The Worst Advice for Seniors! (about exercise)

September 5, 2024

There’s a lot of bad advice for seniors out there… and when it comes to exercising, this is the worst advice around: focusing only on low-intensity, low-stress types exercise.

I recently worked with a very active 74 year-old who did a lot of walking and swimming, as well as some weight lifting. And yet he still had knee pain associated with hip and quad weakness, simply because he isn’t doing any real strengthening.

Most medical advice sets the bar way too low at simply “staying active” for older adults. However, if we want to stay active as we age, we have to set the bar higher right now, especially when it comes to strengthening.

Another key point: seniors need to work on stability (balance) as well as strength and conditioning. Avoiding activities that challenge stability is a big mistake. The trick is to figure out how to safely challenge your stability/balance, which most PTs can help you with.

Final point: while it’s extremely important to avoid injuries as a senior, it’s equally important that you figure out how to challenge your strength and stability to stay active, which will help you prevent future injuries.

I hope this video helps you stay active and healthy well into your 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and beyond!

Please feel free to leave a positive comment before you go :-)

– Luke Gordon, DPT (Physical Therapist & Owner of Gordon Physical Therapy)