Physical Vitality
Putting on leg weights
As a fitness instructor now in her seventies, I am concerned by the attitude many older folk have towards their fitness, their vitality, and the quality of their lives.
Often it is the attitude that is wrong. So many people expect the aging process to seriously impact their physical agility as they move into the third phase of their lives. Because they expect their bodies to deteriorate, often this is what happens! The mind is a powerful control mechanism.
So these people begin to slow down, they settle back into a life full of flabbiness; of aches and pains, and loss of energy. Often this becomes an excuse to sit around a lot, yet they are still eating and drinking as they always have, causing a lack of balance between their physical movement and their food intake. Like so many habits, this lifestyle can become a vicious circle, the more they retreat to their lounge chairs the more weight they put on, the less energy they have and the more the physical aches and pains start to dominate their world. Often these people eat badly - especially if they live alone. So armed with the expectation that this aging process will bedevil them until they are overcome by some major illness they move into Death’s waiting room!
I am here to tell everybody that the aging process does not have to impact on one’s quality of life.
In these fitness pages are listed a few different exercise programs.
1: MAJOR PROGRAM….this is for people over fifty who are still active, but are facing problems such as menopause, weight gain, joint pain, and other ailments that have begun to make an impact on their physicality.
2: CHAIR PROGRAM….this is a chair based flexibility program for older folk, for those with hip or leg problems, or people who are morbidly obese. In fact anyone who feels the normal standing program might cause physical problems.
3: COMBINATION…here you can take what you want from both programs and design one that suits you. Try to make it last for about an hour. If you feel at all unsure, email me with your plan
Also in these pages I will soon include my unpublished book on fitness as we age. Also I am looking uplifting stories about people who have overcome physical trauma, the process of aging, and other types of physical and emotional adversity. Hopefully these will have an inspirational effect and help you get motivated. If you have such a story please email me so I can include it in these pages
I am not saying that becoming fit will lengthen your life. My aim - by encouraging everybody to become fit an healthy - is to give back you back your quality of life, and to this end I have also included a small booklet that covers metabolism, the emotional aspects of aging, how to form you own groups, and how to treat injury that might occur if a person is a little over enthusiastic.
Posted by Lyn on September 26th, 2008 :: Filed under Creative Writing