Smart Senior

Senior Health and Fitness: Exercise Even If You Hate It!

I love reading the Sunday paper.  I always find interesting tidbits that aren’t touched on in the daily papers.   For example: Last weekend I discovered an article by Molly Lyons (USA Weekend – January 20-22, 2012) about why you should exercise, even if you hate it.

Hate is a pretty strong world but truth be told, most of us aren’t all that keen about exercising.  It is just another item to add to a long list of things to do, but we do it (or I hope you do it) because it is good for you.  If you have made the effort to make exercise a part of your life, you probably hate it when January roles around.  People come out of the woodwork to fulfill their New Year Resolutions.  You know that most won’t stay around to go the distance so you groan mightily and complain about the crowded conditions in your gym, and you look forward to spring when a huge percentage of them drop out.   This year, instead of being thankful that most drop out by the end of March, you should be congratulating them, as well as yourself, for embracing a healthier lifestyle.

Why does this happen every year?  Trainers are too enthusiastic and the guidelines are too intimidating.  Thirty to sixty minutes of strenuous exercise three times a week sounds daunting to someone who thinks walking to the mailbox is hard work.  Just the thought of setting aside a block of time to do something that isn’t fun can be intimidating.    But wait!  You are retired now and you have a lot of time, or not.  I am still waiting for things to slow down and for a blank square to appear on my calendar.  You know that blank square that begs you to pencil in a walk or a trip to the gym.

Exercise should not be a chore.  Your body craves exercise and even doing a little is better than doing nothing at all.  I don’t know about you, but I think the hardest part is getting started.  Once you get your shoes laced up and push yourself out of the door you feel fine, and the time goes by rather quickly.  With so many ways to be active, surely you can find something that you actually like to do.

Watch your grandkids.  You may have noticed that they never just walk.   Kids jump, hop, run or spin around in circles until they are exhausted.  Wouldn’t it be grand to have that kind of energy again?   As we age, we start neglecting physical activity.  We get fat and we lose that keen sense of exercising for the fun of it.   It is a different world than when we were kids.  Our folks were pretty trim, not because they went to the gym, but because they worked hard and energy saving devices hadn’t been invented yet.  We won’t reminisce about laundry being done in a stream, but remember those wringer washing machines?  Remember hanging clothes on a line in the backyard?  Labor saving devices and going everywhere in car is a way of life now.  We seldom do a natural form of exercise.   Even a walk is an event instead of just a way to get from point A to point B.  Life is more sedentary and exercise has become a chore.  

What can you do to make exercise less of a chore? Try to think of little things to cut down on travel time and extra trips.   If you join a gym make sure it one that is nearby; adding a commute to your time frame is just one more obstacle.  Find a time, place and activity that will fit into your lifestyle.

Unfortunately, it isn’t any easier to find time to exercise at age 60 than it was at 30, but you know the consequences if you cheat.  Turn everyday chores into a workout by doing them briskly.  Be ready to workout at any time.  You are more apt to go to the gym if you have a bag packed and in your car at all times.  Once you go home you are less apt to go out again.  Walk around the outside of the ball fields when the grandkids are playing soccer or stop at the gym when you have 40 minutes to kill.  Think exercise at all times and reward yourself for your efforts.  An active grandparent sets a good example for both their children and their grandchildren.

Independent Living: Aging In Place

 Some people thrive in retirement communities, but more and more people of our generation are talking about aging in place.  We have all heard stories about stubborn old folks digging in their heels and refusing to move.  Ultimately something horrible happens and the decision is taken away from them.

So many people have decided that they want to stay in their own homes that the movement has actually been given a name.  This movement is now known as aging in place.   Aging in place means growing old in a place where you can be surrounded by people and things that are familiar to you. As long as health and finances permit, most people will do whatever it takes to remain independent. What it doesn’t mean is that you can act like a two year old because you think being stubborn is cool.   If you think things through, you might still be able to call the shots.   Other people will be more supportive of your decision if they feel that you have given it a lot of thought. 

Aging in place doesn’t necessarily mean staying in the family home.  In some instances relocating to be near family members becomes necessary.  A good support system is paramount at times like this.  You will have options, although you might not be pleased with all of them.  Your biggest choice is going to be where, how and with whom you are going to live.   Examine all of your options and be open to any ideas that sound good to you.  Take into consideration the need for in-home care, retirement communities, assisted-living facilities or adult family homes.  On a cozier note, you might consider living with or near other family members.  If you want to age in place you need a good support system.

Aging in place usually isn’t something that happens automatically. Aging in place requires planning.  Do your homework and study as hard for this eventuality as you did when you were making a career choice.  First of all, have you been to a doctor lately?  I don’t know about your parents but mine didn’t go to the doctor unless they were really sick. I still have friends who do not go to the doctor unless they are on deaths door.  This is not a good thing.  I think we are very fortunate that preventive health care has become a mainstay in our society.  Good health is a basic need and a criterion for living out your life on your terms.  If you are not healthy you will not be able to participate in this movement.   Chronic disease and lack of stamina are the most common reason for failure to thrive.  If you exercise, eat properly and take advantage of all that preventive health care has to offer, you have taken the first step. The second step is getting help to modify your home.  It is hard to spend the money on things that you think you don’t need, but most of our homes are not suitable for meeting our changing needs.  Relocating or modify your home to make it safe and comfortable can make aging in place a reality.   If you are active, involved and willing to accept help, you can make this happen.

Senior Living: Reach Out and Touch Someone

A Dear Abby column on January 19, 2012 featured reader responses to an earlier letter from an older woman who asked where to turn when a she wanted to be hugged or listened to.    Helpful readers came up with suggestions that ranged from getting a dog to finding a support group.  Studies have indeed indicated that the need to touch and be touched plays a vital role in creating a sense of well-being.

Touch is a basic need of all human beings.  Unfortunately society tends to discourage this need and many people, especially young children and the elderly, are being deprived of this most basic of human contacts.  Our society has become so focused on technological advancement that it is rapidly becoming insensitive to the deeper needs of people. Some people don’t like to have their personal space invaded and volunteers are reminded that they shouldn’t touch a child least it be interpretive as invasive or abusive.   It is confusing when you make a phone call and can’t reach a human voice without going through a series of menus, and have you been to an airport lately?  You scan your passport, print your boarding pass and pay for the whole deal without one person being available to lend a hand.  Even health care providers become more focused on getting the job done than they are about reaching out and touching someone. If they do touch you they are required to wear gloves.  It is sad isn’t it?

Humans have a need for touching and nurturing throughout their life span; the need may actually increase with aging.  Isolated from family and friends by circumstances they no longer control makes people feel more alone than ever.    It is gratifying to know that therapeutic touch has become a “hot item” and studies are being conducted in an effort to make this old fashion source of communication mainstream again.   Isn’t it amazing that something as basic as touching someone has become a subject to be studied?

Massage is one form of touch that is being examined.  The Herald (Tuesday, December 27, 2011) featured an article by Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz on how massage can improve quality of life for older individuals.  Massage therapy acts as a conduit for bestowing this basic human need.  The need to touch and be touched is as important to an older person as it is to a baby.   We need human contact to survive.  Some people don’t like to be touched and they make social interaction difficult for others.  These people (activists they call themselves) complain to advice columnists that they don’t want germy kisses, hugs, or even handshakes in any form.  Everyone has the right to their own feelings, but what kind of message are they sending to the more vulnerable members of society?

Resilience: Can You Go The Distance?

By the time you reach 50 you know that life is not always a bed of roses.  It doesn’t seem fair when bad things happen to good people, but that doesn’t keep them from happening.  When bad things happen, don’t be surprised if you feel blindsided.   Fortunately, most people are resilient to some degree, and resilience is the single most important factor when it comes to overcoming adversity.  Sometimes physical illness, a death in the family, depression, loneliness or divorce can weaken your reserves, but most people are stronger than they think they are.   Older people are stronger than you might imagine, and it is human nature to fight to regain control over daunting situations. 

Resilience is the ability to adapt or bounce back following adversity.  Resilience is the hallmark of successful aging.  You may be surprised to learn that most people feel that they are aging well despite having chronic physical illnesses and some disability.    Resilient individuals do not give up.  

People with chronic illnesses have more than their share of adversity.   I marvel at people who are able to overcome chronic pain, blindness, paraplegia, and other catastrophic events and still manage to live rewarding and satisfying lives.   If nothing else, they serve as an inspiration to the rest of us.  At the very least we should feel just a little bit ashamed if we don’t have the gumption to face our own challenges.

People living with chronic disease and disabilities face challenges every day of their lives.  Arthritis Today Magazine (January/February 2012) featured an article by Camille Noe Pagan on resilience.  The article has a quiz that you can take to figure out how resilient you are.   It is just a mini questionnaire but I thought it pegged me rather well, or at least I hope it did.  I tested out as being relatively resilient, which means I bounce back most of the time.   We could all hope that we would fall into the ‘touch as Teflon” category, but you would have to be pretty perfect for that to happen.  I am more of a wait and see kind of gal.  The advice given, of course, is to focus on the positive, to learn from experience and ask for help.  No matter how much you read, your health care team is better equipped to help you formulate a plan than anyone else.  It stands to reason that expanding your knowledge base, fitting in an exercise program and saying yes to a support system will go along way toward helping you built the resilience that you need.  You may meet some stinkers along the way, but most people are truly amazing.   Arthritis Today magazine (www.arthritistoday.org) regularly features articles about coping with chronic disabilities.

Independent Living: Managing Activities of Daily Living

Accidents happen.  Have you thought about how you would manage if you suffered a stroke or had severe arthritis?  What are you going to do if you break a bone, have pain from repetitive stress injuries or carpal tunnel syndrome?  What are you going to do if your manual dexterity is seriously compromised?  We thrive on being independent, but we are all guilty of taking our good fortune for granted.  Go ahead. Can you brush your teeth, or cook a meal, or even dress yourself if you only have one hand?   What about slicing a tomato or buttering a bagel or unlocking your front door?  We don’t give much thought to activities of daily living until something happens that takes that independence away from us.

It doesn’t necessarily have to be something catastrophic; even a minor setback can serve to make you realize how vulnerable you are.  I have worked through carpal tunnel syndrome, trigger finger and now deal with degenerative joint disease in both thumbs.  No biggie, you think, but when a body part let you down it is more than a minor inconvenience.  A friend of mind fell and broke her wrist.  With a history of rather severe osteoporosis it is going to take than a few weeks to heal.  Her cast is positioned in such a manner that she can’t use her fingers to type of button a blouse, more than a minor inconvenience.  A disability, permanent or not, is only a heart beat away from any us.

Once you get over the shock of being dependent on others for putting tooth paste on a brush or pulling up your slacks, you will want to think of ways to do things for yourself again.   Some people are very creative and come up with all sorts of clever ways to compensate, but others need to shop around and find innovative assistive devices to make life easier.   Some of us aren’t particularly gifted when it comes to figuring out or manipulating anything mechanical and this is doubly frustrating.  An Occupational Therapist can guide you through the maze of products and teach you how to use them.  Older people and those living with any degenerative or painful disease processes will welcome gifts designed to meet their needs.   Look for items like easy to grip utensils or ice cube trays that don’t have to be twisted to release the cubes.  Many are so subtle that they don’t look any different than regular products.  People with disabilities don’t want to call attention to the fact that they need to do things a little differently than others.

Shop around for ergonomic products that are easier to use, and may even prevent some repetitive stress injuries from occurring in the first place.  The latest Arthritis Today magazine (January/February 2012) featured an article by Sean Kelly that lists 25 tips and gadgets designed to make activities of daily living easier.  Visit www.arthritis.org for a complete list.  You will be quite delighted at the many products available that can make life manageable again.