A new year means it’s time to fulfill your new year’s resolution. This year, make your health a priority by giving yourself a new home exercise routine. It’s never too late to begin a healthy lifestyle that will benefit you for years to come. It is suggested that seniors get at least 2 and a half hours of moderate exercise a week in order to promote health.
Some of the benefits of home exercise include
- Maintaining muscle mass
- Improve balance and posture
- Decrease chronic pain
- Promote immune health
These winter months are cold and sometimes come with weather conditions that are too dangerous to travel in. This makes it hard to go for a walk or commit to traveling to a gym. Thankfully, there are many at home exercises that can help you jump-start your new year with a new healthy lifestyle.
Here are the most popular at home, senior-friendly exercises
To Promote Balance:
Calf Raises
To do this exercise, stand on a flat surface and grab a chair to either put beside, in front or behind you. The chair will be used to help you catch your balance if need be. When you’re ready, simply stand on your tiptoes in a ballerina type motion. Hold this position for a second and then go back down to flat feet, then repeat. This exercise will improve your balance and strengthen your calves at the same time.
To Promote Flexibility:
Head Rotations
This exercise can be done either sitting or standing. Keep your shoulders relaxed, turn your head and look to the side until you feel a slight stretch. Then turn and look to the opposite side. When you’re in motion, it will look like you are shaking your head “no”. You can also bring your head forward and look down to stretch the back of your neck. This exercise is good to do if you are someone that still drives. It keeps your neck from getting stiff and allows you to move your head freely, which is very important for driving safely.
To Promote Strength:
Wall Push-Ups
This simple exercise improves upper body strength without needing any weights. All you need to do is stand 2 feet from a sturdy wall and place your hands on the wall, shoulder-width apart. Bend your elbows and lean toward the wall like you are doing a push-up. Your heels will naturally come off the ground. Then push yourself back up and straighten your arms and repeat. Wall push-ups are a greatly modified version of a floor push up and still gives you a good workout.
Arm Raises
This exercise can be done in a variety of different ways. Start by either standing on a flat surface or sitting straight up. With your palms facing down, raise your arms straight out to the side, and then bring them back down. You can also raise your arms straight in front of you. To make this a little more difficult you can add in some weight to hold onto while doing the arm raises. When it comes to strength training there is no need to go buy weights. Items around the house such as books or canned goods can do the same job. Some exercises don’t even need weights!
Routine exercise not only keeps you feeling happy and healthy, but it also promotes confidence and independence. Here at BlueStar SeniorTech, we offer products that allow you to move around freely and exercise with confidence but give you quick access to emergency services if need be. Stay safe, healthy, and connected this new year! To learn more about what products will best suit your lifestyle, visit us online or call a product specialist at 800-300-1724, option 1.
