Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
.....But time will have an affect on most of us so I can do less with less intensity than in the past. Usually less than 75 minutes at a time unless I get to jabbering with my usual associates.
There we go 75 minutes at a time, say 3 times a week and another half hour spent going back and forth, getting ready, etc. That is 5 hours a week. That is 260 hours per year. That equals 14 eighteen hour days. So 10 years of going to the gym is equivalent to 140 days. That is a lot of wasted, torture time as far as I am concerned. I will do something else instead and I can always die younger and come out ahead.
I am late to the physical fitness party. For a number of years DH and I used a treadmill machine and I lifted hand weights. When we moved, we started going to a community gym, and I have taken to it quite well. I walk the track, use a recumbent elliptical machine, and use several nautilus type machines. I would not say I love doing this, but I will say it has been very beneficial.
The experts are now saying that using your body in old age helps ward off Alzehimer's. I certainly hope so. I also think it wards off type 2 diabetes. At least it has so far for me.
I think the physical work you do in a class or in a gym has beneficial effects for everyone, young or old.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
34,901 posts, read 58,613,296 times
Reputation: 46476
as a farmer, I have never been to a 'gym' for exercise!
LOVE to swim, but alas, my community does not have pools at HS and private pools are $$$$.
Y is 10x the cost of the HS pools in my previous abode. Community pools are "splash' and wave for kids and very SHORT 20m!!!& few lap lanes (3) for 240k people....
Fortunately I have free fuel, so the 70 mile RT to a 50 M pool is not so costly. (I don't go 3x / week as I had for 20 yrs,
Can't do impact sports due to employment / farm injuries. Biking and swimming are about it. Could never align to 'indoor' gym looking out on daylight!!!
Still can jump in and swim 100+ laps without stopping, but at a MUCH slower pace.
Loved the pools during last yr in NZ and Australia One smaller city in NZ the pool serves 3500 people / DAY (2) 12 lane pools! Seniors and soccer moms were filling the place at 10 AM. Soccer mom Aussie swimmers were TWICE as fast as I.
Super Moms! and very fit and having a blast!
Seniors were in pretty good shape and fast too.
I most enjoyed the 'senior' exercise life while in Switzerland. Take the train to a village and walk home! Many seniors do that everyday!
In Holland you BIKE (of course!)
Last edited by StealthRabbit; 06-06-2017 at 12:29 AM..
Great topic. I have never been an exercise fanatic, but with retirement I have made my health a priority. Observing my older relatives, i have seen that good health makes all the difference between enjoying retirement and just existing.
I don't want to be one of those old people tottering around on a walker with a bent back, a failing heart and a calendar full of doctor's appointments. So even though I don't enjoy it that much, I go to the gym four times a week and do what I can. I have aches and pains and I'll never be able to keep up with the 30-year-olds in Spandex, but I keep plugging away at it.
Having an exercise buddy helps, too. We keep each other motivated. Lots of times I don't feel like going, but I don't want to let her down, and she feels the same way about me.
Another thing I think is more important for us retired people is to listen to our bodies. If something hurts, stop. Don't push through it and risk injury just so you can meet some self-imposed standard. You can get away with that when you're 30, but at 65+ overdoing it can hurt you. Recovering from an exercise injury takes longer, too.
Keeping fit is one thing. Going to a gym is another. I hate going to the gym and would rather get exercise doing something I like.
I'm not a fan of going to the gym and working out on my own.
I just started working today with a trainer who specializes in applied biomechanics. She can tell by watching me move which muscles need to be lengthened, which have lost tone and which are too weak to do what they're supposed to. There is a lot of assisted stretching, which is the only way for me certain muscles can be stretched properly without injury. The difference between my gait before we started and what it was after an hour of stretching was marked. I have not been able to walk this easily in a long time.
I also work two days a week with a Pilates trainer, so that's core and protecting my spine.
I like to try new things. I did a slow motion workout with another trainer. He said I would probably feel like throwing up afterwards and he was right. I think there's a lactic acid build-up when you move super-slow. Not doing that one again.
I started back to the gym about 13 months ago and I've lost almost 20 pounds and my legs are stronger. My legs were getting so bad that if I squatted down to get something I couldn't get back up without holding on to something. The weak legs & knees have plagued everyone in my family so I decided to do something about it.
I get on the treadmill for 30 minutes, then do weights for another 30. I try to do this at least 2-3 times a week although I have been slacking since my work schedule got changed.
Can't say I love it but it's better than the alternative and I do like seeing the results of a stronger, thinner body and buying smaller clothes.
I sign up for classes but always miss a few. We both have $100 membership at Planet Fitness. It is no frills, no classes, simple, machines and free weights, clean. It can get crowded at times but I go in, do my stuff, and get out. I do 30 minutes ( more like 20 really :-)) on treadmill, weights for arms, upper body, legs. I do a few yoga poses and stretch. I have been slacking off lately because I go for my birding where I might walk upto 3 miles. It is not ver good excecize but it is half the morning, and I have other things to do. I started jogging a bit on the treadmill for a more intense work out but I think I have injured my knee.
I prefer to work out on my own instead of classes. I don't have a problem with motivation, it is like taking my vitamins, just do it. I probably don't do it with proper intensity and not stretch adequately for which a class might be better.
Keep in mind that many part-b medicare policies have a fitness program included often called 'silver sneakers' or something similar. It will pay membership fees to any gym that participates in the program. I paid about $20 a month for years but since medicare it is covered by my insurance.
Keep in mind that many part-b medicare policies have a fitness program included often called 'silver sneakers' or something similar. It will pay membership fees to any gym that participates in the program. I paid about $20 a month for years but since medicare it is covered by my insurance.
Yes. Ours covers up to 150 per year and includes fitness classes
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
