[For Seniors] A Collection of Simple Exercise Programs Suitable for Beginners
For those aged 65 and over, it is recommended to engage in at least 40 minutes of physical activity every day, regardless of intensity.
However, 70% of people aged 65 and over are not meeting the recommended amount of exercise.
Not exercising can shorten healthy life expectancy.
It also increases the risk of conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and depression.
That said, suddenly starting high-intensity exercise can be taxing on the body.
In this article, we’ll introduce an exercise program that even beginners can do without overexertion.
Use it as a guide to help you live a healthy and enjoyable life for years to come.
- Recommended Indoor Exercises for Seniors
- For seniors: Leg-strengthening exercises you can do without overexertion.
- [Today's Recommendation] Gentle Health Exercises for Seniors
- For seniors: Enjoyable exercises done while seated, accessible for wheelchair users.
- [For Seniors] Stretching Exercises: Easy and Safe to Do
- For Seniors: Fun and Lively Exercise Recreation
- [For Seniors] Easy and Fun Core Training
- For Seniors: Back-Strengthening Exercises, Calisthenics, and Stretches—Workouts Women Can Do Without Strain
- [For Seniors] Balance-Training Exercises: Preventing Falls
- [For Seniors] Recommended Easy Strength Training
- [For Seniors] Core Training: Recommended Simple Rehabilitation
- [For Seniors] A Fun Sports Day! Recreational Activities You Can Do Safely
- [For Seniors] Improve Your Body Concerns! A Summary of Exercises for Urinary Leakage
[For older adults] A collection of simple exercise programs (31–40) that even beginners can do
Exercises to improve standing up movementsNEW!
This exercise focuses on becoming aware of which parts of your body move when you stand up, and gradually improving each movement.
Start by improving ankle mobility: while seated in a chair, alternately lift your toes and heels to engage the area from your ankles to your calves.
As you thoroughly loosen your ankles and increase the range of motion of your toes and heels, your movements when standing up will also become larger and safer.
It’s important to amplify each movement, and when doing the exercises, use a chair for support to help maintain balance.
Easy Handgrip Improvement ExercisesNEW!
If you want to gently improve hand movements and grip strength, try this stretch: lightly hold the back of your hand with the other hand and slowly extend your fingers.
Then, with your fingers held, repeat opening and closing them about five times.
This helps the string-like tendons that run through the fingers glide smoothly and increases joint flexibility.
As a result, making a fist and spreading your fingers becomes easier, and your gripping power naturally improves.
The movement of the carpal bones also improves, promoting blood flow so your hands may feel warmer.
By continuing this routine, you can balance overall hand movement and strength and steadily build grip strength, so give it a try.
Exercises to relieve shoulder, back, and knee painNEW!
Many older adults may suffer from painful shoulders, lower backs, and knees.
By continuing this exercise routine, you can ease that pain.
For the shoulder exercises, let your arms hang loosely and rotate your hands from side to side, and also roll your shoulders themselves.
For the lower back, gently rub your waist to relax the muscles, then place your hands on both sides of your navel and, while exhaling, say “ha, ha, ha.” Strengthening the muscles around your abdomen will help you support your lower back more firmly.
For the knees, massage them first and then work on building strength.
Arm rehabilitation exercisesNEW!
Building arm strength is important for older adults to manage daily activities such as eating and getting dressed.
Today, I’ll introduce exercises you can do in just three minutes a day to boost strength.
First, clasp your hands and press your palms against each other.
Second, hook the fingertips of both hands together and pull outward.
Third, grasp the left wrist (with the left arm bent) using the right hand; move so that the left hand bends more while the right hand works to straighten it.
You can do these while seated in a chair, so try to make them part of your daily routine.
Pelvic floor muscle training in a kneeling positionNEW!
Pelvic floor exercises performed in a kneeling position not only strengthen the muscles but also enhance stability around the pelvis and help support the entire core.
The pelvic floor supports structures like the rectum, and by engaging and tightening it firmly as shown in the video, its function can more easily normalize.
In a kneeling position, the deep muscles of the glutes and lower abdomen are also naturally stimulated, offering the benefit of improved core stability in daily life.
Another advantage is that it’s easy to continue and safe to practice.
Rather than using maximum force, gently tighten while maintaining your breath; this makes it easier to sense the pelvic floor and leads to strength gains that are useful in everyday activities.
[For Older Adults] A Collection of Simple Exercise Programs for Beginners (41–50)
Standing-up exercises that don’t strain the knees or lower backNEW!
When you have pain in your knees or lower back, it can be hard to stand up.
Here’s a way to stand with less strain.
First, sit in a chair and place both hands on your thighs.
Then lean your upper body forward as if you’re bowing and lift your hips slightly off the seat.
Finally, press down firmly on your thighs with your hands to raise your upper body.
In addition to this standing technique, we also introduce exercises you can do while seated.
By continuing these, you can strengthen your legs, balance, and core, which should make standing up easier.
Energetic Stepping ExerciseNEW!
When you want a full-body workout, walking is an easy option, but there are times when it’s difficult for those with mobility issues or due to the weather.
In that case, let’s do a seated marching exercise that moves your whole body while staying in a chair.
First, take deep breaths and do some warm-up stretches.
After the warm-up, march your feet while counting out loud and add movements like raising your hands, opening both hands, and rolling your shoulders.
Finally, cool down to relax your body and finish.
Let’s move the whole body to maintain and improve muscle strength.