No matter your age, you should lead an active, healthy lifestyle. This means focusing on the fundamentals: consuming a healthy diet high in lean protein and vegetables, getting in regular strength training, and participating in cardio activities. If you’re already incorporating these into your routine, you’re on the right track! However, there may be a few bad exercise habits you’re doing that should be ditched as soon as possible—especially if you’re over 60.
Certain activities you can seamlessly do in your 30s and 40s you may not be able to safely perform as you grow older. Don’t fret—these bad exercise habits can be fixed, as we’ll discuss below. But first, it’s important to listen to your body and not push yourself or take on more than you can physically handle. When in doubt, consult with your healthcare professional to develop the right fitness regimen for you. You may also work with a personal trainer who guides you through a personalized workout plan that works well.
Without further ado, here are four bad exercise habits you should ditch if you’re 60 or older.
In This Article
Performing Exercises That Give You Any Sort of Pain or Discomfort
This should be a no-brainer and something you should never do, regardless of age. Listening to your body and knowing what it can and can’t handle is critical when working out.
As you continue to grow older, joint health becomes increasingly important. As mentioned earlier, there are exercises you can do when you’re younger that are likely unsafe to perform as you get older. It might be due to mobility issues or because these exercises place more stress on your joints. Some common exercise examples include upright rows, skull crushers, or behind-the-neck presses and pulldowns.
If an exercise causes you pain or discomfort, stop it immediately and replace it with a similar, joint-friendly substitute.
Prioritizing Cardio Over Strength Training
Although cardio is extremely important for heart health, burning calories, and improving endurance, many people go overboard with it and completely ignore strength training. The problem with this is that as you age, you lose muscle mass and bone density at a faster rate—especially if you don’t do anything to maintain them. If you’re not strength training regularly, start incorporating it into your routine to build and maintain lean muscle.
Ignoring Flexibility and Mobility Work
Besides trying to maintain your lean muscle and performing joint-friendly exercises, a bad exercise habit to quit now is ignoring mobility and flexibility. In addition to losing lean mass when you get older, you also lose range of motion and flexibility—especially if you don’t do anything to maintain them. It’s important to incorporate stretches, mobility drills, or even yoga classes to improve your flexibility and range of motion in your movement patterns.
Using Exercise To Burn Off “Cheat Meals” and “Cheat Days”
This is more of a psychological habit than a physical one, affecting people of all ages. You may like to add “cheat meals” and “cheat days” to your weekend eating and end up over-exercising because you feel guilty about how overindulgent you were. Unfortunately, this can lead to an endless cycle, and you likely won’t make solid progress with your fat-loss goals.
Instead, use exercise to improve your fitness instead of a method to burn off “cheat days.”
Tim Liu, C.S.C.S., CSCS
Tim Liu, CSCS, is an online fitness and nutrition coach based in Los Angeles Read more about Tim
