Exercise Benefits for Fitness After 50

When I was 14 years old, I often went to Annie's house. She was my cousin, 21 years old and married. They congregated at Adventist Church, so they had the periodical "Health and Home" Adventist magazines which I love to read. I do not become an Adventist myself, but I admire their commitment to health and avoidance of luxury foods and worldly pleasures.

From the magazines, I found that Adventists eat a certain vegetarian diet. The Adventist allows all food to be eaten including milk and egg, but avoid animal flesh. Their health recommendations are based on the biblical principles which emphasize on self-control. Physical exercises are highly recommended as well. I was so influenced by the articles, so afterwards I usually avoid meaty and fatty food which the magazine says contain bad cholesterol.

That's why since a teenager, I was so conscious about health. I became a boy scout and physical exercise like jogging was my routine. I loved cycling too and several times I took a 15 to 20 km through uphill routes with my friends. This way I had built my calf muscles. I joined swimming club too for 2 years. I did all this at my teen years.

When I passed my 40, then 50 and right now I am 59, I feel so healthy, with low cholesterol and no illness like diabetes etc. I am seldom sick, it only once in 2 or 3 years that I catch cold. My belly is not too fat either. But inevitably aging is approaching me too. I begin to find that my balance is reduced due to aging. However, most of my concerns are that I start losing my muscles, and feel a flab on my chest.

I am sure now that I have to exercise to get my muscles back. People say that one will go downhill beginning at his or her 60. Not quite like that. Fitness and wellness experts say confidently that with appropriate exercises, one at 60s and above is still "going up" in health; at least one can maintain wellness until one or two decades to come. At the other side, without exercise, it is a fact that people at 60s and above is inflicted with the fastest rate of aging which they do not even realize, but accept it as natural process. But the process is not unstoppable either.

People at 60, even 70 can still exercise to form their muscles. If we exercise consistently and properly, we can prevent the aging process significantly. We can prevent, slow down or even stop the process.  Fitness trainers have been consistently searching methods that fit different kinds of trainees. With some new invented methods of body exercise, you can even reverse the aging process! So that with proper exercise your body is physically 10 years younger than your real chronological age.

It is up to you, to believe the myth that our body is deteriorating naturally, or to resist it and do something which is to exercise properly and to gain your muscle, fitness and wellness back.

5 Tips to enhance your physical exercises:

1. Eat well: Consume enough calories on high nutrient on complete and proportional food components, i.e. carbohydrate, nuts, fat, minerals and vitamins from fruit and vegetables. Reasonable amount of fat and thus the cholesterol is needed to produce vital hormone like testosterone which is important to build your muscles. Fat, when consumed moderately, will not make you thick. Actually, cholesterol is used to produce the steroid hormones like cortical, which regulates blood-sugar levels and defending the body against infection.

2. Drink well: Drink 8 to 10 glasses of fresh water each day. It also depends on how much sweat you produce by moving or exercising. If you drink less than the amount of water which flow out of your body, you will experience dehydration, or lack of enough water in your body. Sufficient water in your body is essential for your health, and essential too for your body exercises.

3. Sleep well: Fewer hours of sleep can cause bad mood and less motivation to exercise. So, enough sleep is important for body endurance during fitness exercise. Conversely, appropriate exercise also helps to make deep and healthy sleep. "Exercise, sleep and nutrition form the triangle of health, and all are related," said Dr. Phyllis Zee, professor of neurology from University in Chicago. If we fulfill our need for a good balance of exercise, sleep and nutrition intake, then we will be healthy, and our life will be more vibrant.

4. Divide exercises time length into small portions: Do not do a day exercises in one long, extensive session. Instead, break it up into 2 or 3 parts. Do not add extra exercise more than the portion allocated to you. Overly exercise is not necessary because it can make you too tired and is harmful to your health. Too much aerobic exercise for instance, can lead to abnormal heart-beat and fibrosis in heart muscles.

5. Make Variation: Instead of doing the same kind of exercise every day, combine weight exercise with other sports like swimming, jogging and bicycling. This way you can avoid boring and make the exercises more fun and enjoyable.

Do not wait too long. You can practise right away by joining a fitness class of your choice. You can also do exercise with your partner under a guide of a fitness instructor, or exercise book. For instance you can consider exercising here with Steve and Becky Holman. They have a proven method of fitness exercise for everyone but has put emphasis that take care of seniors at 40 to 60 specific needs in mind.