Corporate Fitness and Active Aging

You wake up one day, and something feels "off." You helped your friend move into their new apartment yesterday, so you expect to be a little sore. As you take your first step out of bed, a jolt of electricity shoots up your leg, and your knee buckles. You stay down on your bad knee, staring at the ground in shock. It's happening.

I call this the "Awakening." Simply put, you are realizing that your body is feeling the wear and tear of life to this point. It’s that realization that at 40 years old, you shouldn't move through life like you're 20. The point at which an individual becomes self-aware of these aches and pains varies from person to person. Some people don’t have substantial damage to their body and can probably make it well past their 20s before being bothered. My experience, like a lot of other athletes I've talked to, is one where we start to feel the damage a bit earlier than expected. It's like a car that is supposed to be driven ten thousand miles a year but is instead driven twenty thousand. The good part of the awakening process is that it is your call to action!

Awareness is often the first step in meaningful change. If we can acknowledge that we aren’t getting any younger and that our bodies are going to break down as we age, we can start to put a plan together to at least slow down the process. I am a firm believer that movement is medicine, so in the rest of this post, I will address fitness regarding aging. Here are three key principles to help you combat the wear and tear on the body as you age through health and fitness:

1. Warmups and Mobility Work Are Your Best Friends
   Just as a newer car can heat up quickly, an older car might need a few minutes to warm up. The same applies to our bodies. If I went to play soccer without warming up like I was a teenager, I would need a stretcher back to my car. Be sure to include a solid dynamic warmup before any form of exercise. Mobility drills, especially for the shoulders and ankles, can also really help with injury prevention and aging gracefully.
2. Be Honest with Yourself
   You wake up and look in the mirror every day. For the most part, we all can at least generalize what fitness level we are at. If I had a scale of 1-5, with 5 being a professional athlete-caliber workout, why would I try those at level 1? Be real with yourself and scale the intensity and exercise selection to your current fitness level.
3. Consistency Is the End Goal
   From my experience working at a retirement community, the people who were in the best physical condition at seventy-plus years old were those who got their exercise in daily. Whether it was group fitness, individual time on the stationary bike, or walking the dog, they made sure to make it work for them. Consistency trumps all because it will allow the body to build strength and resiliency to combat the inevitable weakening that comes with time.

While becoming aware of one’s own limitations may seem discouraging, a slight shift in perspective can help. Imagine having the freedom to move through life without restriction. Ultimately, I believe we desire freedom. Our body is something we have control over, so take matters into your hands and liberate your future self today.

When you live with chronic pain, the only one who can know how much it hurts is you. Pain can be hard to describe because it’s both invisible and personal. If you can’t put into words how much pain you’re in or how it affects your life, your doctor, physical therapist or fitness trainer can’t prescribe the right treatment or exercises for you. Go through these questions to help you get the relief you need.  

What Does the Pain Feel Like?  

Be as specific as possible about how your pain feels to help your doctor figure out what is wrong.  Here are a few words you can use to describe the way your pain feels, and how your doctor might interpret them:  

• Aching, dull: muscle strains, arthritis pain  
• Shooting, electric, tingling, burning, pins-and-needles: nerve pain  
• Sharp, stabbing: injuries such as a broken bone, muscle or ligament tear, or penetrating wound 
• Throbbing: headache, abscess, gout  
• Tightness: muscle spasm

Where do you have Pain? Describe exactly where you hurt. 

Here are a few examples:   

• Deep in my shoulder joint or in the muscles near the surface. 
• Under the kneecap or in the back of the knee. 
• The outside of my hip or in my groin.  
• Is the pain in only one spot, or does it travel?  
• Does the pain remain steady, come and go, or only flare up when you move in a certain way? 

How Much Does it Hurt?  

Explain the intensity of your pain. That’s where the pain scale comes in. Your doctor will likely ask you to “rate” your pain on a scale of 0 to 10 – where 0 is pain-free and 10 is unimaginable pain. The doctor can use your score to help determine what type of treatment you may need.  

How Does the Pain Affect Your Life?  

Tell your doctor which activities you’ve had to adjust, and which ones you now avoid entirely because of your pain. The impact the pain has on your life is just as important as the pain itself.  

Examples of life changes:   

• Have you been skipping your morning walk because of the pain?  
• Are you missing out on normal activities?  
• Can you barely get out of bed in the morning?  
• Does the pain leave you so drained and depressed that you don’t want to be around people?  

When Do You Hurt?  

Try keeping a journal to help you track when in the day your pain is at its worst. The timing of pain can help your doctor fine-tune your treatment. For example, if you tell your doctor you have higher pain in the morning versus the evening, they can adjust your treatment. 

What Helps/Worsens Your Pain?  

Make note in your journal what you’ve tried to relieve the pain (rest, ice, heat, over-the-counter pain medicine). Did they ease the pain, have no effect or make it more intense?  

With a good description of your pain, your doctor will have a better chance of getting you the relief you need. But even when your doctor knows the cause of your pain, treatment might not be a quick fix. It a trial-and-error process that takes time. Be patient, but persistent.  

When we think of aging, some think about wrinkles, aches, and pains and the negative associations of the aging process. Yet there is so much more to aging! No, we cannot stop the aging process, but we can choose to live a healthy lifestyle. This is the time to do things you have never done and find enjoyment.   Here are just a few things to consider when aging gracefully and living your best life!

Be nice to your skin

To keep your skin looking and feeling at its best:

• Stay hydrate. On average we should drink 7-8 cups of water a day to keep our skin looking good and our body functioning appropriately. When we become dehydrated our skin can become dry and folded.
• Wear sunscreen and even a hat to keep the sun off your face
• Wear sunglasses when outdoors to protect your eyes from sun damage
• Use gentle skin care products
• Make sure and have a yearly skin cancer screening

Exercise

Regular exercise helps control your cholesterol, blood pressure, body weight, and reduces the risk of hardening of the arteries, stroke, and heart attack. A good fitness program conditions muscles, tendons, ligaments, and bones to stimulate bone growth and helps prevent osteoporosis while keeping your body limber and lowering your chances of injury. Exercise is also good for managing low back pain, arthritis, and diabetes. Incorporating regular exercise into your life can help you feel better, sleep better and give you the endurance to enjoy your best life.

• It is recommended to participate in cardiovascular exercise 3-5x/week for 30-60 minutes. Walking, dancing, and cycling are examples of cardiovascular exercise.
• It is also recommended to do strengthening exercises 2-3/week. These exercises can be done with weights or bands.

Proper Diet

• Eat food high in fiber to help with healthy digestion and to avoid constipation. High fiber foods will also make your belly full!   Men 51+ need 30 grams of fiber and women 51+ need 21 grams of fiber daily. When increasing your fiber intake start slow and work up to the proper daily intake.
• Fill your plate with 50% fruits and veggies, 25% grains and 25% lean protein. Try to use fresh fruits and veggies that aren’t saturated in sugars and sauces. When choosing grains look for items that are whole grain such as bread, cereals, rice or pasta. And when choosing proteins go for the those that are lean in fat such as peanut butter, nuts/seed, bean, fish, or chicken.
• Limit foods high in cholesterol, sugar and saturated or trans fats.
• Refer to myplate.org for more dietary guidelines for older adults

Mental Health and Mindfulness

Being happy and healthy goes a long way when it comes to mental health. Many factors can affect our mental health and some we don’t even realize. Being mindful of our stresses can improve our focus and our memory.

• To keep your mental health in check surround yourself with good people. People who motivate you to be better and give off positive energy. Spend time with family, friends and loved ones.
• Accept your age. Aging is unavoidable so learn to embrace it and live that best life
• Get sleep. Aim for seven to eight hours of sleep a night. Shut off the electronics and let your brain relax and let your body rest. Getting enough sleep can help reduce stress, depression and even lower your risk of obesity.
• Accept and live in the moment. Focus on the present and don’t stress over things you can’t fix. Engage in activities such as yoga or tai chi.

Though aging is inevitable we can influence how our journey goes.   It is never too late to start making healthy choices for a healthier happy future. Now is the time to age with grace and start living your best life!!

Have you wanted to create a healthier lifestyle, but don’t quite know how to get there? Maybe you have tried before, but haven’t been able to stick to your goals? Or life has thrown you a curveball (hello COVID-19 lockdowns) and you got knocked off track. It can be hard to keep yourself motivated to make good decisions every single day. Instead of relying on self-discipline to make these changes, studies have found that taking those healthy goals and turning them into habits might be the most efficient way to enact the changes you want to see! Do you have any habits you want to add to your routine?

• First things first, start slowly! No matter how good your goal is, no matter how much you want to achieve it, working slowly helps ensure your new habit will stick. All behavior change comes with its highs and lows but working slowly helps keep you from losing your focus when things get hard. Embrace each level of success when developing a new healthy habit!
• Be sure your goal is clearly defined. Did you lose your exercise routine during the COVID-19 pandemic and now want to exercise more? Exercising more is a vague goal. You’re more likely to make progress towards your goal if you have a clear goal post. Think about how often and what kind of exercising you want to do.
• Break goals into smaller, more actionable steps. Creating a new habit can be intimidating. See if there is way to reduce your goal into smaller pieces. Maybe exercising more means you need to start with staying hydrated. Start carrying a water bottle around with you, so you’re reminded to drink water throughout the day. I like to make a pitcher of fruit infused water and leave it in my fridge, so I always have a refreshing drink at hand! As you adjust to these new, small habits, you can move on to the next step towards your goal.
• Try to make it easy for yourself! Decrease the barriers that slow you down, so good habits can become automatic. Do you find it hard to get up and go to a morning exercise class? Try lying out your workout clothes before you go to sleep. When you wake up, you know you’ve already committed to going to your exercise class, so it’s easier to get up and go.
• Give yourself cues to remind you of your new healthy behavior. Are you trying to add lateral exercises to your daily routine? Habit stacking is a great way to incorporate new behaviors. If you make coffee every morning, you can stand at the counter and take lateral steps back and forth while your coffee brews. That way you are working towards your larger goal of exercising more without even having to think about it.
• Get a friend on it with you. Having a partner to help encourage you to reach your goals can help them become that much easier to reach.

New habits are hard to form; that’s a part of life. Keep going and set yourself up for success. Healthy behaviors don’t have to be about will power. Take the effort out of healthy living and make healthy lifestyle decisions into habits. What new healthy choices are you working towards making a habit?

The more we age, the less we move, and the more we start to take our health for granted, especially if we have been “healthy” for most of our lives. We often hear about the need to exercise more as we get older, but what about the nutrition aspect? Eating healthy foods is just as important as exercising. There are some good practices and tricks to maintaining a healthy diet and exercising plan as we age.

Why Healthy Eating Is Important

The first thing you must understand is why it is so important to eat healthier as you age. The number-one benefit is lowering risk of having chronic diseases such as cancer, heart conditions, diabetes, and bone disorders. Exercising and healthy eating work together, especially when talking about weight management.

Everyone Is Different

Individuality is a key component, and it’s very touchy when talking about exercise and the nutrition that goes with that because everyone responds to certain foods and exercise differently. Talking to a medical professional about a healthy weight based on age is a good starting point.

Choosing the Right Foods

The best and worst part of nutrition is deciding what foods to eat and which ones you will need to avoid from now on. The more we age, the more our plates should look like a salad bowl rather than an egg carton. Foods such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, fat-free or low-fat milk, seafood, and lean meats are all good food sources to consider when taking a better approach to healthy eating. Avoid foods that contain a lot of sugar, salt, and butter, and fewer nutrients.

Portion Control

Before thinking about a healthy exercise plan, understand that you do not need to eat as much as you did when you were younger. Portion control is very real and can be the deciding factor when it comes to gaining or losing weight. Tips for avoiding overeating include

• Don’t let yourself be distracted by entertainment and lose track of how much you’re eating.
• Read about the nutritional facts on food labels.
• Once you are full, stop eating.
• Avoid going out to eat because restaurants give more food than they should.
• Try to cook meals at home that look like a salad bowl.
• Store leftovers in the fridge before you make plates.

Evaluate Your Physical Activity Needs and Find an Activity You Like

Aging happens every day, so take a step back and evaluate what needs your body has when it comes to physical activity. The first step of being active is talking to a physician about precautions you should take, especially if it has been a while since your last physical activity session. Aerobic endurance, resistance training, and balance should be the focus when it comes to being active and aging. The ACSM guidelines for adults and aerobic endurance is at least 150 minutes of moderate activity. Older adults should strive for at least 2 days of strengthening their muscles, and they should practice improvements on balance at least 3 days a week.

Physical activity does not have to be in a fitness center; finding something to enjoy is the key, such as corn toss, pickleball, shuffleboard, water aerobics, Tai Chi, yoga, or pool volleyball. Of course a balance class also helps meet goals for active older adults who are driven to exercise.

Aging can be challenging and unpredictable, but with both healthy eating and exercise, it can be easier and more fun.

Click below for our free download on the benefits of meeting with a nutrition coach.

Stay active as you age by putting on your dancing shoes! Fred Astaire said “Dancing is a sweat job!” But you don’t have to break a sweat to obtain the benefits of dancing; they have been proven to be unsurpassable. Dancing can be a fun for your residents, it can add a social element to your community, and it's a really good way to keep exercise exciting!

Fitness Benefits of Dancing

Here is a list of some healthy reasons to dance your way to fitness:

• Improved cardiovascular, muscular strength, and flexibility.
• Promotes healthy blood pressure, cholesterol levels, triglyceride levels, and blood sugar.
• Coordination improves as you work through the different movements.
• Lung capacity can increase.
• Bone strength can increase; bone loss can be stopped or slowed down.
• Assists with weight control—half an hour of continuous line dancing can burn an average of 300 calories.
• The social aspects of line dancing are obvious. Your sense of well-being and the camaraderie you have with the other dancers is wonderful for your health.

In addition to the above, did you know that dancing is an excellent brain exercise? It integrates several brain functions at once, increasing connectivity. As people age, maintaining memory and continuing to challenge intelligence is a real priority. What better way than to dance? Dancing requires memorizing steps, and that provides mental challenges that are crucial for brain health. Consider the fact that to execute a dance you need to remember the specific steps that flow in a sequence, and the brain has to inform the body how to move in a timely manner.

Not only does the physical aspect of dancing increase blood flow to the brain, but the social aspect of the activity leads to less stress, depression, and loneliness, which can also cause memory issues.

What Dancing Can Do for Your Balance

Dancing is also all about balance. Dancing consists of changing up the steps, arm patterns, formations, speed, and rhythm. All of these factors play a significant role in maintaining balance. Just envision doing the grapevine movement, where you must maintain balance as one leg crosses behind the other all while in motion.

Read our blog [Balance Programs: Are you meeting your residents needs?]

Not to mention that when you are dancing you are also dual-tasking. Dual-tasking has shown to improve gait and balance because everyday life involves doing one or more things simultaneously (walking and talking, or moving forward and looking to the side as examples). Therefore, when you’re moving your feet one way and arms or head the other in a dance routine, you are dual-tasking. Also don’t forget the fact that you’re having to think which steps come next.

Try the Grapevine Movement

Want to get started? Here’s the simple grapevine movement. Safety always comes first. Designate a place where you can reach to hold on if necessary, and modify your movements if crossing one foot behind the other is too challenging.

A grapevine is a series of steps in one direction, stepping to the side. Count 1, 2, 3, 4 to the beat of the music and do the following:

• Step to the right with the right foot.
• Cross the left foot behind the right foot. (You can modify by just slightly stepping back and not crossing entirely.)
• Step right with the right foot, uncrossing your feet.
• Close your feet together.
• Repeat stepping to the left with your left foot as well.

See how NIFS Premier Balance Redefined Programming enhances resident wellbeing. Download our Media Kit below.