Exercise is important at any age. But staying physically active as an older adult has a number of benefits for your physical, mental, and emotional health — some of which you may not know.
Regular exercise for seniors decreases your risk of developing heart disease, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and some types of cancer. In addition, seniors who take part in a daily exercise routine are less likely to suffer from memory loss, bone density loss, or fractures, weight gain, or even falls.
While physical activity is essential to your quality of life, some exercises you enjoyed in your 20s or 30s may not be safe for adults in their sixties and seventies. Below, we explain which exercises are best for seniors and how to implement a safe, effective workout routine.
Please note: This post is meant for informational purposes only and should not be taken as medical advice. Before beginning any new workout regimen, speak to your physician or physical therapist.
Exercise for Seniors: How To Begin
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) suggests you get 150 minutes of physical activity per week. This breaks down to 30 minutes of exercise per day, five times a week, or a little more than 20 minutes a day, seven days a week.
HHS suggests evenly splitting your exercise routine between aerobic activity (such as walking, swimming, water aerobics, or cycling) and strength training. This offers an even balance of cardio exercises, which helps burn fat and improves heart and lung health, and resistance exercises, which builds muscle, improves bone density, helps maintain good posture, and improves your balance (thereby reducing your risk of falls).
As an older adult, it's important to build an exercise program with low-impact exercises as the foundation. Low-impact exercises reduce your risk of injury and are far easier on your bones and joints. If you suffer from osteoarthritis or arthritis, choosing a low-impact exercise for seniors can keep you moving throughout your life (rather than causing achy joints that make you skip a workout).
Types of Exercise for Seniors: 4 of the Best Workouts To Try
Below, we share a number of types of exercises that are suitable for older adults — but feel free to choose more than one.
As stated earlier, it's important to incorporate variety into your exercise regimen. Choosing different types of exercise throughout your week will challenge different muscle groups and tax your heart and lungs at different levels.
Before we begin this list, allow us to make one note on the “best” form of exercise: The best form of exercise is the exercise you will do. The best way to stick to your workout routine is to always choose exercises you enjoy and have fun with. Take a group fitness class, walk around the block with a friend, or ride a stationary bike while catching up on your favorite TV show.
Here are a few workouts you might enjoy adding to your routine:
1. Biking
Biking is a wonderful aerobic exercise for seniors because it spikes your heart rate, challenges your lower body muscles, and is easy on your joints. Unlike walking or running — which stress on your hips, knees, and ankle joints — biking is an activity you can do virtually all your life.
Plus, if you no longer feel comfortable biking on the streets, a stationary bike offers an excellent substitute. With a stationary bike, you can still get a great workout with less risk of injury.
Here are a few ideas to get started:
Take a class: Most gyms offer workout bikes, particularly in a class environment. Check with your local YMCA, Silver Sneakers club, or another gym to see their class offerings.
Download a spin class app: If you have a stationary bike in your home or apartment complex, download a spin class app to follow along with an instructor. Peloton, CardioCast, and Zwift offer a free trial for subscription cycle classes that later cost $10-$20 a month.
Pedal...without the bike: If you live in an apartment or are short on space, you can get a pedal exercise stationary "bike," which fits under your desk or next to your sofa. This TODO Pedal Exerciser is less than $50, and you can get in a workout while reading or watching television.
2. Balance Exercises
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), falls are the number one cause of injuries for older people. In fact, falls cause over 800,000 hospitalizations per year.
To decrease your risk of falls, it's important to work on your balance. You can incorporate balance challenges into another workout — such as yoga or tai chi class — or you can set aside time each day to target your balance. Here are a few ways to work on your balance:
Watch YouTube videos: Searching "balance exercises for seniors" on YouTube will deliver countless follow-along balance videos. This video by Bob & Brad offers beginner and advanced balance challenges for seniors.
Work on single-leg strength: Working on single-leg strength is a proven tactic to help improve your balance. Try this single-leg workout to help improve your strength and balance.
Take a yoga class: Not only does yoga incorporate a number of flexibility exercises — it offers opportunities to work on your balance. Here is a gentle yoga flow to try on your own.
3. Chair Exercises
Chair exercises are a safe, effective method to test your strength while staying safe.
From a seated position, you can build muscles in both your lower and upper body. Plus, you can make a chair workout as challenging as you wish by incorporating a point of resistance (like resistance bands or dumbbells).
Here are a few chair workouts to try on your own:
Upper-body workout: This zero-equipment workout helps build strength in your arms, back, and shoulders.
Lower-body workout: This lower body chair workout incorporates leg raises, knee lifts, and other lower body exercises.
Total-body workout: This workout by the National Institute on Aging takes just 15 minutes, incorporates standing and seated exercises, and taxes the full body.
4. Lifting Weights
As you age, you naturally lose muscle mass in a process called sarcopenia. In fact, after the age of 30, you can expect to lose 3-8% of muscle mass per decade.
Maintaining muscle can greatly benefit your well-being and help you maintain your independence. To help build muscle lost due to aging, you can lift light weights.
Weightlifting is a great form of exercise at any age, so don’t be intimidated by weights-based workouts. With that being said, if you've never lifted weights before, only lift weights under the supervision of a physical therapist or personal trainer. They will teach you proper techniques so you don’t injure yourself or strain your lower back.
Here are a few ideas to help get you started:
Learn to properly warm-up: Like any other form of exercise, you should always do a proper warm-up — like in this video — before touching a pair of dumbbells.
Download a fitness app: Most personal trainers offer a free consultation to help you get started. However, if you can only afford to meet with a personal trainer once or twice a month, you can download a fitness app to keep you fit between sessions. The FitOn app is a completely free workout app that lets you filter workout videos by intensity, type of exercise, and duration of workouts.
Take a Zoom class: During the COVID-19 pandemic, nearly every gym, fitness studio, and personal trainer in the country began offering Zoom fitness classes. These workouts will be different depending on where you live, so here's our suggestion: Reach out to your local gym, and ask if their fitness instructors offer Zoom workouts.
Exercise for Seniors Can Help Maintain Your Independence
Following a regular workout routine offers a number of health benefits — no matter your age.
However, as you get older, maintaining your balance, building muscle, and increasing your flexibility can greatly improve your quality of life. By staying fit, it’s easier to safely age in place as you walk about your home, climb stairs, and lift a laundry basket without assistance.
It's important to choose exercises for seniors that are safe and low-impact. Chair exercises, yoga, tai-chi, biking, and even weightlifting offer safe, suitable workout options for older adults.
To keep yourself safe while working out, schedule your Snug check-in after your workout. Snug is a daily check-in app built specifically for seniors who live alone. If you miss a check-in, we'll ask your emergency contact to check on you.