5 Tips on Training for a Healthy Life

Lately, I have been having a lot of conversations about aging. The conversations are not only about caring for loved ones as they get older but also about how we can stay as healthy as possible for as long as possible. While I don't have all the answers, I definitely have a lot of knowledge from what that I've learned from working with seniors over the years.

Here are 5 tips on training for a healthy life!

1. Get moving now and keep moving. Yes, the earlier you start the better. But, it is never too late to start moving more and pushing yourself. I have had clients come to me in their 80s and 90s. Yes, 90s and people still make gains! One client who started working with me at 85 said that one of her biggest regrets in life was that she didn't realize sooner the importance of exercise. She ended up having to enter assisted living far earlier than she wanted to because of mobility issues.

   If you can work with a fitness coach like myself or if you are doing it on your own, make sure that you are working on 4 components - cardiovascular, strength, flexibility and balance. Do not skip flexibility as flexible muscles are key in making sure you are able to do everything else on that list.

   2. Do not stop when aches, pains, health challenges and injuries occur. This is critical. Do not stop but instead adapt. Yes, as our bodies get older, things do change. You may wake up with a pain that you didn’t have when you went to bed. But every client that I have worked with always feels better after they get a workout. Sometimes, we just adapt a workout to the present moment. For instance, I had a client who was incredibly sick with cancer. Even when I knew she felt awful, she kept pushing and we were still able to do yoga poses that helped her feel her best in that moment. A fitness coach has a lot of tricks up their sleeves to keep you active and moving, no matter what is going on in your body. If you need any tips, just holler. The important thing is to keep moving. Inactivity rarely makes things better.

   
   3. Consistency is key. When I think of consistency, I always a particular client who began working with me at 91 and described himself as a "wide eyed realist". A doctor by training, he knew he needed to keep pushing to maintain his body and mind and wanted some new ideas. He was so motivated! If I told him to do his exercises twice a day on the days we didn't meet, he did his exercises twice a day. I never had a doubt that he was getting his workouts done each day. Sadly, sometimes despite our best efforts, things happen and he had a stroke. But in true fashion, as soon as we got clearance to start again, we got to work. That consistency paid off and I'll never forget when he was back to dancing again!

   How can you be more consistent? Find what activities work for you. Pick a time that works for you each day. Stick to it. Eventually, you won't feel like your day is complete without your workout.

   4. You are never too old. One big takeaway from working with seniors is that people age very differently. You can't make too many assumptions about someone's abilities based purely on age. Because of this, I don't allow my clients to say that they're too old. And, it really irritates me when I hear someone say that someone else is too old to do something based only on a number. The truth is that we really aren't sure of what people are capable of anymore as they get older. In general, an 80 year old in 2025 looks very different from an 80 year old in 1980 because of access to preventative care, good nutrition, knee and hip replacements, and our ever increasing knowledge of how best to stay healthy and strong.

   In fact, you can make gains at any time. Some people think that you can't make strength or cardiovascular gains as you get older but this is wrong. I love seeing how people improve on what they did yesterday. And, it's even more amazing when they're doing something now that they couldn't do when they were younger!
   

   5. Never underestimate the importance of connection. Conversation, connection and friendship is so important to our well-being, especially our brain health. This doesn't stop because we get older. Connecting with old friends is fantastic. But, you can also make a new friend at any time too. Years ago, a dear client told me how she loved our sessions together and she couldn't believe that she was able to make a new friend in her 80s. She was right! We can make a new friend, connect with an old friend or learn a new skill at any time in our lives! We never know what is around the corner and it may just be a new friend or connection. Be open to what is coming your way. These things help to keep our minds sharp and feeling younger.

I could go on and on but there is one last piece that I would like to mention. Nutrition is key. The better you eat today, the better your tomorrow. Water and protein are critical as well as as a diet filled with vitamins and minerals essential to keeping our body running strong. Dizziness is an all too common result in being deficient in any of these items.

If you take nothing else from this piece, remember that you will always feel better after your workout!