Elderly And Senior Endurance Exercises Improve Your Heart Health

Welcome To Our Endurance Page!

If you are looking for one of the best resources on elderly endurance training exercises for seniors on the internet, you found it!

The main topics of this section are:

• Benefits: Discover why endurance training is good for you.
• How often: Learn when and how to train your endurance.
  
• How to start walking:  Learn how walk correctly at home.
  
• Tips for your feet: What you should and should not do.
  
• Training zone:  What is a training zone and why you should know yours.

The ways this section will help you improve include:

• Strength: Create a stronger torso and legs to increase you stability.
  
• Safety:  Increase your ability to get up, walk and exercise.
  
• Mobility: Achieve a lasting ability to get around more easily
  
• Activities: Enjoy those tennis lessons or bike riding again
  
• Social: Begin to see and enjoy your friends and family

The benefits of Elderly endurance training in a senior exercise program are increased endurance, energy level, increased fat metabolism, and prevention of heart disease.  

This works best if you workout at least three times a week spaced out with a 48 hour rest in between.

It is possible to improve with a two day a week workout but we prefer at least three days.

Two days a week is not likely to help you loose weight  but  really any amount of exercise is better than no exercise at all.

Do you like these exercises? Did you know you can download the exercises along with a 4 week exercise program?

FREE ebook for every visitor Do you like the exercises on this site? After many requests to have these exercises in a convenient form, I have created an ebook. The ebook is free and can be downloaded by signing up for my email list. This list is used only to send out my senior fitness newsletter. With thousands of downloads, this is one of the most popular Senior ebooks in the world. Click here for details....

Start a walking program

One of the easiest forms of Elderly endurance work is brisk walking. Walking has been referred to as the "King of exercises".  

If you are a low fit person, start with 2 - 5 minutes of  continuous walking.

Try this a few times per day. Then build up to 30 minutes, 3 or 4 times a week.

Older adults can safely walk as much as 60 minutes a day.

Beginners or those with balance problems, joint problems should walk first on flat surfaces or indoor at a mall.  

Then you can gradually work up to more uneven surface as your balance and joints permit.

Tips for healthy feet

• Keep nails filed straight across the top

• Wash your feet daily with mild soap and water and dry thoroughly.

• Those with diabetes should check their feet daily for redness, ingrown toe nails and blisters.

• Gradually build up your pace.

• A healthy senior can safely walk between 1 to 3 miles per hour.

Hiking or walking shoes are the best choice for your elderly endurance  program.

Regular sneakers or tennis shoes are not ideal because they are designed for more side to side movements in sports.

Look for a shoe with thick soles to provide cushioning and good heel support for increased stability.

Thick socks will increase your comfort and reduce the risk of blistering.

Finding your correct training range for elderly endurance exercises

Endurance: Endurance exercises include brisk walking, stationary bike riding, running, low impact aerobics, swimming, water aerobics, cycling or any exercise that makes you breathe faster and your heart to speed up.

Endurance exercises or activites should be performed at least 2 times per week.

For optimal improvement in your heart and lungs and muscles, try 3 to 5 times per week.

Think of how much easier it will be to walk, grocery shop and play with your grandchildren!

Your workout should be intense enough to make your heart beat faster and your breathing to increase but not so high as to over stress your system.

This is your training zone. Try to work out in this range to get the most benefit out of your endurance exercises.

Below you will find three good ways of monitoring your intensity level for your endurance activities and finding your training zone.

Pick one that will work for you and your situation.

Method 1: Maximum Heart rate : This method is the most precise when finding your training zone for your endurance exercises, but can be the hardest to learn.

Take a breath... and see if you can follow along...

• A good range for the typical senior exerciser is between 60% to 70% of your maximum heart rate.

• To find your maximum heart rate, subtract your age from the number 220.

• This is your maximum predicted heart rate for one minute.  

• For example, let's say you are 75 years old.

• 220 - 75 = 145 beats per minute.

• 145 is the maximum your heart can beat in a minute.

• 60% of 145 = 87 beats per minute (low end of range)

• 70% of 145 = 101 beats per minute (high end of range)

• Therefore your training zone is 87 to 101 beats per minute.

Since it is impractical to count your pulse for 60 seconds you can take a ten second count and multiply by six.

A 75 year old man needs to exercise between 14 and 17 beats when counting for 10 seconds.

• 14 beats in 10 seconds is your low range.

• 17 beats in 10 seconds is your higher range.

Review the 10 second counts so that you don't have to do math in your head while exercising. Slow down for the pulse count but keep your legs moving.

It is usually better to take your pulse at your wrist (radial artery)  instead of your neck ( carotid artery).

It is possible to press too hard on the carotid artery which could cause slowing of the pulse.  It is a good idea to take your pulse:

• Take your pulse at approximately 5 minutes into the exercise.

• Take your pulse again at approximately 10 minutes into your endurance exercise or after the hardest part. 

• Take your pulse just after your cool-down.

• Wow..eeeehhhh!..., I know this sounds complicated..... but once you find how many beats per 10 seconds you need to have.... you are done!

Method 2: Rate of Perceived Exertion:

Don't like the previous heart rate method? Too complicated?

Want an easier way to tell how hard you are working during your workout?

An easier method is to just rate your feeling of how hard you are working on the 6 to 20 scale.

This is called the "Borg Scale of Perceived Exertion."

• 6 No exertion at all

• 7 Extremely light

• 8

• 9 Very light

• 10

• 11 Light

• 12

• 13 Somewhat hard   "TRAINING RANGE"

• 14

• 15 Hard

• 16 

• 17 Very hard

• 18

• 19 Extremely hard

• 20 Maximal exertion

For most older adult exercisers, you can work in the "somewhat hard" range which is 12 to 14. Give it a try.. it actually work quite well. 

Method 3: Talk Test: Still too complicated? Want a VERY easy method to tell how hard you are working and make sure you are training correctly and safely in your training zone?

Try the talk test. It doesn't get much simpler...

Basically, you should be able to speak in your normal voice and tone during your exercise session.

If you are out of breath and are unable to speak regularly, then you need to lower your intensity level by slowing down.

How's that? Easy, eehh?

Guidelines for Endurance Exercise

• Make sure to stay with low-impact activities like walking, swimming, dance classes, and stationary bicycling.

• Stay in the Moderate of 12 to 14 exertion range.

• Build up to 30 minutes of continuous exercise.

• Exercise at least 3 days a week with 48 hours in between sessions.