Running helps you stay active as you age, but your body is always working in the sagittal plane (i.e., moving forward) when running long distances. This limits range of motion in other planes of motion and may limit overall mobility in the long term. If you don’t move your body in new ways and do strength-building exercises, you risk injury.
This is exactly why you need a cardio workout designed for seniors, such as: .
Cardio Benefits for Senior Runners
As you age, studies show that exercise helps maintain bone health, prevent hospitalization, and live longer, so it’s important to maintain a running habit and stay active throughout the day.
Plus, doing a simple aerobic workout like this one that includes multiplane exercises can help you strengthen your balance, build strength, and improve your aerobic capacity. These are all important fitness factors for Masters athletes.
“These exercises help you move in multiple planes, increase your range of motion, and help you feel stronger and more confident in your daily activities,” says Curriculum Leader Amber Rees. says Mr. Barry’s lives in New York City, Brave Body Project, is the creator of this workout. Think of this workout as a comprehensive approach to targeting the muscles you use in your daily life, she added.
Specifically, this routine includes two different squat variations. Squats are a traditional exercise known for building strength in the lower body while improving hip, knee and ankle mobility. Squats strengthen your hips, glutes, quads, and hamstrings, so they can also help reduce back and joint pain, Reese says.
Fast paced sidestep jacks, sidestep to knee raises, and standing knee drives included here allow you to train at high intensity while getting your heart rate up and improving your cardio endurance. Even better, all of these exercises are low-impact, provide a break for your joints (and the movements are a great complement to running!), get your blood circulating, boost your energy and mood, and more. He says it can have health benefits. lease.
How to use this list: On a scale of 1-10 for Perceived Effort (RPE) and 10 for all-out effort, practice this routine at an intensity of 5-7.
Perform each exercise in the order below for 40 seconds, resting 20 seconds between each exercise. Complete two rounds of this list, resting 60 seconds between rounds.
Reese will demonstrate the exercises so you can learn proper form. No equipment is required, but an exercise mat is optional.
1. Squat
Why it works: Squats are one of the most functional exercises you do every time you sit or stand, and they work your lower back, glutes, quads, and hamstrings that you need for running and everyday life.
How to: Stand with your feet slightly wider than hip-width apart, your toes slightly pointed, and your arms at your sides. Move your hips back and forth, bend your knees into a squat, and raise your arms in front of you. Press your feet into the ground to stand up and bring your arms down to your sides. repeat.
2. Side step jack
Why it works: This jumping jack improvement allows for frontal (left and right) movement without impact.
How to: Stand with your feet together and your arms at your sides. Step to the left, simultaneously raising your arms to shoulder height and crossing your left hand over your right hand. Bring your left foot back to center and step your right foot while simultaneously crossing your right hand over your left. Bring your right foot back to center. Continue alternating.
3. Side step to knee raise
Why it works: Practicing this exercise will improve your coordination and balance, as well as drive your knees.
How to: Stand with your feet together, arms at your sides, elbows bent. Start with your left foot and take 3-4 steps to the right while swinging your arms back and forth in opposite directions. For the final step, raise your right knee to hip height. Repeat the movement to the right, raising the left knee to hip height in the final step. Continue alternating.
4. Needle Drive
Why it works: This exercise helps strengthen the leg and glutes while improving single-leg stability.
How to: Place your arms above your head, clasp your hands together, bend your left leg, and extend your right leg behind you. Press your right knee into your chest while lowering your hand and tapping your right thigh. Then pull your right foot back and step on the ground. Repeat for 20 seconds, then switch to the other side.
5. Squat with knee raise
Why it works: This exercise develops balance while building strength in the lower body.
How to: Stand with your feet hip-width apart and your arms at your sides. Rock your hips back and forth, bend your knees into a squat, and extend your arms out in front of you. Press your feet to the ground and stand up, then shift your weight onto your right leg, bend your left knee and lift it to hip height, balancing on your right leg. Bring your left knee back and repeat the squat. Now perform a right knee raise. Continue alternating while performing squats.
Monique LeBlanc will join the editorial staff in October 2021 as Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Health and Fitness. She has a master’s degree in journalism and previously worked for ABC She News and Scholastic. She is an avid runner who loves spending time outside.
Associate Editor, Health & Fitness
ACE Certified Personal Trainer and RRCA Certified Run Coach Mallory Kreveling will join Runners World and the Cycling Team in August 2021. She has over 10 years of experience covering fitness, health and nutrition. As a freelance writer, her work has been published in her Women’s Health, Self, Men’s Journal, Reader’s Digest, and more. She has also held positions on the editorial staff of Family Circle magazine and her Shape magazine. Daily Burn.com. A former New Yorker/Brooklyn native, she is now based in Easton, Pennsylvania.
