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Staying fit in advanced age

Posted by Rod @rek, Nov 9, 2023

I'm 76 and have been working to maintain fitness actively for about 10 years now. I have come to recognize how age affects our physical abilities. My heart rate won't ever pass 170 again. I have to be careful on training. If I train too often, I get hurt now. I can't run every day. The legs get sore and don't have time to recover. That's also when I can injure joints. On the other hand, I still seem to be able to gain strength through careful repetition, my balance keeps improving with training, and flexibility as well although there seems to be a real limit to my ageing joints. Oh yes, I seem to be out of breath more quickly as I age. And all of this remains uncertain.
I don't know what is normal for a 76 year old healthy male, how I can improve abilities or should I work more to preserve present ability? There don't seem to be many men or women my age to compare to. I'd love to join a workout community or some such thing but I sure don't know how to get started.

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wascaly | @wascaly | Jan 19 11:09am

I’ve been lifting weights and doing cardiovascular exercise almost 30 years. I’m now 73, and you are soooo right about limitations as you age!
I used to be a runner (in my 30s) almost every day, but gave that up because
1. It was keeping me too skinny
2. It was too hard on my knees
So, I started lifting weights, a definite improvement to my body, plus a great way to gain strength. Yes, I gained a bit of weight, but it was much-needed.
I’ve had a total of 7 spine surgeries for scoliosis that began at age 58. In Feb, last year, I lost my balance (an ongoing problem) in the shower (of all places), and have been on a walker ever since. Needless to say, keeping fit has been extremely challenging when one has so many obstacles to overcome.
And you are right on point yet again - I never see many older people consistently lifting (especially women) and anyone at all on a walker, but I decided not to let younger, able-bodied people to intimidate me. I continue to lift and have pretty good definition, so I’m content.
I just wish I could do different cardio. All I can do is the recumbent bike, but I’m grateful to God I can do that, considering all the surgeries I’ve had.
Keep at it, and I promise to do the same as long as I can!

REPLY
2 replies
edsutton | @edsutton | Jan 19 1:05pm
In reply to @wascaly "I’ve been lifting weights and doing cardiovascular exercise almost 30 years. I’m now 73, and you..." + (show)
@wascaly

I’ve been lifting weights and doing cardiovascular exercise almost 30 years. I’m now 73, and you are soooo right about limitations as you age!
I used to be a runner (in my 30s) almost every day, but gave that up because
1. It was keeping me too skinny
2. It was too hard on my knees
So, I started lifting weights, a definite improvement to my body, plus a great way to gain strength. Yes, I gained a bit of weight, but it was much-needed.
I’ve had a total of 7 spine surgeries for scoliosis that began at age 58. In Feb, last year, I lost my balance (an ongoing problem) in the shower (of all places), and have been on a walker ever since. Needless to say, keeping fit has been extremely challenging when one has so many obstacles to overcome.
And you are right on point yet again - I never see many older people consistently lifting (especially women) and anyone at all on a walker, but I decided not to let younger, able-bodied people to intimidate me. I continue to lift and have pretty good definition, so I’m content.
I just wish I could do different cardio. All I can do is the recumbent bike, but I’m grateful to God I can do that, considering all the surgeries I’ve had.
Keep at it, and I promise to do the same as long as I can!

Jump to this post

Bravo, Wascaly!

REPLY
1 reply
Rod | @rek | Jan 19 2:48pm
In reply to @wascaly "I’ve been lifting weights and doing cardiovascular exercise almost 30 years. I’m now 73, and you..." + (show)
@wascaly

I’ve been lifting weights and doing cardiovascular exercise almost 30 years. I’m now 73, and you are soooo right about limitations as you age!
I used to be a runner (in my 30s) almost every day, but gave that up because
1. It was keeping me too skinny
2. It was too hard on my knees
So, I started lifting weights, a definite improvement to my body, plus a great way to gain strength. Yes, I gained a bit of weight, but it was much-needed.
I’ve had a total of 7 spine surgeries for scoliosis that began at age 58. In Feb, last year, I lost my balance (an ongoing problem) in the shower (of all places), and have been on a walker ever since. Needless to say, keeping fit has been extremely challenging when one has so many obstacles to overcome.
And you are right on point yet again - I never see many older people consistently lifting (especially women) and anyone at all on a walker, but I decided not to let younger, able-bodied people to intimidate me. I continue to lift and have pretty good definition, so I’m content.
I just wish I could do different cardio. All I can do is the recumbent bike, but I’m grateful to God I can do that, considering all the surgeries I’ve had.
Keep at it, and I promise to do the same as long as I can!

Jump to this post

Your story is very interesting. You make me realize how lucky I am to be 76 and have no real debilitating injuries to work around. Albeit at this age we have enough age related soreness to partially make up for that. And as the rank amatuer civilian athlete I am, how you approach this seems seems good to me. It makes me wonder though. If ageing were a sport and the goal was to win the race or lift more than any other old codger (codgerette?), maybe there would be more science about this goal to achieve the best possible fitness. Right now we all sort of self-medicate with input from younger fitness gurus and peers. Maybe we don't do enough. Maybe we do too much or work in less productive ways. I'm quite sure that what I bring to the fitness table now are mainly
experiences from my young life and I try to match that while avoiding routines that don't seem doable to me anymore. Working with my trainer and physical therapist I seem to be learning how to work around and minimize injuries, but then I do something stupid and I'm hurt again for a few months. And every injury at this age seems to take months to really go away. Getting and staying fit in advanced age should be more science than simply human experience and hearsay. It is not just about physical fitness either.

Sleep is an issue for a number of us at this age. How much is enough? How important is uninterrupted sleep? Are there any effective sleep aids? How do you tell if you should sleep 4 or 6 or 8 hours to be fully rested? And then cognitive work - how should a person exercise the brain at our age? Are crossword and jigsaw puzzles and Sudoku really positive activities for cognitive fitness?

We all have our own answers to the above questions but I'm beginning to wonder how beneficial and supportable these methods are. Since I have no answers for any of these questions, I will just continue doing what I'm doing and hope that I don't get myself into an unfortunate situation. For instance next week my daughter and I will attempt a 40km X-country ski event. Afterwards I'll know if all of my work to get around a niggling hip issue has a lasting effect. If not it's back to the drawing board for possible solutions.

REPLY
Nanny23 | @nanny23 | Jan 19 5:23pm
In reply to @jc76 "@rodkleiss I do water aerobics 7 times a week. Out of 40 participants there are usually..." + (show)
@jc76

@rodkleiss I do water aerobics 7 times a week. Out of 40 participants there are usually about 10 men.

We use water weights. You chose the size you can handle. Bigger the harder to move IN THE WATER and you have to be careful as the water creates a real drag on the weight going through water so you can pull a muscle. Too light not enouch tension too much and can hurt yourself.

Our instructors on the aerobic parts work on getting your heart rate up. Most wear apple watches and check their heart rate. What I do is bring my speed up to the point I have to breathe hard. At this point I know I am in aerobic level.

On strength portion I have my own water weights that tire my muscle out before the exercise is over. How well does it work my muscles are sore the next day.

Water aerobics is how much you put into the exercise. Some of the exercises are very hard and I can tell you if you are not used to doing them you will have hard time doing them until you BUILD up your muscle strength. Do NOT judge water aerobics by what you see on T.V. with just arm waving. Not in our classes. I live in a 55+ community.

If you do not add some weight bearing exercises to water aerobics you can develop joint and spine problem so I add walking twice a week and I also bike 25 miles twice a week. By the way I do Sprint Triathlons usually 8 a year and have completed overr 50 of them since 2017. I think water aerobics helped me finish all and place many times with added stamina to my body. I am 76 years old.

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Good for you! You sound in great shape. I go to PT twice a week and ride indoor bike every day. It sure helps osteo arthritis

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mydogsbestfriend | @mydogsbestfriend | Jan 20 11:17am

I’m reading these comments and wondering about things. Any gym is 15 miles away; I don’t want to drive in bad weather though I have a good sub for winter. Can’t afford a trainer. No swimming pool near ( gym 15 miles away). Just discouraging

REPLY
2 replies
bunnybear | @bunnybear | Jan 20 11:57am

Many programs offer senior chair exercises which sounds like what is labeled ‘Silver Sneakers’ and appears to be a Medicare Advantage incentive to help one overlook all the info out there about denial of claims they employ. Medicare Advantage is good if you are healthy and never experience any big blows to your health as you age. Whereas, regular Medicare has covered every inevitable need as I’ve aged.

REPLY
1 reply
susanfalcon52 | @susanfalcon52 | Jan 21 6:05am
In reply to @bunnybear "Many programs offer senior chair exercises which sounds like what is labeled ‘Silver Sneakers’ and appears..." + (show)
@bunnybear

Many programs offer senior chair exercises which sounds like what is labeled ‘Silver Sneakers’ and appears to be a Medicare Advantage incentive to help one overlook all the info out there about denial of claims they employ. Medicare Advantage is good if you are healthy and never experience any big blows to your health as you age. Whereas, regular Medicare has covered every inevitable need as I’ve aged.

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Same here, bunnybear.
Traditional Medicare has paid for everything I’ve ever had done, including some wacky tests ordered by doctors.
It’s currently paying an exorbitant amount for an osteoporosis drug thst I get at an infusion center.

REPLY
debupnorth | @debupnorth | Jan 21 12:43pm
In reply to @mydogsbestfriend "I’m reading these comments and wondering about things. Any gym is 15 miles away; I don’t..." + (show)
@mydogsbestfriend

I’m reading these comments and wondering about things. Any gym is 15 miles away; I don’t want to drive in bad weather though I have a good sub for winter. Can’t afford a trainer. No swimming pool near ( gym 15 miles away). Just discouraging

Jump to this post

I use a program on YouTube. Its easy to do. She has many workouts from chair to pretty tough. Improved health is just one of many programs online for seniors. The big part is just deciding to pick one and do it.

REPLY
1 reply
mydogsbestfriend | @mydogsbestfriend | Jan 21 2:29pm
In reply to @debupnorth "I use a program on YouTube. Its easy to do. She has many workouts from chair..." + (show)
@debupnorth

I use a program on YouTube. Its easy to do. She has many workouts from chair to pretty tough. Improved health is just one of many programs online for seniors. The big part is just deciding to pick one and do it.

Jump to this post

The name of the program on YouTube???

REPLY
1 reply
debupnorth | @debupnorth | Jan 21 2:40pm
In reply to @mydogsbestfriend "The name of the program on YouTube???" + (show)
@mydogsbestfriend

The name of the program on YouTube???

Jump to this post

I use Improved Health.

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