Cardio exercises for seniors have physical, mental, and emotional benefits. Cardio makes your heart beat faster and your breathing rate increase. You can choose from a wide variety of activities to find the ones that fit you best.
Sun City Center was designed for older adults. It was voted the best retirement community last year by Realtor.com and Travel and Leisure magazine.
You'll find many opportunities to incorporate more physical activity into your routine. You can golf, visit Tampa Bay beaches, or stroll the palm tree-lined streets. Boost your energy and confidence with cardio senior fitness routines.
"Cardio" is short for cardiovascular; cardio exercise is another name for aerobic exercise. It raises your heart rate and breathing while increasing oxygen and blood flow throughout the body.
Cardio exercises have many benefits no matter your age, but they're especially important for older adults. The benefits of doing cardio include:
Senior fitness routines that include cardio exercises can noticeably improve your quality of life.
The best cardio exercise is the one you enjoy and will continue to do on a regular basis. The CDC recommends that older adults get at least 150 minutes per week of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic exercise. If you're new to senior fitness routines, you can work up to this amount gradually.
You have a wide range of cardio options, including:
Be sure to talk to a healthcare professional or certified personal trainer about what types of exercise will be a good fit for your fitness level and state of health.
Moderate-intensity cardio exercises make you breathe harder and your heart beat faster. You can talk to someone, but not sing along with the song you're listening to.
Vigorous-intensity exercise makes you breathe hard, and your heart beat much faster. You can't easily talk while doing it.
The intensity level of any cardio exercise depends on your fitness level and physical health. Walking up a flight of stairs may feel moderate to you but vigorous to someone else.
Adding some vigorous-intensity activity to your schedule can help prevent you from getting bored with your senior fitness routines. It can boost confidence because you know you overcame a challenge. However, moderate-intensity exercise is highly beneficial to your health, and you shouldn't feel obligated to increase the intensity.
High-impact exercises involve both feet leaving the ground at the same time, like jumping. They're a very effective way to burn calories, but they put a high level of strain on your joints.
Low-impact exercises keep at least one foot on the ground. They put less strain on the body and are generally safer for older adults.
If you would like some of the benefits of high-impact exercise but with less force on your body, a certified trainer can suggest modifications. For example, you can mimic a jump by squatting down and coming up forcefully onto your tiptoes.
Weight-bearing aerobic exercise is especially important for women. It supports good bone health and can help prevent osteoporosis. Weight-bearing exercise is anything that makes your body work against gravity. Weight-bearing exercises can be low-impact or high-impact, including:
Try to incorporate weight-bearing cardio at least twice a week.
Exercising at home can be an effective workout for seniors. You'll get health benefits from an exercise routine as simple as marching in place. Other indoor movement ideas include:
You can find a wide range of exercise videos for seniors online. You'll see a variety of styles and intensity levels, so you can choose the best fit for you.
Low-impact cardio exercises to do instead of walking include:
The best exercise depends on what you like to do and your fitness goals.
If you're trying to replace walking because the weather is too cold or too hot outside, you can walk indoors. Walk the halls of your building or walk on the treadmill at the fitness center. You can walk in the mall or a large grocery store.
The 3 3 3 workout method calls for three days of cardio, three days of strength training, and three days of active recovery or rest. This helps you improve several dimensions of health. Be sure to alternate your workouts, so that you aren't doing three days of one type of workout in a row.
Cardio exercise is beneficial for older adults no matter their initial physical or cognitive health. In a recent study published in BMC Geriatrics, dementia patients reported that a daily walk provided positive experiences and added a meaningful activity to their routine. Regular aerobic exercise improves physical health and is a positive part of memory care activities.
Cardio exercises for seniors have a range of physical and mental health benefits. You can choose from many different activities to find the ones that you enjoy the most. The key is making aerobic exercise part of your regular routine.
Aston Gardens at The Courtyards is the ideal environment for continuing your wellness journey. Our community features a fitness center, heated pool, and shaded outdoor paths. We offer wellness and nutrition coaching as well as exercise classes.
From independent living wellness to healthy aging in assisted living and memory care, our compassionate team is with you every step of the way. Schedule a tour of Aston Gardens at The Courtyard to see how we can help improve your quality of life.