Fitness Archives - Page 3 of 21 - Fran's Fitness Over 50

Start planning your future

If you’re at the point in your life where you’ve retired from work and you don’t feel like seeking other work, you may be feeling at a loss and you’re searching for direction in your life. You’re asking yourself, “Now what?” We all need direction and focus in our lives. I know of too many people whose work was their life. They looked forward to retirement but then did not have anything planned for afterward. Then, without a reason to make an effort every day, shortly after retirement, they passed away. In fact, there have been studies that show that people (especially men) who were more tied to their work tended to die sooner after retirement. That struck me as so sad. I don’t want that happening to anyone else. So, if you haven’t thought about a future past a specific date, it may be time to start planning your future.

Leave a legacy

If you have children and grandchildren, you may want to leave them a legacy of some ways that you’ve changed your corner of the world. Perhaps you’ll leave a legacy of service to your community – if you do volunteer work with some charities in your area. Or if you’ve done some interesting things in your past, you’ll write a book.

Create goals for your future

You know I’m big on achieving goals, right? I’ve written about how to create goals for ourselves, and then how to make sure we achieve them. The same goes for any plans you make for your future. Now, the thing is, your time is probably not as limited as it once was. If you want to write that book, create that goal! If you want to volunteer for the organizations that you care about now, set that goal for yourself. Start planning your future. Me? I chose to create businesses and work at them. But in the meantime, I have written a couple of books and taught some classes. How?

I wrote a book

When I had the idea to write a mystery novel, using the framework in the Fitness Over 50 Get It Done Guide, I set my timetable. A cozy mystery novel should be 50,000 words or more, so I set the goal of 500 – 1,000 words a day. I’m a quick typist, so I knew this was doable. I knew that I didn’t have time during the day to write, so after thinking about it, I decided to use my early awake time (when I’d been playing Spider Solitaire) more productively. Instead of waking up naturally, about an hour before my real alarm, I set a second alarm. I set up my lap desk and Bluetooth keyboard and opened a blank Google Doc. First thing – a story idea and outline. Next, characters. Then, I started writing. I set a goal to write the novel in three months. Completely doable. And the first novel is available now.

Volunteer!

If your days are more free, then go ahead and write your memoir. Volunteer. How to volunteer? First – think of the things that you’re passionate about. Then, do some research on organizations in your area. Next, give them a call or email. Most non-profit organizations love people who want to donate their time. Write your ideas down and follow up. Be sure to actually write things down so that you don’t forget. Setting your thoughts down with pen on paper reinforces the memory.

If you want to travel, make sure that you’re in shape to do all the walking that you want to do. Make fitness goals a priority. You’ll also be working on your healthy aging and your resilience. You’ll be more confident and ready to take on the world (so to speak).

Most important – start planning your future now. You’ll find happiness in fulfilling your dreams. You’ll have a sense of purpose and won’t dread the long days after retirement.

Start walking to have a big impact on your health

The concept of beginning a fitness routine is daunting. If you haven’t been exercising, it’s a monumental change in your life. Perhaps you got the talk from your doctor, or maybe you’re not liking the way you look or feel and know you need a change. I’ve talked about all the benefits that exercise can give you. You’re saying, “but that means I have to get all sweaty and out of breath. Nope – start small. The good news is that walking qualifies! Start walking to have a big impact on your health.

But walking is boring!

But, you’re saying, walking is boring! Just one foot in front of the other. I thought you (me) said that I should pick an exercise program that I like! Correct. But, as I’ve said before, it’s not the exercise that has to be fun, necessarily. It can be what goes along with the exercise. Yes. Walking is boring. I dislike running. But there I am on the treadmill twice a week. Why? I found that listening to audiobooks keeps my mind off the actual running part and on the action that’s going on in my ears. The same can hold true for walking outside. Listen to a book. Listen to music, if that keeps you going. Or, talk to a friend. Better yet, walk with a friend and catch up in person.

What makes walking so positive?

So, how can just walking have such a positive impact on my health? “Walking is a great exercise not only for physical but also mental health. It provides repeated resistance to the muscles and bones of the lower body which helps them to stay strong,” says Megan Stuteville, an American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) certified personal trainer. Your joint mobility improves in your hips, knees and ankles. And here’s a big benefit: walking also increases your daily energy store. I know, it doesn’t make sense but it’s true. The energy you expend actually increases your available energy. Your cardiovascular health will improve, and you may even start sleeping better. Plus, walking is easy. Everybody can do it. And as we age, it’s more important than ever to exercise to keep our bones strong.

Do we really need to take 10,000 steps?

So, how many steps do we need to take to get these benefits? We’ve been hearing that we need to take 10,000 steps every day. That’s a lot. Research has actually shown that we start getting benefits when we hit about 8,000 steps. That’s about four miles. But, don’t forget – you can count all the walking you do during the day. Even to the refrigerator from the couch, and taking the dog to the backyard to do his business.

So, start walking to have a big impact on your health. You’ll feel better knowing that you’re doing something good for yourself.

How do elite athletes get motivated?

I’ve been watching the Olympics the last few days. It’s riveting. The level of competition is insane. I admire the talent, the intensity, the difficulty of the moves. I’ve always been an Olympics fan. Winter, Summer, it doesn’t matter. The sport doesn’t matter either. I love watching swimming, diving, track – it doesn’t matter. Men’s sports, women’s. Again, it doesn’t matter to me. Do you have a favorite Olympic sport?

These athletes are the best of the best in their sport. What makes them the best? What sets them apart from other athletes? Sure, innate talent probably has a lot to do with it. Someone who has no sense of rhythm is probably not going to be successful in rhythmic gymnastics, for example. But aside from talent, what makes these athletes so good? Their motivation. These athletes are driven to train, improve and succeed even in their off-seasons. So, how do elite athletes get motivated?

How do elite athletes get motivated?

WebMD asked 7 Olympic athletes what keeps them going. For Caeleb Dressel, swimmer, it’s the desire to get better. That’s the internal motivation that you would expect elite athletes to feel. The desire within to excel. And that’s important for us, too, in whatever we do. When we set goals for ourselves, we have to really want to achieve that goal. Otherwise, why bother? When the challenge that’s part of any endeavor gets hard, if we don’t want the end result, it’s easy to quit.

Accountability

Beach volleyball players Kristen Nuss and Taryn Kloth don’t want to let her partner down. Knowing that another person is counting on you help these elite athletes get motivated. Kloth said, knowing someone else is counting on you “makes it way easier to get through the tough times. This allows my focus to switch to her and not the tough task.”

Grow, for less discomfort

Because it is tough. Fencer Nick Itkin welcomes the pain. Personally, I don’t enjoy it, but Itkin uses it as a motivator. Put another way, the pain motivates him to get better so it doesn’t hurt any more. It goes back to the adage, “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” Psychologist Ayelet Fishbach of the University of Chicago says, “because discomfort is usually experienced immediately and is easy to detect, it’s an immediate signal of growth that increases motivation.”

The fun keeps you going

Gymnast Frederick Richard likes to mix things up. He’s a believer in having fun when you train. And that’s something that I take to heart.

So, the methods that these elite athletes use to get motivated are the same that we’ve been using all along.

Write what you want to do

Last week I emphasized the importance of writing what you do. Adding to that, it’s important to write what you want to do. I need a memory assist, and that’s why I write what I do in my journal. I can’t remember what I had for breakfast, much less what my workout consisted of yesterday. But I also want to write down those little thoughts of the things I want to achieve.

For fitness, as an example, today I ran / walked for 20 minutes on the treadmill. My walking speed after the warmup was 4 miles per hour at 2.5 percent incline. My fastest running speed was 7.4 mph, again at 2.5 percent incline. I wrote all that on my journal page. But I also wrote that for my next run, I’d like to run at 7.5 mph. This is huge for me. After all, I’m old, my knees aren’t great, and neither are my hips. But at the end of my run, this might just be doable. Not for long, just a minute. But it’s a start.

Starting matters

And a start is just that. Running faster eventually becomes more comfortable, and then I feel lazy running at a slower pace. Most of life is like that. We pump ourselves up to do a little scary thing, like do a short live video on social media. All you extroverts may not think much of that, but it’s scary for people like me who like nothing more than staying home and reading. It’s not natural to put myself in the spotlight.

But then the little scary thing is not so scary any longer. It may not be comfortable, but eventually with practice we reach the stage of accepting it as a normal thing to do. This is true for everything we want to achieve in life. We start with a small idea. Play with it in your head. Write it down. Then expand on that small idea so that it’s something tangible and worthwhile.

Write what you want to do

So, at the same time you’re writing what you do, you can also write what you want to do. You’re making goals. And goals are essential for moving forward. Without goals, we’re stagnating. While you’re doing something, think of what you’d like to be doing in a month or six months. If I can run this fast now, I could probably run faster in a month! That’s how the process works.

And writing down those goals, even the little ones, gives you a much better chance of achieving them. 42% better, in fact, according to a psychology study performed at Dominican University in California. Write down those goals, dreams, and aspirations. And then break them down into manageable chunks that become real.

Write what you do

It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of tracking things. For my dogs, I track their training. For my goals, I track my progress. Every step toward completion is a big deal, so I write about every step. The same goes for my fitness goals. If I want to go faster or lift heavier weights, I need to log what I’m doing now as a benchmark for the future. We all start somewhere, and we all have different journeys in fitness. And as part of our healthy aging, all the experts say we must do aerobic exercise and strength work. So, write what you do. To start with, for the first week, just note how many days you were active. Then when you decide on a fitness program, write what you do every day you exercise.

It doesn’t have to be fancy

It doesn’t have to be fancy. Just a cheap spiral notebook works. Write down the time, the place, what you did, and for how long. It helps to note other details, too. If you’re running or walking, your speed and distance. If you’re doing strength work, note the exercise, the poundage and the number of repetitions and sets.

But fancy is good

Your journal, or tracker, can be as fancy as you like. I created one that combines pretty much everything I track: goals, nutrition, mindset, and fitness. And I also created individual sheets for different purposes. There’s one for fitness, another for nutrition, another for mindset, and a series for achieving any goal, like achieving the full Side Plank Star. The thing to watch for when you buy a journal or download a tracker sheet is to make sure that you actually do write what you do. I’ve been known to let the journal sit on my desk. I admire it and say, “I should really write in there,” and then still let it sit. But now I make sure I pick up my pen and write.

The NIH says write what you do

Why use a tracker for fitness? The National Institute on Aging suggests that tracking your fitness is a great way to stay motivated to exercise. By writing what you do, you can see your progress and continue asking yourself important questions. Questions like, “Why do I want to stay active?” And “What activities are important to me now, and what do I want to continue to do in the future as I age?” Your journal is also a great way to assess what kind of barriers you see to your mobility, and figure out a way to remove those barriers.

Good form in exercise

Good form for the win!

Last week I gave you tips for maximizing the effectiveness of your workouts, and one of them was to make sure you have good form. So why is good form in exercise important?

This morning I did my Pilates workout with a resistance band, and noticed that the instructor was continually reminding the class of the proper technique. Breathe in when you do this, make sure your abdominals are pulled in, and make sure your back is straight. Why is it important to have good form?

Avoid injury

First, and probably, most important, it’s important to maintain good form in exercise so you don’t injure yourself. I’ve talked about avoiding back pain by tightening my core – there it is. Make sure your back is straight and not twisted? Again, good form. When you’re exercising with good form, you avoid strains, sprains, tears, twinges, and all sorts of nasty things. When you’re doing squats, making sure that you can see your shoelaces when you look down ensures that you’re protecting your knees. And that’s something we all need to keep in mind for our healthy aging.

Focus on targeted muscle groups

When you have good form when you exercise, you know that you’re targeting what you’re supposed to be targeting. You’re using the muscle groups that you’re supposed to be using. And you’ll get the maximum benefit from the exercise. Like this morning, during my Pilates workout, the instructor emphasized during a few of the exercises that the shoulders should be back and down to work them properly. I’ve had experience with shoulder injuries, and the last thing I want is to re-injure the joint. So I made extra sure that I followed the instructor’s direction.

Optimize time

When we really focus on having good form in exercise, we’re truly getting maximum benefit from minimum time. I don’t have time to waste and neither do you! So let’s get strong with good form.

Create a fitness goal to keep you moving

It’s really easy to go through your days on autopilot. Go from one meaningless task to another, not really accomplishing much. Then all of a sudden, it’s bedtime. Time to brush your teeth and have some downtime until you do all the nothingness again tomorrow. Do you ever feel like you’re sleepwalking through your day? I emptied the dishwasher in the morning while I watched the news. And it was basically the same as yesterday’s news. I went to the grocery store yesterday. And it was basically the same items that I bought last week. Are you stuck in a rut too? I want to feel invigorated. And I don’t want to feel like I’m stuck on a treadmill. It may be time to create a fitness goal to keep you moving.

Your new fitness goal doesn’t have to be big

A new goal could inspire you to new heights, new levels of strength, faster speeds. That new goal in one aspect of your life could spark your motivation in others. And your new goal doesn’t have to be a big one. For me, I had a goal of running one tenth of a mile faster than my previous fastest speed for a minute during my treadmill session. And to do that for 4 runs. At first I couldn’t maintain that extra tenth for the whole minute. So I lowered the speed. But then after a walk interval I bumped my speed up that extra tenth again. And kept it there longer.

That new goal will move you forward in your healthy aging. And when you’re doing something positive for your health, you’re automatically happier and more motivated to keep going.

Invigorated by success!

How did that extra tenth make me feel? Invigorated. By running just that little bit faster, I felt like I was invincible. I felt stronger the rest of the day, knowing that I met a really tough (for me) benchmark. And being successful for one day kept me motivated for the rest of the challenge.

Your challenge:

So, I challenge you to create a fitness goal to keep you moving. Make sure that your goal is specific, with measurement and a timetable. Your goal also should be attainable but not too easy. Write your goal down so that you’ll have accountability, even if it’s just to yourself. I use the worksheet from the “Get It Done” Guide. I print multiple copies of the worksheet – there’s not much on that worksheet. It seems simple, but, boy, is it powerful!

So, create a fitness goal. You’ll keep moving and be empowered to tackle even more.

How to go from “I should” to “I did it”

Do you ever find yourself sitting and thinking to yourself, “I should do …” this or this … and then find yourself dreaming, “If I had this done, then I could …” “If I had exercised more when I was younger, I could play in the backyard with the grandkids.” Guess what? It’s not too late. Here’s how to go from “I should” to “I did it.”

First, be clear to yourself

Know exactly what you “should” do. It’s not enough to say, “I should work out more.” A more clear response is, “I should exercise 4 times a week for 30 minutes.” And a better response would be, “I will run / walk 2 times a week, do strength training twice a week and have active rest days 2 days a week.” That’s a clear response. It gives you the start of a plan.

Know why you “should” do it

This step will ensure that you take the steps needed to go from “I should” to “I did it.” If you really want something – if you really, really want something, then you’ll be willing to go through the planning process, make some sacrifices, and then make it happen. Your motivation must be very clear. And, in our example, those grandkids are growing up way too fast to let any more time slip away.

You’ll start your fitness plan to spend more time with your grandkids. And then add things on. Travel might be an option since your mobility will be better. A new wardrobe isn’t out of the question either, since your clothes won’t fit any longer.

Plus, all those benefits for our healthy aging that we’ve been talking about, that exercise gives us. You’ll have more energy – I know, weird, isn’t it that expending energy generates energy? But it’s true. Your heart health will improve. You’ll sleep better and your memory will be better too. Solving problems will be easier as your cognition improves. Your balance will be better, so you’ll be more confident when you step out of the house.

Schedule your stepping stones

You can’t go from not exercising to full hour-long (or even half hour) workouts in a week. The best way to make sure you follow through and not quit from the overwhelm is to map out your strategy. Write it down. Go from 10 minutes to 30 over time – but schedule those longer sessions specifically on your calendar.

Keep your appointments to go from “I should” to “I did it.”

And keep those appointments with yourself! When you do, your resilience improves. You’ll prove to yourself that you’re strong and can accomplish anything. You’ll have gone from “I should” to “I did it.”

5 tips for consistent workouts

It’s on everyone’s to-do list, but really shouldn’t need to be. You know that the only way exercise is effective is if it’s consistent. And it’s really important for us, as seniors especially, for our workouts to be consistent. We know that exercise gives us a healthier heart and lungs, it strengthens our brittle bones, and it improves our memory and cognition. But it’s hard to lace up those sneakers a few times a week. Every week. It’s essential for our healthy aging. The motivation is lacking to exercise on our own. I’m busy and so are you. We’ve got stuff to do. But exercise is important, too. So how can we make sure our workouts are consistent?

This isn’t one of the official “tips,” but first set yourself a fitness goal. If you see progress toward a goal, you start off motivated! For suggestions on setting goals, just download the Get It Done Guide. Easy peasy. Moving on, here are 5 tips for consistent workouts.

Find an exercise program you enjoy

I’ve said it before – if you don’t like an exercise program, then you’re not going to do it. You’ll make excuses and find other things you “need to” do first. I’ll be the first one to say that I run twice a week even though I don’t enjoy it. But I do enjoy the audiobooks I listen to as I run. So, find an exercise program you can live with, and something to help you like it. And be sure that your exercise program has enough variety so you won’t get bored or overwork any particular muscle group.

Schedule your workouts

Now that you’ve found an exercise program that you don’t mind too much, put your workouts on your calendar. And set a reminder for them, plus extra time for changing into your exercise clothes before and a shower after your workout. Google Calendar is versatile and easy to use.

Track your workouts

Write down what you did and how you felt – both before, during and after your workout. You’ll see your progress and that will motivate you to do more. If you’re running on a treadmill, you’ve got the statistics there so copy them down. Your log can be in a journal or just a piece of paper. I recommend actually writing this down so you have something tangible. Follow this link for the Fitness Journal and Tracker.

Find accountability

Exercise with a friend. There’s built-in accountability when there’s someone with you. Cal or messagel a friend after every workout. Commiserate with that friend over how tough the workout was. Accountability keeps us honest. It keeps us coming back even when the workout was brutal.

Don’t overwork

Yes, we want our workouts to be challenging. Because if they’re not then we’re not improving. And that should be everyone’s goal – to improve. But be careful not to overtrain. Know your body. Be aware when something doesn’t feel right. If you’re breathing too hard, slow down. If something hurts, stop.

With these tips, you’ll be motivated to exercise consistently and you’ll also be on your way to making exercise an unbreakable habit.

Be Like a Scout and Be Prepared

No procrastination, for a change!

I’m writing this article on Tuesday, and (hopefully) it will be posted on Friday. Wait – what happened to procrastination? Doesn’t everyone write to deadline? Well, I don’t usually like to work that way, and especially this week. There’s supposed to be a line of severe thunderstorms passing through my area tonight. When we get those narrow lines of storms, there’s a good chance of damage. A few years ago when one of those straight line storms passed through we were without power for days. So, in case the worst comes to pass, I’ll be like a scout and “be prepared.”

Be like a scout and be prepared

Robert Baden-Powell, the founder of the Boy Scouts about a hundred years ago, said “that all Scouts should prepare themselves to become productive citizens and to give happiness to other people. He wanted each Scout to be ready in mind and body for any struggles, and to meet with a strong heart whatever challenges might lie ahead.” To be prepared for life and live happily and without regret, knowing that you have done your best. That’s what the Scout motto means.

I can’t do anything about the storms. But I can be proactive and try to think of things I can do ahead of time to get ready in case, for example, the power goes out. Like, write this article. I’ll make sure my phone is charged and have a paperback book ready to be read. We always make sure that there’s plenty of food and water available.

Meditation for calming

I’ll probably do a guided meditation this afternoon to try and calm my nerves. Storms make me anxious, because of all the “what ifs.” And while I try to be as prepared as possible, I know that there’s probably something that I will miss.

What can you do to get ready?

You know that life throws a bunch of crap at you every single day. Some storms are worse than others. How can we stay strong and resilient, and be like a scout and stay ready for those disruptive storms?

The steps to prepare

First, know yourself. If you’re generally a nervous person like I am, then take some extra time every day to center yourself. Know that you’re strong, you’re reliable, your family and friends are there for you.

Then try to think of the projects you’ve got going. What could happen if they were disrupted? If there’s something you can do with those projects to prepare, do it. Or if your action could take multiple days, plan out your strategy.

My to-do lists are on paper. They’re always with me and staring me in the face, unlike the black screen when my phone’s not on.

So, when storms approach, be like a scout and be prepared.