Building health and fitness for the older person

I started some lifestyle changes about a month ago, stopped smoking cannabis and intensified my meditation practice. I also improved and I'm continuing to improve my diet and I'm keeping a food and activity journal, on the left are fitness activities and on the right page I write down what I eat and the calorie count. I've found in the past keeping such a journal is a great motivator and helps to keep the calorie count in the desired range. Right now that range is below 2000 calories a day as I shed some extra pandemic pounds. The next pandemic effect I'm dealing with is to get my ass in motion and try and build up some cardio fitness. I've got a Timex Ironman heart rate monitor, but I'm not happy with its accuracy. I just ordered a reasonably priced smart watch that has good reviews from Amazon, I ordered two cheap pieces of crap from China before that are useless.

The plan is to do more physical activity and to use HIIT (see below in the posts) training to build up cardio fitness. I'm not looking for a Godbod or to run a marathon, just more energy, endurance and improved health. I got the jab of Pfizer about 5 days ago and checked out by my doctor, so I'm ready to shake the pandemic effect off and crawl out of my shell for spring! In Canada I won't be getting the second Pfizer shot until August, so it's 80% protection and masks for awhile. I don't expect to get covid and if I do, a mild or asymptomatic case at worst.

Right now my resting HR is 75 BPM and my max HR @66 year old is 146 BPM. My HIIT max out HR is in the 142 to 146 BPM range 85% to 90% of may max HR. The preferred instrument of torture is a stationary exercise bike and I gust got a nice regular one to peddle my ass around town. I plan on doing some walking but I've got arthritic right foot issues and post walk it can hurt like Hell, suck it up.

I ordered one of these today and hope it might be better than my Timex Ironman with the chest strap, but I guess I can check one against the other. Not to mention checking on the neck the old fashioned way. I'm gonna be doing some HIIT training, so I'd like to know when I'm around the redline with some accuracy. I just can't bring myself to spend $300+ dollars on a fucking watch! This thing is suppose do everything short of scratching yer ass and I don't expect o use 90% of what it does and suspect most people don't either!

Smart Watch PIBO, 1.4" Touch Color Screen and IP68 Waterproof Smartwatch, Fitness Tracker with Heart Rate Monitor, Custom Dial Smart Watch with Sleep Monitor, Pedometer Fitness Watch for Men Women: Amazon.ca: Sports & Outdoors

HIIT: High Intensity Interval Training Exercise Really Works | Time

Don't Have Time to Exercise? Do This for 10 Minutes

In the fitness world, the word “miracle” gets thrown around like a two-pound dumbbell. But when it comes to high-intensity interval training (HIIT), a very short workout, the benefits you’ve heard about are both legitimate and—we’ll say it—miraculous.

HIIT is a combination of brief, very-high intensity bursts of cardio exercise followed by equal or longer periods of rest. Think 30 seconds to a minute of sprinting, followed by a minute or two of walking or slow jogging. Repeat this cycle for just 10 minutes, and you’ll complete a HIIT workout.

“We now have more than 10 years of data showing HIIT yields pretty much the exact same health and fitness benefits as long-term aerobic exercise, and in some groups or populations, it works better than traditional aerobic exercise,” says Todd Astorino, a professor of kinesiology at California State University, San Marcos, who has published more than a dozen study papers on HIIT.

Whether your goal is to improve your fitness, lower your risk for cardiovascular disease, lose weight, strengthen skeletal muscle or help get your blood sugar under control, a few minutes of HIIT seem to be as effective as much longer periods of moderate-paced running, cycling, swimming or other forms of traditional cardio. For well-trained athletes, HIIT may be the best way to elevate your physical performance.

One small study of healthy but sedentary people found just one minute total of HIIT performed three days a week for six weeks was enough to significantly improve blood sugar scores and aerobic capacity, a measure of physical fitness. The study participants completed 10- to 20-second bouts of “all-out” cycling on a stationary bike, each broken up by a couple minutes of rest. The total workout time, start to finish, was 10 minutes.

Other research finds that HIIT may outperform traditional cardio when it comes to fat loss. A HIIT-induced surge in your body’s levels of growth hormones and other organic compounds “can increase fat burning and energy expenditure for hours after exercise,” says study author Stephen Boutcher, an associate professor of medical sciences at the University of New South Wales in Australia.

It doesn’t just work for the young, fit and healthy. Among people with heart disease, HIIT improves cardiorespiratory fitness nearly twice as much as longer stretches of moderate-intensity running, cycling or other aerobic exercises, one review study concluded.

MORE: Why You Don’t Have to Exercise Every Day

How can HIIT do so much good in so little time? During very intense exercise, “the heart cannot pump enough blood to satisfy all the muscles,” says Ulrik Wisløff, a HIIT researcher and head of the cardiac exercise research group at the Norwegian School of Science and Technology. This lacking oxygen delivery to the muscles starts a “cascade of molecular responses in most organs of the body” that produces a greater training response than more leisurely bouts of exercise, he says.

Exercise of any intensity switches on genes that increase the growth of mitochondria—the power generators of the cells—and triggers all of the other beneficial biological changes linked with physical fitness, says Astorino. “But to activate these genes with traditional cardiovascular exercises, you have to do fairly large or long bouts,” he says. With HIIT, it appears that even very short bouts of training can switch on those genes, so it’s an efficient workout.

HIIT can work for a wide range of people. But how you should practice it depends on your fitness level.

The key to HIIT is pushing your heart rate up above 80% of its maximum, Astorino says. “Subtract your age from 220 to estimate your maximal heart rate,” he says. (A heart rate monitor can provide an accurate assessment. But if you’re really sucking wind after pushing yourself, you’ve probably hit your target, Astorino says.)

If you’re fit, try sprint interval training. After walking or slow jogging for a few minutes to warm up, sprint as hard as you can for 30 seconds, then recover for four minutes by walking or jogging slowly. Complete four to six sets of this sprinting-recovery program. (For an even faster version, keep the warmup, then complete three sets of 20-second sprints, each separated by two minutes of recovery, Astorino says.)

If you’re overweight or obese and you haven’t exercised in months, sprinting isn’t necessary (or safe for your joints). Instead, 30 seconds to four minutes of brisk walking on an inclined treadmill or hill should be enough to push your heart rate up into the HIIT zone, Astorino says.

You can also practice these programs with a stationary bike, rowing machine or in the pool. Any form of cardio can push your heart into the HIIT zone, Wisløff says. (This fact sheet from the American College of Sports Medicine offers more in-depth details on how to design a HIIT program.)

And yes, HIIT is safe. Wisløff and colleagues analyzed nearly 50,000 hours of HIIT data collected from cardiovascular disease patients in Norway. In seven years of data, he turned up just two instances of (non-fatal) cardiac arrest.

He says people with unstable angina or serious heart issues should speak with their doctor first. But, in general, “it’s much more dangerous not to perform HIIT than to perform it,” he says.

DIY-HP-LED said:

I ordered one of these today and hope it might be better than my Timex Ironman with the chest strap, but I guess I can check one against the other. Not to mention checking on the neck the old fashioned way. I'm gonna be doing some HIIT training, so I'd like to know when I'm around the redline with some accuracy. I just can't bring myself to spend $300+ dollars on a fucking watch! This thing is suppose do everything short of scratching yer ass and I don't expect o use 90% of what it does and suspect most people don't either!

Smart Watch PIBO, 1.4" Touch Color Screen and IP68 Waterproof Smartwatch, Fitness Tracker with Heart Rate Monitor, Custom Dial Smart Watch with Sleep Monitor, Pedometer Fitness Watch for Men Women: Amazon.ca: Sports & Outdoors

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Off brand smart watches aren't worth it. I've had a few I've tried. I stick to Garmin or polar. My Fenix 6s is my current im using and it does really well.

It's too bad you have an issue with your foot. Maybe look into some specialty shoes. They make them for a variety of foot ailments. Walking is a great way to start getting into shape. Low impact and you can go at your own pace increasing the distance you walk as you get in better shape.

I started walking a couple miles a day several times a week a while back. I'm now up to walking between 4-5 miles a day 4-5 times a week. I could walk more but I get lazy. I'm not in bad shape but I don't want to get there. It's easier to maintain your health than to get it back.

A daily walk can do wonders for how you feel.

The situation in the world is of course very scary for the elderly. You are doing the right thing by taking care of your health. My mother worries about her health too. She exercises all the time. Her health indicators are increasing and she is very happy with herself. I recommended the website https://www.otcmedstore.com to improve her health. Since there is a pandemic, I wanted her to buy a good thermometer and the right vitamins. Maybe you can find the things you need there too.

75 bpm at that age is pretty damn good im honestly shocked...keep up the good work cheers

I may have some solid advice to offer here. Credentials: Associates degree in Allied Health (athletic training), bachelors degree from O.S.U. In health education and promotion, 15+ years of self driven research and self experimenting, 5 years as the wellness facility supervisor at a gym that saw ~2,500 monthly visits, including several years of instructing CrossFit (level 1 and 2 certificates) and weightlifting.

To boil everything I’ve learned and experienced down into a simple and effective piece of advice: avoid sugar like the plague (NO soda, fruit juice, candy, fast food), eat fresh foods and lots of leafy greens, and try not to sit more than you have to. Diet is 98% of the equation that most people overlook or ignore, and if you get that dialed in, the weight will come off with basically zero physical exercise required. You’ll feel better than I can convince you here. Exercise is great, but you’ll never outrun a bad diet, I promise you.

I’ve given this advice to so many people only to see them make excuse after excuse about “gotta have my one soda a day” or “healthy food is too expensive” or whatever. It’s really sad knowing how easy and effective it is to make good choices on what you allow into your body, yet almost nobody does it.

There’s a quote I like that has stuck with me, but I can’t remember who quoted it atm: “Every time you eat or drink, you’re either feeding disease or fighting it.” If you apply that 95%, I assure you you will see results.

I feel this is a subject I am pretty knowledgeable and confident with, so here’s me leading all you horses to the water; it’s up to you to drink that water.

I’m happy to answer any questions you have. Good luck!

While waiting for the other smart watch to arrive I went out and bought a fitbit. It works ok, but was a bit of a pain in the ass to setup and register etc. The HR monitor works pretty well though and I kinda like the other features, but one complaint is the font size for the HR monitor is way to fucking small. I'm sure all the 20 something friends of the developers think a 10pt font is great with a stupid heart symbol taking up all the screen, but anybody over 50 can't read the fucking thing. I'm near sighted so I don't need glasses to read it, but almost everybody else has an issue!

It's a great motivator to live a healthier lifestyle though and helps to whip yer ass into shape and get a better sleep too. Overall I think it will work out pretty well and I would recommend getting a quality smart watch to anybody older who wants to get into shape. They probably sell most of these to young bucks who don't really need such a gizmo to help with getting into shape, but the older you are, the thinner the line between beneficial exercise and injury or over stress.
Fitbit Inspire 2 Review

Well after nearly a week of wearing this Fitbit thing I found my resting HR is 56 and it doesn't take me too much effort to get into the training zone either, cause I'm in such shitty shape! At 66 years old I'm also blessed with low blood pressure that is well inside the normal range and responds well to exercise.

I'm chowing down on around 2000 quality calories a day (I'm keeping a food journal) and expending around 3 to 4000 calories a day depending on what I'm doing, according to the fitbit. It's tracking my theoretical weight loss and I'm entering my actual weight loss in the app by weighing in every few days and I expect it will use this data and make adjustments.

I checked out some reviews before I purchased and this cheap fitness tracker, $89 CDN, seems to have pretty good accuracy. This guy puts it through it's paces for the most important features, it's amazing what this thing can sense about your physiology.
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Fitbit Inspire 2 Science Test (It's great!): Sleep, Heart Rate, Step Review

xtsho said:

It's too bad you have an issue with your foot. Maybe look into some specialty shoes. They make them for a variety of foot ailments. Walking is a great way to start getting into shape. Low impact and you can go at your own pace increasing the distance you walk as you get in better shape.

I started walking a couple miles a day several times a week a while back. I'm now up to walking between 4-5 miles a day 4-5 times a week. I could walk more but I get lazy. I'm not in bad shape but I don't want to get there. It's easier to maintain your health than to get it back.

A daily walk can do wonders for how you feel.

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I started taking Celebrex again and it's helping the foot arthritis quite a bit, I did 3 go rounds at the track today and I'm going up to 4 on Monday. The fitbit I recently bought is a great motivator I plan on going to the park for a stroll after supper this evening and I might take a racing quad along and do a "walk of shame" too!

does weed help with your foot at all?

Buddernugs said:

does weed help with your foot at all?

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It does, but Celebrex works better, I haven't had a puff since the beginning of April and I've got almost a pound of very strong white widow in the cupboard. I'm into a lifestyle change and I find pot interferes with self regulation and motivation, I'm meditating over an hour a day in 2 or 3 half hour sessions to help with this. I should say I try to meditate, to the extent my two cats let me! I find practice works much better and has better results after physical exercise and I'm timing my sits after exercise sessions. Mindfulness meditation is an exercise too and it works exactly like physical exercise, it takes about 6 to 8 weeks to get into shape, experience serious perceptual changes and live fully in the present moment. Physical exercise aids and accelerates the process and some of my exercise are mindfulness sessions too.

I never took Celebrex for a few years and I took it for my right knee, but that was replaced, so I stopped taking it. I'm impressed at how well it's working for my foot, but I plan on doing some cycling to reduce the stress on the foot.

I’m going to have to look into meditation it sounds like something I can use to calm my thoughts....... I’m glad your foot is feeling better. Also is that white widow home grown?

Buddernugs said:

I’m going to have to look into meditation it sounds like something I can use to calm my thoughts....... I’m glad your foot is feeling better. Also is that white widow home grown?

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I'm planning on starting a thread on it in this section, I used to teach mindfulness meditation locally before the pandemic. I've bumped up my practice a bit since I started a lifestyle change.
Here is a great free online MBSR course, much better than trying to puzzle your way through Buddhism! I usually encourage beginners to take it.
Online MBSR/Mindfulness (Free) (palousemindfulness.com)

Also here is a site I created for my local group
North Side Mindfulness (webnode.com)

Buddernugs said:

I’m going to have to look into meditation it sounds like something I can use to calm my thoughts....... I’m glad your foot is feeling better. Also is that white widow home grown?

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Here is a quick and easy concentration practice that can give you a taste of what it's all about, take note of how you feel afterwards. It's the same practice they teach in TM, only here's how to do it for free, mindfulness meditation usually uses the breath as an attentional anchor (see the website links).

In any meditation we first evoke the relaxation response to flood the prefrontal cortex with blood, this is the most plastic part of the brain and the area we are looking to work out. Think of it like body building and me as a coach.

Set a timer on your cellphone for say 15 minutes to begin with, the timer makes the call when the session is over, not you.

First sit upright in a comfortable position, sit with dignity, your feet flat on the floor. Use a chair unless you are comfortable bending yourself up like a Goddamned pretzel on the floor!

Next close your eyes and notice the feeling of your breathing for about 10 breaths.

Now, repeat your mantra (mind tool), try using the classic OM or AUM and repeat it silently in your head at whatever pace you feel comfortable with and try to stay focused on hearing the sound as clearly as you can in your head. When you catch your mind wandering (it will) gently go back to the mantra. Don't get mad, just bring your mind back to your attentional anchor, in this case the Mantra.

You may lose awareness and also catch yourself with your mind wandering, go back to the mantra, you're still meditating though. Watch your breathing to know, it should be very shallow and slow, since while practicing oxygen uptake can go down by up to 16%.

You might even have experiences like the Beatles did, because this is the method they were taught and they used a Hindu Mantra in their lyrics. Mantra meditations are quite common and there are many different kinds, I sometimes use it to quiet my mind as a warm up for breath practice.