiently with regular exercise and good nutrition. Many of the changes that are typically associated with aging can be prevented or lessened if by participating in regular exercise. This empow ers people to live their lives vig orously and alertly, and with plenty of energy to pursue our interests. To develop and maintain fit ness, The Healthy Aging Pro ject of the Washington County Department of Aging and Veter ans’ Services emphasizes the critical mix - endurance, strength, flexibility, and bal ance. These building blocks of fitness are key to staying healthy and independent. Endurance comes from aer obic activities, which increase breathing and heart rates for an extended period of time. Such activities improve the health of heart, lungs, and circulatory systems. The goal is to work your way up to a moderate-to- vigorous level of exercise that increases your breathing and heart rate. You can divide your exercise into sessions of no less than 10 minutes at a time, as long as they add up to a minimum of 30 minutes at the end of the day. (If you do less than 10 minutes at a time, you won’t get the desired cardio vascular and respiratory bene fits.) Strive to build up to a min imum of 30 minutes of en durance exercise on most or all days of the week. Endurance activities include walking, swimming, dancing, The businesses and organizations that advertise in the Independent make this community newspaper possible. Without them, births and deaths, meetings and events, celebrations and problems would continue... but the lack o f communication would diminish our community. When you go shopping for every-day items or for gifts, please support these advertisers. and cycling. Even gardening and housework, if done contin uously for about an hour, will in crease your heart rate and burn 160 to 300 calories, depending on how vigorously the tasks are performed. Strength training builds stronger muscles, strengthens bones, increases lean muscle mass, and supports joints. The stronger your body is, the less chance you have of injury through accidents. In addition, you will build a greater resist ance to illnesses. Even very small changes in muscle size can make a big dif ference in strength, especially in people who’ve already lost a lot of muscle. Strength exercis es also increase metabolism and that makes us more ener getic. And it’s critical in helping to prevent osteoporosis. Most strength exercises in volve lifting or pushing weights, and gradually increasing the amount of weight you use. You can also use a resistance band, which is like a giant rubber band; stretching it helps build muscles. It’s important to begin strength training using weights that you can lift for 8 - 12 repe titions, followed by a rest of about 60 seconds, then a sec ond set of repetitions. Gradual ly you will want to increase the weight to continue challenging your muscles. Always allow at least one day between strength training sessions to allow ade quate time for your muscles to recover. Flexibility comes from stretching exercises that help us to move more freely and maintain the ideal range in which muscles can bend and stretch around a joint. The greater range of motion that you have, the easier it will be to perform simple every day tasks such as climbing the stairs. Some suggestions for increas ing flexibility are yoga, tai chi, and basic stretching moves. Balance helps prevent falls, a major cause of injuries that can lead to loss of independ ence. Exercises that strengthen leg muscles and the lower body help improve b.alance. Doing your regular strength exercises will improve your balance at the same time. Try tai chi, yoga, dancing, and walking. Getting fit can be as simple as being active 30 minutes or more on most days. It doesn’t even have to be 30 minutes in a row, just a total of 30 minutes for the day. Make fitness an im portant part of your day. Exer cise with a friend, spouse, or neighbor. You don’t have to ex ercise hard to get the benefits, but you do need regular exer cise and activity to keep your body and mind sharp. So get up, get moving, and stick with it. Being physically fit is one of the choices each of us can make to enhance our "Healthy Aging"! Diane Lindsey is the coordi nator of the Healthy Aging Pro gram of the Washington Coun ty Department of Aging and Veterans’ Services. 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