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MsHamadryad t1_is9fds4 wrote

Are there any suggestions for minimum exercise level to maintain health and mitigate cognitive decline?

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RJKY_42 t1_is9om18 wrote

Harvard Health says:

"The recommendation is 30 minutes of moderately vigorous aerobic exercise, three to four days per week."

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Pinball-O-Pine t1_is9fvuo wrote

Stay mentally active, physically minimally active, and keep a confident attitude that you are in-tune with the particular way that fits your comfort.

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grewapair t1_isdllzc wrote

I taught at every gym in a large city and my advice to anyone wanting to send someone over 50 into one of them is to perhaps start there but move on. I taught a true high intensity interval training program until I was 56 and every gym begged me to tone it far down. I finally was fired from a high end gym because they had developed an ultra low intensity version of the class I taught and I refused to teach it.

What someone over 50 will get shunted into is a Tai Chi style class where you'll lift your arms up and take three steps, and hey, see you next week. I know that everyone has to start somewhere, but if you don't advance out of that class and ultimately out of the gym, you aren't going to make much difference in your life.

The typical chain gyms know most people don't actually want to do anything but say they went to the gym. They absolutely cater to that market. If you want to start there, fine, but move on.

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[deleted] t1_isa3fp5 wrote

[deleted]

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noscreamsnoshouts t1_isanvv8 wrote

And what would a more realistic idea be for the couch potatoes, the chronically ill, and the old or handicapped among us..?

I mean, this sounds quite ambituous and intimidating, which could actually discourage people to start exercising..

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bicycle_mice t1_isaqooy wrote

Move as much as you safely can. There are many adaptive exercise classes out there (peloton app, YouTube, etc). Move what you can. Some movement is better than no movement,

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