Keeping Fitness Levels Up Helps Seniors Stay Active

Staying active right through your middle years and into your senior years can stave off disability and allow you to stay active for longer, a new study by Stanford’s University of Medicine has revealed. So the old adage, “Use it or lost it,” is appropriate in so many ways.

“This study contributes to the large body of scientific evidence supporting the importance of continuing to be physical active over one’s life,” said lead author Bonnie Bruce, of the division of immunology and rheumatology at Stanford University Department of Medicine.

The researchers concluded that being physically active, regardless of body weight, helped lessen disability. Bruce said that public health efforts that promote physically active lifestyles among seniors may be more feasible than those that emphasize body weight to remain healthy.

Bruce B, Fries J, Hubert H.. Mitigation of disability development in healthy overweight and normal-weight seniors through regular vigorous activity: a 13-year study. Am J Public Health, 98(7) 2008

What if you have already let yourself go? What if it is going to be hard work just to get a reasonable amount of fitness again?

Studies on Vibration Platforms show that they could be an answer to this all too common problem. It seems these almost magical exercise machines rely on creating tonic reflexes in every muscle of the body and using them can be as easy as standing on the platform. The research has proved that older people can use these machines and rehabilitate their bodies to the point where they can use movements while on the Vibration Platform and this can create long-term fitness and can be used as a prescriptive approach to aged care.

“Aging and Vibration Exercise

• Improvement in chair rising test, indicative of improvement in muscle power

• Improve elements of fall risk and health-related quality of life

• Ability to promote ambulatory competence (improved walking) in elderly women

• Beneficial for balance and mobility in nursing home residents with limited functional dependency

• High compliance with vibration exercise

Exercise is an excellent preventative method in dealing with the disability associated with the progression of osteoporosis. Weight-bearing and resistance-training exercises are often recommended. However, with traditional vigorous exercise programs, there is a lack of long-term compliance in addition to having the potential to increase the risk of fracture. Whole body vibration exercise can be seen as an excellent alternative or complement to regular training, allowing an individual to effortlessly achieve similar results to conventional training in less time, thereby increasing compliance.”

Bruyere, O., et al. “Controlled Whole Body Vibrations Improve Health Related Quality of Life in Elderly Patients.” Research article abstract.

More information on Vibration Platforms.