Boomers Put Our Own Twist on Exercise

I've just returned from my health club. My NIA teacher didn't show up (a rare occurrence) so I headed for the weight room where I flipped through magazines and chatted with one of my fellow NIA classmates, while zipping along on the recumbent bike for 20 minutes, scooted through the weight machines, and then headed to the pool for a swim. For some reason, I started noticing that 99% of the people in the room were leading-edge Boomers. Then I began to think about how weight rooms had changed. No more Nordic Track machines. Only one stair-climbing machine and one stationary bike. Now, there are stretching machines, rows of recumbent bikes (great for weak or injured knees), elliptical motion training machines (also good on knees), and big orange and green plastic balls for Pilates and yoga stretches. And of course, many more weight machines. Only one young woman was running on one of the old treadmills.

It turns out my observations are on the money. The research folks at American Sports Data inform me that "older Americans are transforming the landscape of physical fitness." It turns out that the number of people who are 55 belonging to health clubs surged by 33% from 1999-2004 whereas the 18-34 crowd had zero growth in memberships.

". . .the compound measurement of Yoga/Tai Chi has grown by 118% . . . . At 11.2 million participants, Recumbent Cycling, a particularly back-friendly exercise. . . has grown 66%. . . . surpassed only by Fitness Walking and Aquatics." And the conclusion? "Mature exercise enthusiasts are not merely playing havoc with abstract fitness statistics; they are rocking the foundations of fitness facilities across the U.S. "

Interesting facts: Pilates participation has increased 506% during the period of the research report, elliptical training machines, 306%, Yoga, 118%, Nordic ski machines, -40%, aerobic rider exercise, -58%, stair-climbing machines, -29%.

These are great trends to contemplate. Boomers as a group are continuing to value physical exercise and fitness as one important key to a vibrant, active life. And, if we need to find new exercises that put less strain on our joints and backs, then we find them and we continue to stay fit. Boomers may yet succeed at making the concept of wellness and prevention a perfectly natural part of our culture and thinking.

Make Your Brain Sweat with Bikram Yoga

I have neglected this blog because I've been on the road on business. In New York City and in between appointments, I ran across the street to a Bikram Yoga studio to try this hot (and I really do mean hot--the room is heated to at least 100 degrees Fahrenheit), new type of yoga. I've heard friends rave about it in California but I've always thought it would be wildly uncomfortable and I like the more traditional yoga I already practice. But alas, I needed some stretching and the convenience factor was large. I plunked my $25 down for one and a half hours, a mat and two large towels and entered the sauna-like room. John, our instructor, greeted me enthusiastically. This was to be an advanced class. I explained that I regularly practice yoga and he assured me that most of the poses would be familiar to me. The large dance studio-like room filled to the brim with people who carefully unrolled their purple and orange mats and covered them with two regular length white terry towels, preparing for all that sweat. The room had mirrors from floor to ceiling the length of the room (unlike regular yoga, we are encouraged to look at ourselves) and windows to the 20 degree weather on E. 83rd St. on the short side. According to the brochure, "The Bikram Yoga Series is a challenging, 90-minute workout that improves physical strength, flexibility, and balance while enhancing mental clarity and focus. The practice is a sequence of 26 poses, including two breathing exercises performed in a heated environment."

John welcomed us all and explained that he would not be showing us the poses, as in regular yoga. He would be talking us through them. And wow, did he! A mile a minute, cajoling, encouraging, calling everyone in the room (all fifty of us) by name more than once. Even though the poses were familiar, the effort seemed more intense and more aerobic in part because the movements were faster and the heat facilitated the stretching and bending and holding of our muscles. Distracted by the sweat pouring off every part of my body, I had to really concentrate on each pose to make it happen. And I managed all but the most advanced. Water and a face towel--couldn't have done without them.

So how did I feel at the end of this endurance test? Absolutely great. Refreshed. Energized. Exercised. Ready for more.

In my younger days, I zoomed down rivers in canoes and kayaks, winding my way through complex technical whitewater. I hiked above the treeline and in gorges. Today, I'm trying Bikram Yoga. The same rush of discovery is definitely there. I like it. I'll be finding a Bikram Yoga studio I like in my own neighborhood soon.

Regular Exercise Increases Our Energy

I love this new finding by University of Georgia researchers, Patrick O'Connor, co-director of the UGA exercise psychology laboratory and a kinesiology professor, and Tim Tuetz, a recent doctoral program graduate. Their findings were published in the November issue of Psychological Bulletin. They found that "sedentary people who completed a regular exercise program reported improved fatigue compared to groups that did not exercise." Further, their analysis found that "every group studied--from healthy adults to cancer patients to those with chronic conditions such as diabetes and heart disease--benefited from exercise.

Although it may seem odd that using energy by exercising actually gives us more energy, we also know from many previous animal studies that exercise promotes higher levels of neurotransmitters, such as dopamine and serotonin, in the animals' brains. Once again, the evidence is clear: regular, consistent exercise is just what we're supposed to do.

Personally, I have known for a long time that if I'm really fatigued and burned out, a fast-paced swim or a challenging yoga class or a brisk walk can re-energize me like nothing else. And the more regular exercise I get, the more my body--and yes, my mind, too--cry out for it.

Technorati tags: cognition, brain, neuroscience, exercise, energy, health and wellness, brain health

Boomeritis

Thanks to Boomer Chronicles for alerting me to Boomeritis, defined by Prime Time Fitness as "a quasi-disease of aging Baby Boomers who are refusing to slow down."

A different attitude has helped me. Aerobic used to be the name of the game for me: backpacking with 40-pound packs up steep mountains, running miles and miles and miles, etc. Now, I swim, love yoga and Pilates and NIA. I still cycle but do so sensibly and enjoy myself on the long hauls with lots of time for lunch and rest stops. The author of Boomer Chronicles, Rhea, recently went on a 32-mile ride. If she cycled with friends, stopped and had lunch and rested whenever she felt like it, it sounds lovely. I do day-hikes now, without huge backpacks. I still love kayaking and whitewater canoeing. But I don't run and I try not to compete with everyone in sight (still hard but I'm trying to be disciplined). I also don't play pick-up basketball any more to show off (I fail at that now). I actually enjoy walking my dogs in the neighborhood. And gardening, too. And I'm thinking of trying Tai Chi because I know balance is so important. I skied until I hurt my knee about five years ago but would like to ski again, with a new, more relaxed attitude. I think I can, this year. One of the best things about skiing anyway is just to have the cold air blowing on my face and the great views unfolding before me as I glide down the mountain. I'll take brush-up lessons first.

Both of my parents had very severe arthritis and I've been determined to avoid it as much as possible. So far, so good. I think regular, and varied, exercise has been one of the best preventive things I could have done. I have a friend who recently defined me as "an athlete" although most people don't know that side of me. I like the idea that I've changed my own definition of what is meant by "athlete." I like the adventure of trying all kinds of new approaches to exercise.

I know exercise is every bit as good for my head as it is for my heart. I wish everyone knew that our brains need more oxygen than our hearts and that physical exercise also tones and flexes many cognitive skills, too . Sad how few folks get the connection.

Exercise Prevents Fraility

The scientific evidence is so clear--keep exercising regularly throughout life to prevent fraility, among other commonly accepted conditions previously thought to be a natural part of aging. Guess what? These conditions appear not to be the consequence of years going by. A regiment of aerobic exercise and weight training is highly likely to prevent fraility and has been shown to be able to reverse it in several studies funded by the National Institute on Aging at NIH. The NIA wants to figure out why some people become frail as they age and to understand ways to prevent this vitality-zapping condition. In an article in today's San Francisco Chronicle, writer Alice Dembner of the Boston Globe, points out that, according to this NIH research, we "can throw out another convention of old age. Researchers are finding that fraility may not be the inevitable result of aging but rather is a preventable and perhaps treatable condition."

technorati: Boomers, health and wellness, aging, exercise, fraility