Senior Health Issues

Every once in a while we want to include some information for those seniors beginning to wonder about the value of an exercise program. We make no pretense to be doctors or professional exercise advisors. But we, too, have grimaced when, after sitting for an hour or two, at getting up and wondering why we wanted to scream.

So do your own research, consult with your doctor, and explore the very reasonable possibility that some sort of exercise routine will make normal activities way more pleasurable.

I remember when I first realized that I was mortal: I had squatted down to get some cat food from a lower kitchen cabinet, and when I started to bounce to my feet I had to grasp the counter top to haul myself up. A sobering moment as some of you know.

My secret—not always practiced—is six miles a day on the stationary bike with a little free weight (8 or 10 lbs or less depending on what works for you) work in a nod to my bones that keep wanting to lapse into osteoporosis.

But you may find what works for you in yoga, stretching classes at the local gym, or one of the exercise programs such as this proposed by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.

I firmly believe that exercise is a brief pain in the neck in otherwise terrific days. But when I skip it, I remember it fondly as I drag myself upright with gritted teeth.