Exercise Guide

I’m a missionary spreading the gospel of strength exercise
for older adults.

This article is a part of that gospel. You may think that only
body builders do squats, but they are the first exercise
anyone of any age should do as he or she begins an
exercise program. When you do a squat, you are
strengthening the thigh muscles (quadriceps) that you use
to get up out of a chair–I call them the muscles of
independence. Just doing a couple of sets of 8 repetitions
daily will increase your leg strength. Getting up off the couch
will be easier and you’ll be less likely to fall.

Here are your in-depth instructions for doing squats.
Stand with your feet hip width apart. If you are afraid of
falling, stand behind a heavy chair and hold on to the back
of
the chair. If there is a chance you may tip the chair over,
place some heavy weights on the seat. If you don’t need to
hold on, make sure you pull your stomach muscles in to
keep your back straight so it is not arched. If you don’t need
to hold on, hold your hands in a prayer position in front of
you.

In the strength classes I teach I say, “Stick your bottom out
behind. Pretend you are Donald Duck and waggle your tail.”
Then slowly lower your bottom as if you are going to sit.
Keep most of your weight back on your heels. Your upper
body should remain upright–do not bend at the waist. As
you lower your body, extend your hands out in front of you
until your arms are parallel with the floor. This will help keep
you from bending over.

Keep your knees over your toes. You can injure your knees if
you don’t. When you look down as you’re doing a squat, you
should always be able to see your toes. If you cannot, you’re
not doing the squat properly. If your knees hurt, try making
your bottom stick out further. This will keep your knees over
your feet. If they still hurt, don’t go down so far. If that doesn’t
work, do not do this exercise. If you can’t get the hang of it,
actually sit down slowly in a straight chair and watch to see
how you do it.

Lower your bottom very slowly down as far as you are
comfortable. Inhale as you go down Do not go beyond the
point at which your thighs are parallel with the floor. If your
leg muscles are very weak or if your knees begin to
complain, lower your body only a few inches. Check to be
sure your bottom is protruding out behind. The further you
stick out your bottom, the less your knees are likely to hurt.
You should take approximately four seconds for the
lowering phase.

Stand back up while you concentrate on tightening your
thigh muscles and making them do the work. Push up with
your thighs. Do not stand back up quickly; slower is better.
Exhale as you stand back up. Take about two seconds to lift
your body back up to its original position.

This is not a glamorous exercise. I tell class members that
they leave “lady-like” at the door. We are athletes while we
are working out.

Do eight repetitions of this exercise very slowly. It should
take about six seconds for each repetition and your legs
should feel tired when you finish. If they do not, you have
probably not been tightening the thigh muscles as you
stand back up; you’ve been letting your knees do much of
the work. As you begin to straighten your legs, tighten the
thighs and push. I find it often takes new exercisers several
weeks to really get the hang of this.

If your thighs are burning when you finish the set, you’re
getting the maximum benefit from the exercise. You may
want to shake out your legs if they feel very tired.
You will be amazed how doing this simple exercise
regularly will make it easier to climb stairs, arise from a
chair and get in and out of the car.
It will also improve your balance because your legs will
become strong enough to hold and support you securely as
you stand.

Tip: Make sure you do not bend at the waist so you are
looking at the floor. If you are not sure you are doing this
exercise correctly, get someone to watch you or exercise in
front of a mirror.

See your doctor before beginning an exercise program. If
any exercise causes pain, stop immediately. Modify the
exercise so it does not cause pain or find another exercise
to work the same body part. Any exercise program carries
risks of injury. Phyllis Rogers and/or Senior Fitness, Inc. are
not responsible for any injuries incurred during or after
doing the exercises described in this article.

Phyllis Rogers is certified as a Certified Fitness Trainer,
Specialist in Fitness for Older Adults and Longevity
Wellness Specialist. She is available for speeches and
workshops. Her e-mail address is
fitness9@mindspring.com or learn more at
http://www.StrongOver40.com

Her book “Over 40 & Gettin’ Stronger contains instructions
for a complete workout, including squats. She has just
released an audio CD which guides you through the
workout. To obtain the book/CD combination, send a check
for $25.95 plus $4 for shipping to Fitness Press, P O Box
4912, Marietta, GA 30061. Or visit http://www.StrongOver40.com

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You’ve read over and over that strength traininglifting
weightsis a fountain of youth and helps keep your body
strong as you age. And you’ve decided you’d like to buy
some dumbbells and set up an exercise program in your
home.

The first thing to do is to make an appointment with your
health care provider. Since strength training is good for
almost any physical problem, you will probably be given the
green light. But if your doctor gives you any warninglisten
and do what he or she says. There are some physical
conditions that preclude strength training.

Now that you have approval, how many weights do you
need? Where can you purchase them? How much will they
cost? What else will you need?

You’ve probably heard that you can use soup cans or gallon
jugs filled with water, and it’s true that you can. However, I
believe that you’re better off purchasing dumbbells–cans
are hard to hold onto, and jugs of water slosh around so you
don’t get the same response as you do with a dumbbell.
The one exception to this is if you are very weak and cannot
lift a 3-pound weight. In that case, you may want to use
cans of food or bottles of water rather than purchase one or
two pound weights which you’ll soon abandon as you
become stronger.

You’ll need at least three different sizes of weights for
working different muscles. For instance, you’ll need a lighter
weight for working the triceps muscle (the one below your
upper arm that we call “bat wings”) than you will for other
exercises.

Weights (dumbbells) are available at discount stores and at
sporting goods stores where you’ll have several kinds from
which to choose. The least expensive are the plain gray
metal weights with hexagonal ends which work just as well
as more expensive ones. The gray weights cost
approximately fifty cents per pounda pair of five pound
weights weighing a total of ten pounds will cost about five
dollars. The ones with round ends tend to roll when you put
them on a chair seat, which can result in injured toes,. If you
place one weight diagonally across the other one when you
put them down; this lessens the possibility of the dumbbells
rolling off the chair seat.

To begin with, you’ll need light weights, although you’ll soon
leave those behind and move to heavier ones as your
muscles get stronger. If you are a female over forty, I
recommend that you begin with: one pair each of 3, 5 and 8
pounds. A man should purchase one pair each of: 5, 8 and
10 pound weights. Men who pursue an aggressive
program, will soon need 12 and 15 pound weights.

You will need a chair without arms (a folding chair works
just fine) and a space large enough that you can lie on the
floor with arms and legs spread out for floor exercises and
stretching. If you really “get into” weight lifting, you may want
to invest in a pair of ankle weights, but you won’t need them
to begin your program. You can always add them later for
lower body exercises,

If you have arthritis in your hands, you may find that a pair of
weight lifting gloves will help make lifting the weights more
comfortable. Other equipment you’ll need includes a chair,
a towel, a bottle of water and a good pair of shoes. Please
don’t ever lift weights without shoes onit isn’t worth taking
a chance on injuring your toes.

Finally find a place to store them where they’ll be out of the
way. and easily accessibleso you won’t be tempted to put
off exercising because they are difficult to get at.
Please don’t forget to drink water while you’re exercising.
Keep a bottle of water handy while you’re working out and
drink frequently.

I suggest that you find a workout partneryou’ll be able to
motivate each other on the days you just don’t feel like
exercising, but I promise that if you go ahead, you’ll be
energized afterward. Many people tell me that they have
more energy after they have finished a workout than they did
when they came to class.

You should also create a schedule of times and days for
your workout. Write down your schedule so you won’t forget.
You should not do resistance training on successive days
with the same parts of your body. For instance, you wouldn’t
want to do upper body exercises on consecutive days. If you
want to lift weights every day, alternate upper body and lower
body. For instance, do upper body and Monday, Wednesday
and Friday, and lower body on Tuesday, Thursday and
Saturday.

You’ll get the best results by doing resistance training at
least twice a week–not more than three times.
Now, you’re all set to begin your program. My book “Over 40
& Gettin’ Stronger contains complete instructions for a
strength exercise workout. You can order a copy at my web
site www.StrongOver40.com or at Amazon.com.

Phyllis Rogers is a Certified Fitness Trainer and Specialist
in Fitness for Older Adults. She is author of “Over 40 &
Gettin’ Stronger” which contains an easy to learn strength
workout using only dumbbells and which can be done at
home. She has taught more than 1200 strength classes for
older adults Her web site is http://www.StrongOver40.com. She
can be reached at fitness9@mindspring.com and is
available for speeches and workshops.

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