Exercise: As your elderly family member gets more into exercise, there are some common mistakes that she should try to avoid as much as possible.
If she doesn’t pay attention to these potential pitfalls, she might find that she’s in a situation where she can’t exercise the way she wants to and that can be really discouraging.
Elderly Care in Camp Hill AL: Exercise Mistakes
Doing Too Much, Too Fast
Whether your senior is trying to show off for friends or is just trying to keep up with what she could do in her youth, doing too much too fast is a problem. This leaves her open for injuries, and those can sideline her very quickly. Injuring herself can also create bigger problems down the line if she doesn’t let those injuries heal properly.
Ignoring Proper Form for the Exercise She’s Doing
No matter what type of exercise your senior is doing, there’s a proper form for her to follow. When she performs those exercises properly, she reduces the likelihood of injuring herself and she also gets more from those movements. She also might find the exercise she’s doing more painful if she’s not doing it properly, which means that she won’t stick with it.
Avoiding Strength Training
Your senior needs strength training of some sort in order to maintain the muscle tone that she has. Older adults find themselves losing muscle strength and tone very quickly, so it’s important to stop that as much as possible. Your senior doesn’t have to use weights, though. Resistance training can be just as effective and uses bands. Bodyweight exercises can be another way for her to build her strength without using weights.
Exercise: Thinking She Doesn’t Have Time or Energy to Exercise
Another big mistake is for your senior to think that she doesn’t have the energy or the time to exercise. With her current lifestyle, that might be true. Other tasks that maybe were easier for her in the past could be more difficult now and may take more time. Having a caregiver handling those tasks for her can open up both energy and time so that she can make moving her body more of a priority.
Always encourage your senior to talk to her doctor about any exercise plans before she starts a new one, especially if she hasn’t exercised in a while. Her doctor can help to ensure that she’s doing the right exercises for her and that she’s getting what she needs from exercise.
