The Power workout for men over 60

Some of the advice you get as you get older can be very generic at times. “You just need to keep moving” some say but that isn’t exactly helpful. To maintain excellent health and lifestyle, the key is to know what to move and how to do it that will give you the best results.

As with any changes to your lifestyle, diet, or exercise, you should always first consult your GP as you may have individual issues that could affect how much you are willing to do. Also keep focus on any past injuries to joints that you may have had as you don’t want to re-aggravate the injury.

It is suggested that at the very least you should have 30 minutes of moderate physical activity daily. For men it is suggested that a bigger focus be put on strength training as it helps prevent bone and muscle loss. Flexibility should also be factored in heavily to help with overall health.

All workouts should start with a stretch warm-up session. Stretching helps reduce the risk of injury and can help with that all important flexibility. According to BodyBuilding.com some of the best stretches are triceps stretch, seated floor twist, toe touch, standing biceps stretch, and the spinal stretch. It is also stressed that you should “bounce” when you stretch as this could cause muscle aggravation.

Daily exercise should be split up into a “four, two, one” system. Four days should be dedicated to doing cardiovascular activities while three should be given to weight training. There is no real limit to the activity you could do for these days but the exercise should raise your heart rate and break a sweat but not be so hard that you couldn’t hold a conversation at the same time. You should aim for around 30 minutes at least for these activities. Mix up the activities so that you are less likely to get bored. You could also make some of them social activities so you can catch up with friends while you are getting your exercise in. Some suggested activities are Aerobics, swimming, walking or jogging, and Aquatic Aerobics. You could also use a treadmill, elliptical, or rowing machine at home while reading or watching TV.

Now we reach the hard stuff. Two days of your physical activity should be dedicated to weight training. The aim is to do 20 to 45 minute sessions and focus on the number of repetitions rather than super heavy weight. Breaking down the exercises to focuses at least once on your back, shoulders, legs, arms, chest, and abdomen individually with two sets of 8-10 reps.

Sample workouts suggested by BodyBuilding.com are available for Day 1 and Day 2 of your weight training days.

It’s up to you on where in your schedule where the weight training days go but the experts suggest they shouldn’t be consecutive days.

The final day is for rest. On this day doing a small walk or a swim is fine, but this is the day to give your body a chance to recover and get ready for another week of keeping your healthy lifestyle going.

What advice would you give to someone starting out with their workout? What cardio activities do you do daily?