(This is an excerpt from an interview with Kim Forget, founder of Graceful Living Home Care. See the full interview above)
By Miles Krol, Owner and Founder of Milesfit
They say health is wealth, especially as we're aging. Staying in shape and being healthy is the fountain of youth. Taking care of oneself and investing in oneself. When you are in the 60, 70, and 80 year old category, there are certain wellness principles that you have to really stick to to be able to exercise safely and effectively. I put an emphasis on satety because there's always the risk with resistance training that you will hurt yourself. Which is why having a qualified coach along the way is a useful tool in your toolbox.
Exercise for Seniors
Any movement is good, from cardio, to going for walks, to going up and down stairs. But the fountain of youth, when it comes to the aging process, is really resistance training. Resistance can be with your body weight. It can be with dumbbells. It can be with bands. It can be with machines. But there needs to be some load placed on the body, so that you strengthen the skeletal structure.
The connective tissue, ligaments, tendons and cartilage as well as the muscular system are very important as we age. They've shown in research that the amount of muscle mass that you have on your body correlates with longevity. That's why resistance training is the fountain of youth. As we age, muscle atrophy. We lose muscle mass. We lose metabolism. We lose immune system strength.
Nutrition for Seniors
What you put into your body becomes the raw building blocks of your physiology. So nutrition is important at any age, but as we age muscle and connective tissues start breaking down. There are higher demands for good quality protein as we age. And of course getting enough fiber is imperative and essential for proper digestion.
One of the things that happens as we age is that we tend to move less. And as we move less, we don't digest as well. People don't realize, but when you're moving, you're stimulating your digestive system. You're stimulating your intestinal tract to work and break down food. So getting enough fiber, fruits, and vegetables, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants is very critical.
When it comes to the fundamentals of nutrition getting enough water, fruits and vegetables in your day and chewing slowly still hold true and work whether you're 40 or 80.
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