Eternal Strength: Stay Strong At Any Age

As we get older, we don’t necessarily have to get more frail. Building strength is not a flash-in-the-pan fad, but something you should treat as a lifelong commitment. Exercising adds longevity and quality to your life, and can improve your health and sleep patterns, even if you don’t start until your more senior years. Here are One LDN’s tips for staying strong at any age:

#1 Weight Train

Build up and maintain muscle mass using weights or external resistance such as body weight. If you’re a newbie then give a weights class a go where a qualified instructor can take you through the motions at a pace you’re comfortable with. Weight training prevents loss of bone mass, improves balance and builds muscle – the three things that will keep your body fit, young and healthy.

#2 Find your ‘why’

It’s important to lay out your objectives and keep in the forefront of your mind the reasons why you want to build strength. If you don’t enjoy the journey, you’re much less likely to reach the end goal. Try to build strength through fun activities or group workouts. Be realistic about how much you can do, and fit into your schedule, then start small and slowly build step by step.

#3 Practise Balance

We mean this quite literally. Classes such as Yoga incorporate body weight exercises which will build your strength and improve your posture. It will aid your mobility and by improving balance you reduce the risk of harmful falls.

#4 Cardio for Strength

Get the heart pumping and engage the large muscle groups by taking on a class such as Tread and Sweat where you combine different body movements, or Ride Me spin classes which allow you to increase your heart rate at your own pace. These types of activities will improve your endurance and ability to tackle daily activities no matter what age.

#5 Flex It

As we age we notice how impaired our flexibility becomes. Daily stretches which engage your muscles will keep joints supple and help your body to avoid injury. Yoga, pilates and spin classes are both fantastic means of low impact exercises which will help to increase your level of flexibility.