Functional Aging/Older Adults
Physical Activity Type in Midlife Affects Mobility in Seniors
Studies have shown that seated desk work can have negative health and mobility repercussions as we age. A new study suggests that physically demanding jobs can also impact function later in life.
The study included 5,200 public sector employees participating in the Finnish Longitudinal Study on Municipal Employees. The primary purpose of the study was to understand the impact of leisure-time physical activity (LPA) and occupational physical activity (OPA) on mobility limitations among older adults.
Out-Muscle the Grim Reaper
Here’s more reason for older adults to pump iron: Researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles, have found a new link between lifting weights and longevity.
Pro-Aging: How the Fitness Industry is Setting a New Standard
April12, 2014
I’m just going to come out and say it: I am not a fan of the term “anti-aging.” Why? Well, if you are anti-aging, you are anti-living. We’re all aging every second of every day–some of us on a faster track, yes, but the point is aging is natural and healthy. Why fight it? I prefer the term “pro-aging” because it connotes a positive approach to birthdays. From what I can see here at the 2014 IDEA Personal Trainer Institute in Seattle, everyone is on the pro-aging path and setting a new standard for the rest of the world.
Happy Older Adults Are Also More Fit
Having a positive outlook as we age may not only be related to mood; it may also be reflected in our physical well-being. A large longitudinal study of 3,199 men and women aged 60 and older in Great Britain has revealed a relationship between happiness and better physical function.
“How do you assess older adults when they start training with you?”
Since older adults are so diverse in their abilities, fitness levels, health conditions and interests, it is not realistic to use one assessment battery for everyone. However, a thorough review of each older-adult client’s health status—including current health conditions, past surgeries/injuries, medications and goals—is appropriate. This information helps determine which types of assessments an individual may need, as well as which particular assessments to perform.
Peripheral Arterial Disease and Exercise for Older Adults
Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) occurs when plaque accumulates in the arteries of the legs. Reduced blood flow and loss of oxygen in the tissues beyond the obstruction cause localized muscular pain, or claudication, especially during exercise (Bulmer & Coombes 2004; Womack & Gardner 2003).
Mortality and Disease Risk Among Sedentary Older Women
In last month’s issue of IDEA Fitness Journal, we reported that a significant number of older women spend much of the day in sedentary behavior. A new study looks at the relationship between sedentary living and mortality risk in a similar population
Pilates: Effective for Better Balance
If you want to add a valuable benefit for your middle- to older-aged clients, emphasize Pilates elements that enhance balance. You may very well save a life.
Sedentary Behaviors Among Older Women
Women We know that regular exercise can provide a variety of significant benefits. However, a recent study has discov- ered that older women have not been inspired to become more active.
Published in The Journal of the American Medical Association (2013: 310 [23], 2562– 63), the study included 7,247 women (average age, 71). Each participant was given an accelerometer to wear for 7 days. The women were then asked to complete a diary detail- ing which days they wore the accelerometers and for how long.
Getting Intense With Older Clients
Traditionally, high-intensity power and resistance training was reserved for ath- letes striving to enhance sport-specific performance.
What Is Sarcopenia, and Can We Turn Back the Clock?
What makes us weaken with age? The prime culprit is sarcopenia—age-related loss of muscle mass, strength, power and function (Sayer et al. 2013; Morley 2012). Morley (2012) says 5%–13% of 60- to 70-year-olds and 11%–50% of people in their 80s have sarcopenia, which means “poverty of flesh.”
Exercise Program Helps Asian Seniors Bone Up On Health
Older Asian adults in New York City’s Chinatown and Flushing, Queens, are getting a new lease on life thanks to a program offered by the Hospital for Special Surgery.
The primary focus of the program is to improve bone health among participants. According to research presented at the 2013 American Public Health Association Annual Meeting, this population is at great risk for osteoporosis and osteoarthritis.
Study Explores Link Between Fitness and Attention
Researchers at the Technical University of Dortmund in Dortmund, Germany, recently conducted a study to gather data on possible differences in auditory attention control between physically active and inactive older men.
How exercise Benefits Older Seniors
New research from the University of Navarra in Spain shows that exercise can have a significant positive impact on older seniors.
Scientists recruited 24 adults aged 91–96 and divided them into a nonexercise control group and a “multicomponent” exercise group. The primary focus was to learn how exercise would impact “muscle power output, muscle mass, and muscle tissue attenuation; the risk of falls; and functional outcomes in frail nonagenarians.”
MBSR Program, Especially Yoga, Helps Older Adults
In the first study to tease out the effects of different components of the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program, researchers have identified yoga and sitting meditation as particularly beneficial practices for promoting health among older adults.
Fit For Driving
Driving isn’t a sport for most of us, yet it does require strength, motor skill, joint mobility and fast reaction time. Chances are you aren’t offering functional exercise training for “driving skills,” but if you work with a senior population, you should be.
Aerobic Exercise and Strength Training for Older Women: Is There an Optimal Starting Dose?
We have good exercise guidance for fit older adults, but the advice for seniors just starting a fitness program has been less clear.
Are Video Games Good Medicine For Seniors?
Your older clients are no doubt interested in complementing a fit body with a fit mind. Well, new study evidence suggests they can slow cognitive impairment by playing a few hours of “brain fit” video games designed to speed up and improve mental processing.
As the human brain ages, its executive function skills—which include perception, attention, memory, abstract thinking and problem solving—tend to diminish. Since many of us are living longer lives, scientists are motivated to identify ways to prevent this loss.
Lifelong Exercise Keeps Seniors Young
Exercise early in life—benefit later in life. That’s what researchers from Ball State University’s Human Performance Laboratory, in Indiana, concluded in a study published recently in the Journal of Applied Physiology (2013; 114 [1], 3–10).
Scientists looked at “whole body aerobic capacity and myocellular markers of oxidative metabolism in lifelong endurance athletes and age-matched healthy, untrained men.”
