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In 2008, there were 39 million people over the age of 65 living in the United States. The number of the elderly is increasing dramatically because of the baby boomers getting older and older. ("Older americans 2010" 2010) With that being said these aging adults need to have some sort of change in their lifestyle in order to keep them healthy. As a person ages their body grows weaker and the person soon finds out they cannot do the things they used to. However, if the person exercises and eats right, it will have a huge impact on their life and slow down the deterioration of their body. If a person doesn’t exercise or eat right it greatly influences their chance at getting sick much earlier in life. This causes them to have a longer period of morbidity before they die. As a health promoter, you want to compress the gap between morbidity and mortality. It is vital for them to have the longest and healthiest lifestyle possible before they die. In this paper I will cover many topics including muscular strength, muscular endurance, cardiovascular endurance, flexibility, balance, coordination, and osteoporosis.As you age, bones will lose some density and become shorter. Muscular strength and endurance also decreases with age, and causes the person to be less mobile and less coordinated. Maintaining muscular strength and endurance becomes very important as you age, because of the decrease in bone density. (Ferrara, 2011) By exercising the muscles it can decrease the chance of getting osteoporosis. That is why exercising for muscular strength and endurance is very important as you age, because it can help mobility. If you have stronger muscles you are able to do more and you will have more energy. ("Elderly strength training," 2011)Exercises for muscular strength and endurance can be done in a gym, fitness center, or even at home. It all depends how creative you want to get. If you just want to work out in a gym/fitness center that’s fine. There are free weights and machines that can be used there to target large and small muscle groups. When going to a fitness center, you want to start with large muscle groups first. This includes chest, legs, back, and shoulders. Then you work on smaller muscle groups such as biceps, triceps, and calves. You should pick what muscle groups you would like to work on and stick with that same group for the day. Then when you come for the next time, you should target a different group of muscles, allowing recovery time for the muscles that were just used the workout before. If you are working out at home, you may not have the fancy equipment that a fitness center may offer, but here’s your time to get creative. Fill an empty milk jug with sand or water and use it as a free weight. It is said that people who don’t exercise lose thirty to forty percent of their strength by the age of sixty-five. By the age of seventy-four, more than one-fourth of American men and two-thirds of American women can’t lift an object heavier than ten pounds. (Franko, 2000) There are many benefits of building muscular strength and endurance in senior citizens. It can help prevent osteoporosis, which is a common disease among the elderly. Having stronger muscles in your core and back will give you better posture. Strengthening your muscles can reduce the risk of falls and fractures, improve balance and coordination, and improve bone density. All of this can lead to a better quality of life during the senior years. (Block, 2012)Muscular strength and endurance exercises should be done no more than three times a week for thirty minutes. This will allow time for recovery. Perform two to three sets for ten repetitions. Allow time for rest in between sets. When exercising, make sure to have correct breathing. Don’t hold your breath, because it could increase blood pressure. Use smooth, steady movements when lifting. Don’t using jerking or thrusting movements. Make sure to stop exercising if you feel any pain or discomfort. (O'Brien, 2012)Another area where senior citizens need to work on is their cardiovascular endurance. Cardiovascular endurance is considered one of the most important aspects of fitness. This is important because as an individual person grows older their heart grows weaker and weaker. If a person starts working on their cardiovascular endurance at a younger age, it could add years to their life. Cardiovascular disease is a common disease associated with the elderly population. However, it can be prevented or delayed if the person were to start exercising. (Kravitz) There are tons of possibilities for cardiovascular exercise, and a lot of them can be done right at home. Walking around town can be the easiest and cheapest exercise around because all you need is yourself. In order to get your heart rate up, you need to walk at a brisk pace for a minimum of thirty minutes. Instead of driving to pick up your mail at the post office, walk there. Instead of driving to the grocery store to pick up a few items, walk there. It is a very simple task and can be completed with a spouse or a pet. Gardening is a popular way to gain cardiovascular endurance because most people have a garden. Planting, weeding, and harvesting are all very tough things to do that gets your heart rate up. Many senior citizens find gardening a very fun and enjoyable experience. On top of the cardiovascular endurance gained, one can gain the nutritional aspect of gardening for growing healthy fruits and vegetables. Another popular exercise among senior citizens is dancing. This can increase the heart rate in a hurry and is a very fun activity to do. Many senior and recreational centers offer dance classes, so all you have to do is sign up for a dance you would like to learn. Dancing also covers the balance and coordination aspect of fitness and is a very enjoyable social experience. Swimming is a popular cardiovascular exercise and works the entire body. Many senior and recreational centers offer classes such as water aerobics to work the cardiovascular system. Many land based exercises such as walking can be done in the water. There is less resistance on the body in the water due to the buoyancy, thus creating an easier, yet beneficial workout. (Welch, 2010)When prescribing cardiovascular exercise for an elderly person, it is best if the individual would consult a doctor before exercising. An elderly person’s target heart rate is much lower than a thirty year old, and you have to take that into consideration. When working with an elderly person, you aren’t going to have them run five miles the first day. Take baby steps and make progress each and every day you are training them. Start them off easy and progressively increase the difficulty. Cardiovascular exercise should be done for a minimum of thirty minutes a day, three to five times a week. Make sure they stretch before and after the workout.Flexibility is an important aspect of fitness for the elderly too. Stretching helps with range of motion and decreases the chance for an injury. As you get older, the harder it is to do common every day activities, but having good flexibility can make it much easier. Stretching is also important for the elderly before and after an exercise. Stretching is beneficial in many ways such as improving circulation, posture, and range of motion. When warming up for an exercise, stretching helps raise the body temperature, increases blood flow, and promotes oxygen supply to the muscles. When cooling down from an exercise, stretching prevents blood from pooling, prevents lactic acid from building up in the muscles, and helps muscles relax. (Tousi)Many flexibility exercises can be done right at home and many of the same guidelines apply for stretching with the elderly. When stretching, breathe out as you reach for the stretch and breathe in when you release the stretch. The stretch should not cause any pain or discomfort, however, if it does release the stretch and try again, but don’t go as far. Repeat each stretch three to five times and hold for ten to thirty seconds. Stretching is known to reduce stress and help you relax. There are also classes offered for yoga and tai chi, both of which are a good way to improve flexibility. (Mulrooney , 2011)As a person grows older their balance and coordination decreases, thus increasing their chance of a fall. (Tremblay Jr., 2011) Falls are extremely common among senior citizens and are responsible for more than 18,000 deaths and approximately 450,000 hospitalizations a year in the United States. (Hanc, 2010) Falls are normally attributed to a decrease in bone density and lack of physical activity. Dr. David Thurman, a neurologist for the American Academy of Neurology says, “Evidence shows fairly convincingly that strength and balance training can reduce the rate of falls by up to about 50 percent.” (Hanc, 2010)Exercises that improve strength and balance can prevent falls among elderly people. Walking is the leading exercise to improve balance and strength and it can prevent falling. There are a variety of other balancing exercises that are beneficial to a person’s balance and coordination. For example, have the person stand on one leg and have them raise the other leg up off the floor. Have them hold the leg up for a couple seconds and then switch. That is a good balance and coordination exercise because you can do it at your home and doesn’t cost anything. (Hanc, 2010) Balancing balls and boards are also a good way to train for balance and coordination. However, these shouldn’t be used until the person has proven that they are ready for them, because these items are more difficult to use. Have them start off with the one leg balances and then transition them slowly into using the ball. The person can sit on the ball, and when they feel comfortable they can lift their feet off the ground. By tightening their core, they will be able to balance. Bosu balls are becoming increasingly popular, and can be used for balance and coordination exercises. Since it is basically and exercise ball cut in half, you don’t have to worry about the ball rolling away on you. It sits much closer to the floor, so it can be safer than using a regular exercise ball or balancing board. There are a variety of exercises that can be done with the bosu ball and classes are offered in recreation and senior centers. ("Bosu ball exercises," 2012)Osteoporosis is the thinning of bone tissue and loss of bone density over time, and is the most common type of bone disease. Nearly ten million people in the United States have osteoporosis, and another eighteen million are at an increased risk. Among those eighty percent are women. ("Osteoporosis exercise," 2012) Post-menopausal women can lose as much as two percent bone mass each year and men also lose bone mass as they age. ("Osteoporosis screening," 2002) As you can see, osteoporosis is a huge issue for an aging adult.It is never too late to start an exercise program, even if you already have osteoporosis or at high risk. ("Osteoporosis exercise," 2012) Good exercises for building and maintaining bone density are weight bearing exercises and muscle strengthening exercises. Walking or riding a bike are both beneficial activities that can help delay or prevent osteoporosis. Weight lifting is also a good activity to do to delay the onset of osteoporosis. Many people with osteoporosis believe that exercise increases the risk of injury, but the results are quite the opposite. A properly designed exercise program may prevent injury.In conclusion, exercise is very important no matter what age you are. The earlier you start getting active, the greater the impact it has on your life. Exercise and eating right should be a part of your daily life. If you aren’t exercising and eating right, start as soon as possible. Don’t wait until your seventy and say I should’ve exercised when I was twenty. It’s never too late to start exercising so get out and get active. You will thank yourself in the long run and I’m sure your body will thank you for it too. Works CitedBlock, W. (2012). Endurance exercises for seniors. Retrieved from Bosu ball exercises. (2012). Retrieved from Elderly strength training for seniors. (2011). Retrieved from , D. (2011, February 16). Bone density, muscle strength & the elderly. Retrieved from Franko, J. (2000). Five important reasons to exercise. Retrieved from , J. (2010, September 15). Staying on balance, with the help of exercises. Retrieved from Kravitz, L. (n.d.). The age antidote. Retrieved from folder/age.htmlMulrooney , M. (2011, May 26). Flexibility exercises for the elderly. Retrieved from O'Brien, S. (2012). Strength exercises for seniors: Build muscle, increase metabolism. Retrieved from Older americans 2010: Key indicators of well-being. (2010). Retrieved from Osteoporosis exercise. (2012). Retrieved from Osteoporosis screening. (2002). Retrieved from Tousi, A. (n.d.). Importance of warm-up and stretching. Retrieved from Tremblay Jr., K. R. (2011, August 2011). Preventing falls in the elderly. Retrieved from Welch, C. (2010, April 13). Endurance exercises for seniors. Retrieved from ................
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