The Secret to Looking and Feeling Younger as You Age

Are you in your 40s-70s and feeling unhappy with how you’re aging? Here’s the secret to feeling fresh, fit, and looking fabulous as you age.

 

A cheering crowd encircles a track on the misty, cool day in Philadelphia when 100-year old Ida Keeling lines up at the starting line. Excited hollers and applause bounce around the stadium as Keeling cracks a smile. She’s about to break the 100-meter world record for her age group and soaking in every lively second of it.

 

Shortly after finishing the race in world-record time, Keeling drops into plank position and busts out some push-ups. The encouraging roar of the crowd is now deafening.

 

To the unknowing eye, Keeling looks about 70, maybe 80 years old. She appears fit, healthy, and spunky with her bright grin and trendy red hat.

 

Keeling’s secret to looking decades younger? A decision to start improving her fitness in her late 60s, with the help of a coach/personal trainer (who happens to also be her daughter).

 

https://youtu.be/ZP4FWwyjfek

 

Video of Ida Keeling, breaking 100m record for her age group, by Inside Edition, 2016

 

You Don’t Have to be Formerly Fit to Be Fit in Your 40s-70s

 

Many of the world’s oldest athletes did not enter sport until their 50s, 60s, 70s, or beyond.

 

While it’s undeniably easier to achieve ideal fitness when you’re already somewhat fit, don’t get discouraged if you’ve lived most of your life as a couch potato. If your body allows you to move, you can use that ability to improve your health.

 

So, What’s the Secret?

 

Forget about those ads you see for supplements, “cleanse-diets,” cosmetic enhancements, and anti-aging procedures. Many of those do not work and produce unpleasant side-effects.

 

Instead, do what Ida Keeling still does at 104 years old – get physically active.

 

What’s the best way to get physically active in your 40s to 70s? Hire a personal trainer.

 

 

Personal trainers are fitness experts who support clients in reaching fitness goals. Tell your personal trainer your fitness goals, and he or she will craft the perfect plan for you to reach those goals.

 

Great personal trainers will be NSCA certified (meaning that they have the education and proven expertise in personal training).

 

The best personal trainers will monitor your form during exercise, encourage you, personalize your training plan, care about your goals, and “walk-the-walk” by living an active and healthy lifestyle themselves.

 

Personal Training is the Quickest & Easiest Way to Get Fit: Here’s Why

 

Joining a gym, sport or fitness club are all great ways to improve your fitness, but when you’re looking for the quickest and easiest way to boost your fitness, personal training is your best option.

 

Unlike working out solo or as part of a group, personal training will ensure the following:

 

• Workouts that are unique to your specific goals and health history
• Exercises that you’ll perform correctly and safely with guidance
• A whole-body approach to training: muscular imbalances, poor flexibility and mobility will get fixed
• Time-efficiency: simply share your goals and schedule, and your trainer will create the best plan for you

 

• No “slack” days: it’s easy to slack off when working out solo or as a group, where you’re not held accountable for a no-show. Having a routine one-on-one workout session will motivate you to show up.
• Appropriate rest days: It’s hard for many people to determine when and how to incorporate rest days into a fitness plan. A personal trainer will design a plan that allows your body to recover appropriately between workouts. This means reduced risk of injury and increased energy.
• Health and diet advice: since personal trainers “live fitness,” they stay up to date with the top foods, supplements, and health tips for maximizing physical and mental health

 

The Perks of Personal Training at Any Age

 

 

No matter your age or fitness level, personal training is an exciting and hassle-free way of enjoying a healthier version of yourself. Personal trainers are knowledgeable about the challenges and most beneficial types of training for each age group. Check out some of the perks of personal training in your age group:

 

Personal Training in Your 40s

 

Life can take you for a spin in your 40s. Many people are so busy with family obligations and work that they neglect their own health and fitness.

 

Unfortunately, abandoning your fitness at this age will come back to bite you. Injuries due to weakened and unconditioned muscles are common and sometimes debilitating in this age group.

 

Back pain, for example, is a leading cause of disability and missed workdays in this age group. This type of pain is usually preventable with increased activity, strengthening, stretching, and mobility exercises.

 

If you’re in your 40s, your personal trainer will help you stay healthy and free from injury. Here are three key areas that you’ll focus on in your personal training program:

 

• Strength training: Whether you’ve lived most of your life as an athlete or on the couch, strength training is essential at this age. It will take your body longer to recover from injury. Your personal trainer will help you strengthen your core and major muscle groups, so you are less susceptible to injury.
• Weight Management: Metabolism slows for most people in their 40s. You may find that your usual diet is leading to weight gain. Women are particularly prone to gaining weight in their 40s due to shifting hormones as they approach menopause. Your trainer will help you stay active and give you nutritional advice so that you can maintain or achieve a healthy weight.
  
• Time Management: Are you struggling to make time for yourself? This is a common inconvenience for people in their 40s, especially if they are raising a family and/or busy with work and career-related goals. A personal trainer will take the headache out of structuring your time so that you don’t have to sacrifice your health for other obligations.

 

Personal Training in Your 50s

 

 

Once you reach your 50s, bad habits such as slouching at a desk and snagging those extra M&Ms from your coworkers can sneak up on you.

 

This is the perfect time to reverse those poor choices before you develop consequences that will only get harder to eliminate as you grow older.

 

You may notice that your body takes longer to recover than when you were in your 40s. Injuries can pop up from your usual activities and exercise routine (if you have one).

 

A personal trainer can identify the ideal recovery time for your age and fitness level and construct a plan that will reverse bad habits like poor posture or sitting too long. Along with your personal goals, you and your personal trainer will work on the following:

 

• Posture and Form Adjustment: When you’re in your 50s, adjusting your posture and form is a tricky process. Often, people don’t realize that they are exercising with incorrect form or sitting in bad posture until they suffer from stiffness, injuries, and/or pain.

 

 

Your personal trainer will monitor your form during each exercise and remind you to correct your posture, if needed. This will make it so much easier for you to reverse your bad habits and avoid associated injuries.

 

• Proper Recovery Time: When trying a new exercise program in your 50s, it’s difficult to figure out how much recovery your body needs between workouts without professional support. Your personal trainer will give you a plan that allows your body to recover. This will guarantee that you are getting the most from each workout while minimizing soreness and injury risk.
• Multi-Joint Exercises: Your 50s is the perfect time to focus on improving your joint health. As we age, we are more likely to develop joint conditions such as arthritis. Most personal trainers incorporate multi-joint exercises into the training plan for people in their 50s, so that the joints stay healthy and pain-free for as long as possible.

 

Personal Training in Your 60s

 

 

The kids are grown, and work life is much less hectic (or nonexistent). Most people in their 60s are eager to travel and spend their retirement years with as little worries as possible – what better time than now to start a personal training program?

 

A personal training program will help people in their 60s stay healthy and celebrate retirement without physical limitations. Here’s how personal training will help you relish your 60s:

 

• Improves Flexibility: Stiffness and lack of flexibility are common physical setbacks for many people in their 60s. Your personal trainer will assess your flexibility and provide stretching exercises that target the problem areas.
• Builds Strength: Many injuries that occur in the 60s age group are a result of muscular weakness. Build muscle mass and strength safely under the guidance of a personal trainer.
• Revamps your Diet: Personal trainers can suggest tasty ways to get the vitamins and nutrients your body needs to fuel your strength and overall health.

 

Personal Training in Your 70s

 

 

Just because many people savor the slower pace of life in their 70s doesn’t mean their fitness should decelerate, too. When injured, your body won’t be able to bounce back as quickly as in earlier years. If you’re not careful during exercise or daily activities, minor injuries can quickly turn into major ones.

 

Seeing a personal trainer in your 70s means decreased risk of injury and increased quality of life. Some of the ways that personal training will maximize life satisfaction in your 70s include:

 

• Boost Coordination: As we age, our fall risk increases. Your personal trainer will provide you exercises to boost coordination and keep you out of the “high-risk” category for falls.
  
• Get Firm Instead of Flabs: Toned muscles are key to looking and feeling young in your 70s. A personal training program can help you develop toned, firm muscles that will make your friends (including younger friends) envious.
• Sharpen the Mind: Numerous scientific studies have found that exercise can prevent and even reverse changes that occur in brain structure as a result of aging. One recent study suggests that exercise is one of the best ways to preserve cognitive functioning in the brain as we get older (Stillman C M. et al., 2019).

 

Meeting with a personal trainer is one of the safest and most effective ways to exercise when you’re in your 70s. You can improve your confidence, physical and mental health all under the guidance of a fitness expert in Fort Myers.

 

Take a Few Minutes to Get Started with Personal Training…You’ll be Happy You Did

 

Perhaps you’re not as competitive as 104-year-old track star Ida Keeling but want to enjoy a barrier-free life as you age. Our personal trainers at Back in Motion Physical Therapy & Performance will help you age without physical limitations.

 

Our team at Back in Motion Physical Therapy & Performance will create the perfect blend of cardio, strength training, and flexibility exercises to make it easy for you to reach your goals.

 

Call 239-829-6215 or click here to get started with our Fort Myer’s personal training program that can help you look and feel younger as you age!