We’ve all heard the saying “A New Year, a new you.” But, as each year passes our bodies change. Aaron Russ is an exercise physiologist for the Good Life fitness program at the Hartford HealthCare Center for Healthy Aging. He explains how we can improve our overall health as we get older.
Q: What should we be looking for as our bodies start to change with age?
A: I take a look at three main areas, and these we can really impact with exercise. In the first being our posture. The second being our cardiovascular health, and the third being the strength and elasticity of our muscles.
Q: What types of daily activities and eating habits should we be doing to try to counteract those things?
The first thing would be to start an exercise program. Start one that you can do and incorporate into your daily life, and make sure it’s functional. Do some squat patterns. Do some things that will aid in what you do on a day-to-day basis. For your diet, it’s really simple: you want to choose lean meats and proteins. You want to put aside the packaged foods. You want to choose fresh fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.
Q: What about the idea of strength training or resistance training? Don’t we lose quite a bit of muscle each decade as we age?
When you hit the age of 50, you lose about one-half of one percent of your total muscle fiber density. What we can do with that exercise is to keep the muscles that we do have very strong and healthy. Tell us about the Good Life fitness program at the Hartford HealthCare Center for Healthy Aging. What’s that about? GoodLife Fitness is an individualized exercise program geared toward the older adult to build energy, strength and endurance for an active lifestyle. An exercise physiologist works one-to-one with each person to improve muscular strength, balance, cardiovascular health and self-esteem, while reducing the risk of falls and injuries.
For more information on the Good Life fitness program in your area, click here.