Kingston Senior Activities | Kingston Gets Active

Fitness Tips!

How you can get fit today!

Older adults most likely will participate in activity that they see as relevant and purposeful or productive." Focus on activities with productive tangible outcomes (e.g.walking to buy groceries or to the store, rather than walking for the sake of health.) [study by Chad Witcher, 2006] www.centre4activeliving.ca

Use your work skills! Can you saw lumber? Saw wood? Can you build birdhouses? Find an organization that needs your skills, and volunteer!

Use your housekeeping skills! Rake your own leaves or sweep the snow, and do a bit of the neighbour's while you're at it.

Do you live in a retirement home? Offer to wipe the outdoor benches, sweep the patio, weed one of the flower beds, help wash the home's vehicle, water the grass, water the indoor plants, straighten the book shelves, feed the birds.

Are you living in a retirement home? Set up a walking route around your floor, and decide to do it once or twice a day. Even if you use a wheelchair, go on the route, visit friends, wear a smile!

Walk over to a retirement home or nursing home to see if you could take a wheelchair user for a walk…indoors or outdoors.

A little activity every day is better than a lot of activity every once in a while!

Do your activity at the same time every day, like during the commercials of your favourite TV show like Jeopardy!

Speak to a doctor first, then do a few exercises each day. Start slowly!

One of the best activities for your heart and lungs is square dancing. Give it a try!

To make arm exercises a bit more challenging, put a can in each hand, and lift them or gently swing them

Check out Canada’s Physical Activity Guide

Be Sure to Warm-up! The purpose of the warm-up is to prepare your body for the game or training session to follow. It is not about training any particular component of fitness. Many players and coaches go through a complete stretching routine prior to their activity as if the purpose of the warm-up was to improve flexibility. It isn’t, and in fact some researchers argue that static slow stretching prior to dynamic-ballistic activities like soccer will increase the chances of injury.

Visit your nearest library, and borrow a PEDOMETER at the check-out desk. PEDOMETERS available at Calvin Park, Central, Kingscourt, Pittsburgh, and Turner Branches of the KFPL. Keep track of your steps for a week. Borrow the PEDOMETER again after the snow is gone, wear it for a week, and see how much more ACTIVE you are! Get ACTIVE.

To get the most from your workout, you should frequently monitor your exercise intensity. This will make sure you maximize your exercise benefits without overworking your heart. For most healthy people, the recommended target heart rate is a range between 50% to 75% of their maximum heart rate. To calculate your maximum heart rate, take 220 and subtract your age to get the number of beats per minute (bpm). To measure your heart rate, count the number of heart beats (pulse) for 10 seconds using your watch, and then multiple by six to get your bpm. But remember--everyone is different! You should be able to carry on a conversation during your workout. If you are breathless, or can’t talk, you’re working too hard. Slow down to a more comfortable intensity.

Older Adults

How you can get active!

There are many ways to get active! It is recommended that adults aged 65 years and older should accumulate at least 150 minutes of moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity per week, in bouts of 10 minutes or more (Canadian Physical Activity Guidelines for Older Adults- 65 years and older).

Moderate-intensity activities will make you breathe harder and will probably make you sweat. Some examples include: brisk walking, bicycling.

Vigorous-intensity activities will make you sweat and be ‘out of breath’. Examples include: cross-country skiing, swimming.

Strength: at least 2 days per week

These types of activities cause the muscles to contract against resistance and pull on bone, which helps to build strong muscles and bones. Some examples include: swimming, activities that use body weight such as yoga, rowing, and strength training.

Those with poor mobility should perform physical activites to enhance balance and prevent falls.

More physical activity provides greater health benefits.

The following are simply examples of activities that adults enjoy participating in, but activities appropriate for adults are not limited to the ones listed below. Some adults run marathons, while others find a 15 minute walk a challenge. Everyone has a different level of fitness, so participate in what you feel comfortable in and enjoy doing!

Walking, hiking or urban poling
Riding a bike
Ice skating
Swimming
Dancing (all kinds)
Gardening
Exercising at home
Skateboarding
Jogging/running
Aquafit classes
Biking
Exercising at home
Various team and individual sport e.g., soccer, shinny hockey
Cleaning house
Jogging
Learn to swim/skate programs
Winter hike or snowshoe

Older adults who want to get a move on can measure their progress with the help of the pedometer lending program that has been set up at the Seniors Association Kingston Region. Pedometers count the wearer’s steps during physical activity and have been successfully used to motivate and increase walking and physical activity patterns. Pedometers can be borrowed at the Seniors Centre (56 Francis St.) by members of the Seniors Association Kingston Region.

To find out more about affordable recreation programs through the City fee-assistance program, click HERE.