Middle-aged women should start exercising at a slow pace, combining strength training with cardiovascular exercises to improve health.
Some exercise habits can help women stay in shape and have stronger, healthier bones and joints as they get older.
Exercise to increase strength
The rate of bone loss in women aged 40 and postmenopause is about 0,75-1% per year. Doing resistance exercises each week aids in preventing muscle loss and maintaining strength as you age.
Prioritize dumbbell exercises, planks, push-ups, and squats because they use many major muscle groups in the body including chest, back, shoulders, biceps, triceps, quadriceps, buttocks, hamstrings and abs. Choose the appropriate weight, so that you feel muscle fatigue in about 10-12 repetitions, two to three sets.
Cardio exercise helps keep your heart healthy
Cardiovascular exercises help lower blood pressure and cholesterol, prevent diabetes, and increase stamina and endurance. It also contributes to improving metabolism, maintaining healthy body weight, increasing circulation, providing oxygen to the blood. Appropriate exercise methods such as running, walking, cycling, aerobics, dancing...
Beginners should practice with low or moderate intensity. If you're used to it, challenge yourself with high-intensity, shorter-duration exercises.
Breathe and relax
From the age of 40, lung capacity begins to decrease due to the aging process of the bronchioles, alveolar air sacs, lungs, diaphragm and intercostal muscles. They become constricted, contracted, stiff and weak causing difficulty breathing or other lung problems.
Maintain a healthy respiratory system by participating in yoga, aerobics, and pilates classes. You should learn how to breathe deeply and apply it to relax, calm your nerves and improve lung health.
Practicing yoga helps middle-aged women increase flexibility and improve the respiratory system. Image: Bao Bao
Bend and stretch
Stretching is a necessary exercise for women over the age of 50. Although it does not involve vigorous exercise, this exercise brings enough flexibility and relaxes the muscles. Stretching also corrects imbalances, reduces pain, limits the risk of injury and improves posture.
Before doing stretching exercises, warm up for about 5 minutes to warm up your muscles, you can do light walking or cycling. The American Council on Exercise recommends stretching each major muscle group and holding each stretch for 15-30 seconds.
Practice flexibility and range of motion
Joint movement is limited, and flexibility decreases with age due to changes in tendons and ligaments. Women over 50 should practice flexibility and range of motion. Pilates or cardiovascular exercise can both support this goal.
Women practice flexibility for 30 minutes, three days per week. Moderate cardiovascular exercise should be a minimum of 150 minutes per week.
Bao Bao (Follow Livestrong)
| Readers ask female physiology questions here for doctors to answer |
