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Published November/December 2002
By Joan B. Gutowski
Recently, my husband and I joined a gym for the first time in our sixty years. I must admit we were both somewhat skeptic about joining a gym. When I thought of a gym what came to mind were images of young firm bodied people in spandex. I could not have been more wrong!According to The Washington Post, May 22, 2001, people 55-plus, now are the fastest-growing segment of the fitness industry. According to American Sports Data Inc. (ASD), a New York firm that's been analyzing data since 1987, memberships among the older group have risen 378% over the past 13 years. Certainly, that number is sure to increase with the aging of 77 million baby boomers.
I first started thinking about joining a gym when I found out that I was borderline osteoporosis. I had tried in the past to start an exercise program on my own but was unsuccessful. I was ready to join a gym! I was not sure about my husband. He had an old exercise bike upstairs that he used once in a while and was quite content with calling that his exercise program.Within a 10-mile radius we found several gyms. I made appointments for both of us to take tours, get prices, and gather information on the various programs they offered. During our visits, we also had the opportunity to meet some of the staff. Once we evaluated the different gyms, we decided on one that was not only close to our home, but had an Olympic size swimming pool. With our doctor's approval we took the plunge and became members. Our gym set us up for fitness age tests, private consultation with a personal trainer, and an introduction to their computerized equipment.
My personalized program mainly focuses on strength training due to my bone loss. Research has proven the vast benefits of this type of exercise especially for older women. The benefits of weight lifting for seniors was done in a study by the University of Vermont which found seniors ages 65 to 79 could walk almost 40 percent farther without a rest after 12 weeks of weight training.The myth that older people don't need to exercise is "false." As a matter of fact, older people need to exercise even more than younger people. For example, a study done in 1989, from Tufts and Harvard Universities embarked on a study of older people in their late 80's and 90's. The study was conducted at Boston's Hebrew Rehabilitation Center for the Aged. These frail elderly residents had multiple functional problems, chronic conditions and were very sedentary. The project participants, whose average age was 90, were tested to determine the heaviest weights that they could lift with their legs. They did three sets composed of eight weight lifting repetitions each for three days a week. They worked out with weights that were 80 percent of the maximum weight that they could lift. After two weeks, they were retested and the weights were increased. At the end of six weeks, these frail older people had increased their muscle strength on average by 180 percent. As a result of their increased muscle strength, their average walking speed increased 48 percent, two participants no longer needed their canes, and one participant was able to rise from a chair without using the chair arms.
Listed below are twenty-one reasons for joining a gym or starting an exercise program to get fit.- Exercise and fitness will increase your range of movement
- Strengthens bones
- Strengthens muscles, tendons, and ligaments
- Increases metabolic rate
- Increases bone density
- Exercise creates a "whole good feeling"
- Reduces body fat
- Reduces body measurements
- Lowers your heart rate
- Improves blood lipids
- Improves blood pressure
- Improves your cardiac output
- Increases life satisfaction, happiness, and self-esteem
- Improves psychomotor control such as balance, movement
- Improves flexibility, tones and shapes
- Improves mobility
- Improves posture
- Improves the functioning of the liver, pancreas and other vital organs
- Helps to lose weight
- Aerobic exercise slows or prevents the buildup of cholesterol plaque in the veins
- Socialization
I hope you will consider joining a gym or starting an exercise program (of course, with your doctor's approval). We cannot change the fact we age, but we can control, to some degree the rate at which we age. Some people decrease their activity assuming it's the proper thing to do as they age. Unfortunately, they have grown old with substantial limits on their mobility, self-reliance, and quality of life. The time you spend at a gym or any exercise program will truly make you a winner!
Joan Gutowski is a freelance writer and has several articles published in magazines and newspapers. At present, she is a guest columnist for Arizona Worldwide Seniors. She retains copyright on the above article. For questions and comments, Joan can be reached at jbg_guto@email.msn.com .
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You are not alone | Come and get it | Then and now
Small blessings | Fun pages | Advertising | Helpful links | About Us
© Copyright 2002 Home Front Magazine. All rights reserved.
Hosting by FN Publishing