Exercise prevents decline in mental skills for older adults
Boomer fitness, exercise programming designed for those aged 50 and over, is one of the hottest trends right now in fitness. Not only are local health clubs offering specialty classes for women going through menopause, older exercisers, and exercisers with health conditions such as diabetes and arthritis, but classes targeted for a general population, that is not age specific, are being filled more and more with participants who began their fitness experience in the early 1980′s with Jane Fonda Aerobics cassette tapes. The American Council On Exercise recently rated boomer fitness as one the top fitness trends of 2009. “The 50+ audience continues to redefine our expectations about age, vitality and life, and has highlighted the importance of physical activity as we age”, they say.
The benefits of exercise for older adults include a decrease in the risk of heart disease and of many cancers including colon cancer, a decrease in weight gain and other menopause related symptoms, and improved sexual satisfaction. But research presented at the Alzheimer’s Association 2009 International Conference on Alzheimer’s Disease suggests that exercise also slows the rate of cognitive decline. According to a WebMD report on the findings, Deborah E. Barnes, PhD, MPH, of the University of California, San Francisco studied more than 3,000 people, ages 70 to 79, for seven years. Of the total, 21% of participants were consistently sedentary, 12% maintained their activity levels, 26% had declining levels, and 41% had increasing or fluctuating activity levels. “The researchers found that people who were consistently sedentary had the worst mental skills on a standard test that measures overall cognitive function, including memory, attention span and problem-solving” summarized Charlene Laino for WebMD Health News. Even if exercisers begin exercising as older adults, the rate of decline was slowed.
The American College of Sports Medicine offers guidelines for middle aged and older exercisers. The general guidelines suggest that for optimum health exercisers should participate in regular aerobic activity, strength training, flexibility and balance exercises.
For more information on beginning an exercise program in middle age, check out any of these article for guidelines and video instructions to help you get started.
Beginning an exercise program in middle age
Beginning an exercise program in middle age – aerobic activity
Beginning an exercise program in middle age – flexibility training
Beginning an exercise program in middle age – strength training
The importance of balance training for exercisers of all ages
