Recommendations re: exercise equipment for the elderly follow after a few words on exercise equipment for seniors.
Hey, I enjoy seeing an older guy pump serious iron, go skydiving, play ice hockey and skateboard, as much as the other guy.
I mean, older people should just go out and engage in all of the activities that strapping teens do and buy the same exercise equipment that teens might be in the market for. Right?
Well, I recently hit the big 50. I know better.
Working out hard, clanging weights, jumping for the ball and reveling in competition do not have to be a thing of the past just because your kids can beat you in tennis.
But still, if you are heading into or out of your 40s, some concessions must be made if you wish to enjoy physical activity and stay healthy and safe.
There are many reasons for this but rather than explore them, this page is meant to offer guidelines and suggestions regarding the right exercise equipment for the elderly.
There are a two general guidelines for ensuring you get the proper exercise equipment for seniors.
1) Equipment should not require users to bound and bounce violently.
2) Equipment should not force use to move the body or joints into extreme and uncomfortable positions or hoist extremely heavy weight.
There’s no real need to jump off high steppers, or contort arms when doing curls to better hit the biceps muscle or to do decline bench presses.
Doing 1 rep heavy sets should be a thing of the past.
The value those movements confer can easily be obtained doing other movements with different pieces of equipment and different poundages.
Those two guidelines should be discussed in terms of exercise equipment for the elderly that work the cardiovascular system and equipment that mainly strengthens bone and muscle.
Cardiovascular exercise equipment for the elderly
Be sure that exercise equipment does not force user to land on feet in ways that stress the ankles, knees and hips. Workout intensity can still be significant even without the excessive bouncing that younger joints often engage in.
For example, treadmills can offer a very vigorous workout without the jarring. Simply, increase treadmill speed or even better, set treadmill on an incline for extra intensity.
For some seniors, even walking might be too jarring so other equipment can be substituted for a treadmill, like a stationary bike or an elliptical trainer.
Strengthening exercise equipment for seniors
Seniors need to strengthen and maintain muscle and bone mass as much as keep the cardiovascular system healthy.
But here too the appropriate strengthening exercise equipment for seniors should be a far cry from what we tossed around in our late teens and 20s.
That doesn’t mean that all the iron should be shelved or transferred to the grandkids. However, most seniors will not need 325 pound barbell set.
Overstressing muscles, ligaments, tendons and joints with low rep and high weight could lead to injury.
So a barbell with a hundred pounds or so and a couple of dumbbells where weights can be adjusted is all that’s really needed.
Another great piece of exercise equipment for the elderly is gaining some popularity among all groups. Resistance exercise bands help promote strength gains with little chance of injury. Frankly, resistance bands are a good addition to anyone’s home gym.
The more expensive muscle building machines, like Universals, are also viable pieces of exercise equipment for seniors. However, some extra space and disposable income would be needed.
Finally, for seniors who are going to be walking or jogging, it is especially important that the footwear worn supports the activity engaged in. Ask questions, consider consulting an orthopedic specialist re footwear.
Note: All age groups should try to prevent injury but for seniors it should be the first commandment of working out. We know how quickly teens and 20 somethings bounce back from sports injuries.
But as we get into our 40s, 50s and beyond, the healing curve is so slow that even simple sprains could incapacitate for months. So minor, short lived injuries to youngsters can be serious, debilitating, chronic injuries to seniors. Prevention is 10x more important for seniors.
If you liked our page on exercise equipment for seniors & want to get our helpful info every month, subscribe to our free monthly newsletter: HEALTHY WORLD DIGEST
You'll receive anywhere from 5 - 10 healthy “nuggets” of information to get you feeling & looking your best.
Just fill in our brief eZine subscription form & start to take charge of your life easily, today, right now. We promise.
