I am 48 years old (49 this summer). I've yo-yo dieted for yearsssss. Also exercised on/off for yearssssss. In the past I have been a very dedicated 60-90 minute per day exerciser, usually 5 days a week, plus "fun exercising" on weekends like playing tennis or shooting hoops. Walking & weight lifting are my most go-to exercise methods.
Ok so... I'm older now. I find that certain "movements" aren't as easy as they were in my 20's & 30's (or early 40's!) And I no longer have that "gotta get buff!" attitude - it's more of a health quest at this point. I want to be toned, sure, but I am most interested in being able to "move freely" when I'm in my 60's & beyond.
I've just recently started weight lifting again. But I am wondering if my past methods of lifting will work for me now. I no longer hold sacred to the 3 sets of 12 of each exercise & then when it feels "too easy", increase the weight by 5 lb. I am no longer willing nor able to spend 60-90 minutes per day exercising.
I have a home gym, a stationery bike, a regular bike, and a pool. I enjoy swimming during the summer, but of course not winter. Plus, I live hear the beach. Also, there are several walking/biking trails near my home so I'm not at a loss of places to go for exercise.
My most go-to exercises in weights are squats, leg lifts, and calf raises. I also climb the stairs in my house several times. I used to do lunges, but for some reason, now, those really make my knees hurt (but squats don't! I sooo don't get that!!!) And altho I like my home gym, the one thing it's NOT good for is leg curls. All other exercises are doable on my home gym.
Anyone have any suggestions to work on my 'old-lady arms", wobbly thighs & droopy butt?? Again, not trying to look like Jillian Michaels here, just want to get healthier & be stronger.
Last edited by Beach Patrol; 01-24-2012 at 02:18 PM.
I hear ya! I'm 46 (soon 47) and no longer feel the need to be 'buff' either.
I just want to keep a good state of muscle tone and be pain free!
I use mostly dvds, currently Leslie Sansone, for my cardio and I have a simple dumbbell routine that I wrote down (so that I can remember it!) that just hits the basics (bicep curls, hammer curls, tricep kickbacks, front raises, lateral raises, and rows).
If lunges bother your knees now, try reverse lunges, or you can do step ups (or the stair climbing is good too).
I do hamstring/glute bridges while lying on the floor for my butt. And planks for my abs.
If you want to do pushups, they're good for the arms. I do them the super-duper easy way, on my knees with my body almost in a table top, instead of the regular easy way (just on the kness, but the body in a plank position).
I think the main thing is to just keep moving, build some muscle, and get in some cardio for your heart/lungs.
OMG I can't believe that you gals consider yourselves ELDERLY ...
I'm 55 I weight train in a Power Group class 3x/week, this is a high energy/intensity class and I lift heavier than many women much younger than me... I run 3x/week, I started running for cardio at 48, I have no sore knees, no sore hips, no sore anything.... In the summer I add cycling to the mix... I have been working out since I am 28 and progressively increasing my workouts, I am fitter than when I was 28 most definitely ....
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I have a home gym, a stationery bike, a regular bike, and a pool. I enjoy swimming during the summer, but of course not winter. Plus, I live hear the beach. Also, there are several walking/biking trails near my home so I'm not at a loss of places to go for exercise.
Man, I would love to have your home gym Lucky you!! ... Firstly to train myself, secondly as a personal trainer I could go over and train you ....
and that could be another option for you, money permitting of course, to get a trainer to go over and train you in your home... PT are a great way to stay motivated and focussed...
As for the lunges make sure your knee does not go over your front foot, keep it at a 90* angle, try doing them on an elevated step, backward lunges are easier on the knees also... Squats, squats and more squats of every angle ... This class I am taking does squats till we all want to scream, seriously, I had never done that many squats in my life, but I can see a really big difference in the lift of my butt ....
As for the jiggly underarm bits, as we all know we can't spot reduce but we can help it along with the right exercises...Dips are a great way of working your triceps, kick backs... Google tricep exercises...
I don't really consider myself "elderly", LOL - but I do know that my body is quite different than it was when I was "young"(er) and I've had health issues in the past (torn rotator cuff surgery, and elbow surgery and now I do have arthritis starting to bug me! grrr!) So I can't really do things like "dips" to work my triceps. I do work them, tho - with dumbbells and my weight machine. I would LOVE to hire a personal trainer, but that's not financially possible at this point.
I guess my main thing is that I don't feel like I can give the 110% at this age as I did in my 20's/30's. I do seem to tire more easily/quicker than I used to. I guess that's normal...? When I'm walking, my feet start to get a numbness/tingly feeling after about 25 minutes, so usually 30-40 minutes is all I can do there. And no, I don't have diabetes & I have seen a foot doc who ruled out other problems. I use the best shoe I can afford (right now I'm wearing Avia) and use a special "insert" that my foot doc recommended, which helps, but doesn't alleviate the problem.
I have a lot of pain in my right hip. A LOT! Biking/swimming seems to be the best exercise where that's concerned. But I don't feel like I get a "total workout" with either of those... like I just should be doing MOREMOREMORE to get the benefits.
But I'm very weight-lifting advocated, as I am well aware of the osteoporosis in my family and I'm determined to not be a bent-up barely-can-even-walk old lady as my mom & grandma. So I am quite motivated to keep my bones & muscles in the best shape possible. Plus, I've always enjoyed weight lifting, so of course I *want* to do it.
I have never liked aerobics classes... no "zumba" or "spinning" for me. I simply don't care for being in a room full of people & following along to some leader, trying to keep up. Ugh. I've tried several DVDs at home, and ...meh!-that's just not for me.
I guess I'm doing OK for my age & health issues. Just sometimes I feel like... I dunno... I could be doing something more, better... or something different. Sometimes I'm not even sure exactly what I expect out of myself. Could my body just cooperate please? LOL
Have you tried HIIT (high intensity interval training)? It can be done with walking, biking, swimming... they are intervals of very high intensity followed by a rest period... You'll for sure feel those... Tabatas are another very good option...
•5 minutes of warm-up
•8 intervals of 20 seconds all-out intensity exercise followed by 10 seconds of rest
•2 minutes cool-down
Do you know what the pain in your right hip is caused by? Arthritis, lack of stretching?
Yoga, hot yoga are other excellent alternative...
Basically, if I just keep moving daily, getting my heart rate up and sweating, whatever the exercise of choice is, it helps me... I find for me the more I move the more I want to move, it's when I stop, which is rare, I feel old, not when I am doing the exercises...When my body snoozes, it loses...
The last time that I tried to "get buff", I injured my shoulder.
I also have elbow tendonitis and right now my left knee is hurting from something that I did this morning!
No, I don't consider myself elderly yet, but I do seem to have more aches and pains as I get older.
Exercising for the Elderly
Plus, I live hear the beach. Also, there are several walking/biking trails near my home so I'm not at a loss of places to go for exercise.
(but squats don't! I sooo don't get that!!!) And altho I like my home gym, the one thing it's NOT good for is leg curls. All other exercises are doable on my home gym.
OMG I can't believe that you gals consider yourselves ELDERLY 
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Lucky you!! ... Firstly to train myself, secondly as a personal trainer I could go over and train you 
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