If you’re over 60 it’s important to know that first and foremost, it’s never too late to start taking care of your health. It doesn’t matter if you just quit smoking (like I did after 50 years!) or changed your diet; all changes have a powerful impact on your health.
Another crucial change is exercising. If you haven’t been doing that, now’s the perfect time to start! Today, I want to share 10 of the best anti-aging exercises for seniors to help you get strong, slow down aging, prevent dementia and help you feel like a million bucks!
Not sure how exercise can help you? Here are just a few things anti-aging exercises will improve your health:
- It strengthens muscles for better mobility and fall prevention,
- keeps your heart and lungs healthy,
- boosts your mood and energy,
- helps maintain a healthy weight,
- plays a significant role in protecting your brain health and
- potentially delaying or preventing cognitive decline, including dementia.
So you can see, exercising does a lot and it’s not too late to start, no matter how old you are. When I worked at the YMCA, some of my ‘new clients’ were in their 70s and 80s, and after a couple of months of being consistent and exercising, they noticed a drastic improvement in their health.
***Always chat with your doctor before starting any new exercise program. They know your individual health history and can offer personalized advice to ensure you’re exercising safely and effectively.***
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Let’s get to the anti-aging exercises for people over 60!
10 best anti-aging exercises for People over 60
These are merely suggestions, and of course, you don’t have to do ALL these anti-aging exercises. Start slowly; try a few and see which ones are easy for you and which ones you like.
I suggest aiming for 15 minutes a day to start, 3 times a week. Then work your way up to 20-30 minutes a day 4-5 times a week. Take it slow if you’ve never exercised before or haven’t for a really long time.
Why not phone a friend and see if they want to join you? You two can work out together via Facetime! Fun! Or maybe your spouse might want to join you. Just ask him/her.
Most of these exercises do not require any equipment at all, and you can certainly do them in the comfort of your own home.
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Brisk Walking
- Why it’s Great: Walking is arguably the most accessible and fundamental exercise. It requires no special equipment (just good shoes!), can be done almost anywhere, and offers a ton of benefits.
- How it Helps:
- Strength: Builds leg and core strength, essential for balance and mobility.
- Slowing Aging: Improves cardiovascular health (lowering blood pressure, improving cholesterol), helps manage weight, and strengthens bones (especially if done briskly). It keeps your circulatory system efficient, delivering oxygen and nutrients throughout your body.
- Energy Boost: Regular walks combat fatigue by improving circulation and increasing oxygen uptake. It can paradoxically make you feel more energized.
- Dementia Prevention: Increases blood flow to the brain, which nourishes brain cells. Studies suggest that regular aerobic exercise like walking can help maintain brain volume in key areas related to memory and thinking and may reduce the buildup of harmful proteins associated with Alzheimer’s.
- How to Do It:
- Start with 10-15 minutes at a comfortable pace.
- Gradually increase duration and intensity. Aim for a “brisk” pace – you can talk but not sing comfortably.
- Focus on good posture: stand tall, shoulders back, core lightly engaged, arms swinging naturally.
- Aim for at least 30 minutes most days of the week. Find scenic routes or walk with a friend to make it more enjoyable.
Chair Squats
- Why it’s Great: This modified squat builds crucial lower body strength needed for everyday activities like getting up from a chair, bed, or toilet. Using a chair provides safety and support.
- How it Helps:
- Strength: Targets major leg muscles (quads, hamstrings, glutes) and core stabilizers. Strong legs are paramount for independence and fall prevention.
- Slowing Aging: Maintains muscle mass, which naturally declines with age (sarcopenia). Muscle burns more calories than fat, helping with weight management and metabolism.
- Energy Boost: Stronger muscles mean everyday tasks require less effort, conserving energy.
- Dementia Prevention: While primarily strength-focused, the coordination and balance involved offer cognitive benefits. Maintaining physical independence also reduces stress and isolation, factors linked to cognitive decline.
- How to Do It:
- Stand in front of a sturdy chair (not facing the chair), feet hip-width apart, toes pointing slightly out.
- Keep your chest up and back straight. Engage your core.
- Slowly bend your knees and hips, lowering your bottom towards the chair as if you’re about to sit down. Keep your weight in your heels.
- Either lightly tap the chair with your bottom or stop just before sitting.
- Push through your heels to return to the starting position.
- Aim for 2-3 sets of 8-12 repetitions. If needed, hold onto the chair for balance and don’t feel bad if you have to. One day you won’t have to!
Wall Push-Ups
- Why it’s Great: A safer alternative to floor push-ups, wall push-ups effectively strengthen the chest, shoulders, and arms without putting excessive strain on the wrists or back.
- How it Helps:
- Strength: Builds upper body strength needed for pushing (doors, shopping carts) and lifting.
- Slowing Aging: Helps maintain upper body muscle mass and bone density in the arms and wrists.
- Energy Boost: Makes tasks involving pushing or lifting feel easier.
- Dementia Prevention: Like most exercises, it improves circulation. The focus required for proper form also provides a mild cognitive challenge.
- How to Do It:
- Stand facing a clear wall, about arm’s length away.
- Place your palms flat on the wall, slightly wider than shoulder-width apart, at shoulder height.
- Keep your body straight from head to heels (don’t let your hips sag). Engage your core.
- Slowly bend your elbows, lowering your chest towards the wall. Keep your elbows slightly tucked, not flared out wide.
- Push back to the starting position.
- Aim for 2-3 sets of 8-12 repetitions. To make it harder, step further back from the wall. To make it easier, step closer.
Single Leg Stands
- Why it’s Great: Balance often deteriorates with age, increasing fall risk. This simple exercise directly targets and improves your stability.
- How it Helps:
- Strength: Strengthens muscles in the feet, ankles, and legs responsible for stabilization. Engages core muscles.
- Slowing Aging: Directly combats age-related balance decline, crucial for maintaining independence and preventing fall-related injuries, which can significantly impact longevity and quality of life.
- Energy Boost: Better balance means more confidence and more desire to walk and engage in other activities.
- Dementia Prevention: Balance requires significant brain power! It involves coordinating sensory input (vision, inner ear, proprioception – knowing where your body is in space) and motor output. Challenging your balance strengthens these neural pathways.
- How to Do It:
- Stand tall near a sturdy chair or countertop for support.
- Shift your weight onto one leg.
- Slowly lift the other foot off the floor, bending the knee slightly.
- Focus on a fixed point in front of you to help maintain balance.
- Try to hold for 10-30 seconds. Use the chair for support as needed, aiming to rely on it less over time.
- Lower the foot slowly. Repeat on the other leg.
- Aim for 2-3 holds per leg.
Bicep Curls: Everyday Lifting Strength
- Why it’s Great: Strengthens the muscles in the front of your upper arms, essential for lifting groceries, grandchildren, or everyday objects.
- How it Helps:
- Strength: Isolates and builds the bicep muscles.
- Slowing Aging: Helps preserve arm strength and muscle tone.
- Energy Boost: Makes lifting tasks less strenuous and makes you stronger. This means you can do more of the hard things, boosting your energy and confidence.
- Dementia Prevention: While primarily strength-based, focused, controlled movements contribute to mind-muscle connection and overall body awareness.
- How to Do It:
- Sit or stand tall, shoulders back, core engaged.
- Hold light weights (dumbbells, water bottles, soup cans) or a resistance band in each hand, palms facing forward. Let your arms hang down by your sides.
- Keeping your elbows tucked close to your sides, slowly curl the weights up towards your shoulders.
- Squeeze your biceps at the top.
- Slowly lower the weights back down with control.
- Aim for 2-3 sets of 8-12 repetitions. Choose a weight that feels challenging but allows you to maintain good form.
Step-Ups
- Why it’s Great: Mimics climbing stairs, building leg strength and endurance while also providing a cardiovascular challenge.
- How it Helps:
- Strength: Works quads, hamstrings, glutes, and calves. Also, challenges balance.
- Slowing Aging: Improves leg power, cardiovascular fitness, and bone density. Stair climbing ability is a good indicator of functional independence.
- Energy Boost: Acts as a mini-cardio workout, improving stamina.
- Dementia Prevention: The coordination required, combined with the cardiovascular benefits, supports brain health.
- How to Do It:
- Use a sturdy, low step, aerobic step, or the bottom stair. Ensure it won’t slip. Hold onto a railing or wall if needed for balance.
- Step up onto the step with your right foot, planting it firmly.
- Bring your left foot up to meet the right. Stand tall.
- Step back down with your right foot.
- Step back down with your left foot, returning to the starting position.
- Repeat, leading with the right foot for 8-12 repetitions.
- Then, switch and lead with your left foot for 8-12 repetitions. Aim for 2-3 sets per leg.
Seated Torso Twists
- Why it’s Great: Improves spinal mobility and flexibility, strengthens core muscles (obliques), and can aid digestion. Done gently, it’s very safe.
- How it Helps:
- Strength: It engages core muscles, particularly the obliques, which help with twisting and bending movements.
- Slowing Aging: Maintains flexibility in the spine, counteracting stiffness. Good core strength supports posture and reduces back pain risk.
- Energy Boost: Gentle movement can invigorate the body and improve posture, which can enhance breathing and energy.
- Dementia Prevention: Mindful movement and focusing on the stretch contribute to body awareness and can have a calming effect, reducing stress (a risk factor for cognitive decline).
- How to Do It:
- Sit tall in a chair with your feet flat on the floor, knees bent at 90 degrees.
- Place your hands gently on opposite shoulders or rest them on your lap.
- Keeping your hips stable and facing forward, slowly twist your upper body to the right, looking over your right shoulder. Move from your waist, not just your neck.
- Hold the gentle stretch for a few seconds. Don’t force it.
- Slowly return to the center.
- Repeat the twist to the left side.
- Aim for 8-10 gentle twists to each side. Breathe throughout the movement.
Heel-to-Toe Walk
- Why it’s Great: This exercise challenges your balance while moving, mimicking real-life situations more closely than static holds.
- How it Helps:
- Strength: Strengthens stabilizing muscles in the legs and core.
- Slowing Aging: Improves dynamic balance, coordination, and gait, directly reducing fall risk during walking.
- Energy Boost: It builds confidence in movement.
- Dementia Prevention: Requires significant focus, concentration, and coordination between vision, the inner ear, and muscles – excellent brain training!
- How to Do It:
- Stand near a wall or counter for support if needed.
- Imagine a straight line on the floor in front of you (or use a real line/tape).
- Step forward with one foot, placing the heel directly in front of the toes of the back foot (like walking a tightrope).
- Focus your gaze on a fixed point ahead.
- Step forward with the back foot, again placing the heel directly in front of the toes of the front foot.
- Take 10-15 slow, controlled steps forward. Turn around carefully and repeat back to the start.
Water Aerobics
- Why it’s Great: The buoyancy of water supports your body, reducing impact on joints (great for arthritis sufferers), while the water provides natural resistance for strengthening.
- How it Helps:
- Strength: Water resistance builds muscle strength throughout the body.
- Slowing Aging: Excellent cardiovascular workout, improves flexibility, and is very gentle on joints, allowing for activity even with pain conditions.
- Energy Boost: Provides a refreshing workout that improves circulation and stamina. Often done in groups, adding a social energy boost.
- Dementia Prevention: The aerobic nature boosts brain blood flow. Learning routines challenges memory and coordination. The social interaction is also beneficial for cognitive health.
- How to Do It:
- Join a local class designed for seniors at a community pool.
- Activities often include walking/jogging in water, leg lifts, arm exercises (sometimes with water weights or noodles), and stretching.
- Follow the instructor’s guidance. Even just walking laps in chest-deep water is beneficial.
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Tai Chi or Gentle Yoga
- Why it’s Great: These practices combine slow, flowing movements with deep breathing, focus, and meditation, benefiting physical and mental health simultaneously.
- How it Helps:
- Strength: Improves lower body strength and core stability through controlled postures and weight shifts.
- Slowing Aging: Significantly enhances balance and flexibility, reduces stress (a major aging accelerator), improves sleep, and can lower blood pressure.
- Energy Boost: Promotes relaxation and reduces mental fatigue, leading to calmer, more sustained energy. Improves breathing efficiency.
- Dementia Prevention: Strongly linked to better cognitive function. The focus, coordination, memory (for sequences in Tai Chi), stress reduction, and meditative aspects all support brain health and may protect against decline. Studies show Tai Chi is particularly effective for improving balance and reducing falls.
- How to Do It:
- Find beginner or senior-specific classes locally or online.
- Focus on slow, deliberate movements, coordinating them with your breath.
- Pay attention to your body’s sensations and maintain mindful awareness.
- Don’t push into pain; modify poses as needed (e.g., using a chair for yoga support).
Making Anti-Aging Exercises a Lifestyle
Remember, consistency is key! Aim for a mix of these exercises throughout the week. Don’t forget to start small and work up to a longer workout, adding more anti-aging exercises as you feel comfortable and stronger.
- Warm-up: Always start with 5-10 minutes of light movement (like marching in place, arm circles) to prepare your muscles.
- Cool-down: Finish with 5-10 minutes of gentle stretching to improve flexibility and aid recovery.
- Listen to Your Body: Rest days are important. Don’t push through sharp pain. Modify exercises if needed.
- Stay Hydrated: Drink water before, during, and after exercise.
- Make it Fun: Exercise with a friend, listen to music, or choose activities you genuinely enjoy.
By adding these anti-aging exercises into your routine, you’re not just moving your body; you’re actively investing in a stronger, more energetic, sharper, and more vibrant future.
You’re taking powerful steps to slow the aging process, boost your daily vitality, and protect your precious cognitive health. Start slowly, be patient with yourself, and celebrate every step you take towards a healthier, happier you!
