September is Healthy Aging® Month — and a great time to GET MOVING again!
Have you ever heard of the 1966 Dallas Bed Rest and Training Study?
Back in 1966, a group of Dallas physiologists recruited five healthy 20-year olds to spend three weeks in bed, followed by eight weeks in an intensive exercise program. The results were eye-popping. The three weeks in bed had a disastrous effect on the participants’ cardio-vascular health, turning them almost middle-aged in less than a month. But the eight weeks of exercise reversed that damage, and in some cases even led to overall health and strength improvements.
With 2020 running a giant, cruel version of the first half of that study on us all, this is a good time to remember that the second half of the study — restored health through regular exercise — is still a possibility.
Human beings were meant to be active, and to stay active as we age. In one of the weirder quirks of growing old, our bodies’ natural repair systems don’t seem to notice damage that takes place slowly over decades. But when a healthy workout puts immediate stress on our cardio-vascular and cellular systems, our repair mechanisms jerk into high gear — and start fixing damage beyond the minor stresses of the workout itself.
Want to repair the damage of the last six months (and maybe some of the damage from the sedentary years before that)? Here’s how: get off that quarantine couch and GET MOVING again right now.
Gyms and PT offices may still be closed or not recommended for those at risk for COVID-19 complications. But if your budget allows, there are home exercise machines that offer almost the same experience. Fun fact: the inventor of the Peloton® interactive stationary bicycle system just became a billionaire. Of course, there are wonderful stationary bicycles, ellipticals and treadmills available at lower price ranges, too. There are even stationary bicycles that can be operated from a couch or chair, and inexpensive walking treadmills that tuck easily under desks.
But who needs a gym experience at all when the weather in Texas is so beautiful right now?
Here’s our suggestion: get some comfortable, supportive shoes on and head out for a walk tomorrow morning. Or make it more challenging with a step-counter and a daily step target. You can even get your family and friends involved by challenging each other to match that target — or sign up online for a virtual race to challenge yourself even further!
And here’s some more good news: though COVID-19 is still very much with us, the breezes outside quickly disperse both droplet- and aerosol-carried virus particles, making an outdoor workout much safer than a visit to a gym or PT office. As an added bonus, sunshine stimulates vitamin D production in our bodies, and numerous studies suggest that vitamin D helps fight off COVID-19 infection and severity.
Now that you’re up off the quarantine couch and pulling on your shoes, would you like some assistance getting your elderly loved ones workout ready and safely escorted on their daily walks as well? The compassionate caregivers at Overture can help — and are still just a phone call away. Contact us 24/7 for a free home care consultation: (817) 887-9401.
Links:
Here are some great links and information on staying fit and healthy during the current pandemic from the folks at HealthyAging.net: https://healthyaging.net/healthy-aging-month/september-is-healthy-aging-month-3/
Here’s a fascinating article by the author of an upcoming book on why and how exercise works to combat age-related health issues: https://harvardmagazine.com/2020/09/features-active-grandparenting
Interested in learning more about that 1966 Dallas study? Here’s the link to the 40-year follow-up: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2655009/
Exercise is great, but diet is important too. Here’s a downloadable PDF that can help you plan healthy and tasty meals for seniors and their caregivers.