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Exercises for elders? Yes exercise can be done no matter your age
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http://www.championusa.com/ exercise bands or Thera Bands
I read a study a long time ago that people in nursing homes who could hardly lift a fork were worked with by giving them perhaps a 1/2 pound weight. Over time they were feeding themselves.
My mom, 78, never exercised. Now in an Assisted Living Facility she goes to fitness classes and Yoga. Obviously these people are not getting down on the floor or running on the treadmill. They are exercising; however. I have been to many exercise classes my mom takes and as a former personal trainer applaud these elders in their 80s and 90s. I only hope to be one of them someday. Today when I passed the fitness room I noticed two stability balls and a band (see the picture) on every chair.
My mom was in a wheel chair for awhile but she was able to work her arms and legs. For her arms the leader would have the group do arm circles and bicep curls - some with no weights some with 1 to 3 pound weights. The group made circles with their wrists and elbows. They would stretch their arms out straight and upward.
In a wheel chair my mom would lift each leg out straight and lift up each knee. She would turn her ankles to the right and to the left. Those who can stand and now my mom is using a walker so she too can stand hold onto a chair and lift their legs to the back and side. Balance is crucial but falling is worse than not having balance as as an only child whose mom fell 5 times in 2 months when I moved her up to MA from FL. So we want to increase balance very carefully. To do that and to work the calves and feet rather than standing on two feet and lifting up your heels while holding on to the back of a chair, for someone like my mom I would recommend that she just balance on one leg even if it means taking the other leg off the floor an inch. It's all good!
Those who can use resistance bands or bands can stretch their shoulders, work their chests and their backs. Unless you are dead there is something that you can do. It has nothing to do with how you look. My mom's friends are not getting ready for bathing suit weather. It has to do with how they feel and living a longer life.
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