Getting older doesn’t mean you have to stop being active. Yes, our bodies change with age, but staying fit becomes even more important once we hit our 40s and beyond. Regular exercise helps you keep doing the things you love instead of watching life pass you by. Here are some great cardio workouts to help keep your energy up as you age.
“Endurance is important as we age because it supports overall health, mobility, and our ability to remain independent in our later years. Cardio exercise strengthens the heart, improves oxygen efficiency, builds muscle endurance, and helps to regulate blood sugar and cholesterol,” says certified personal trainer and Balanced Body educator Portia Page, NCPT, PMA, ACE, AFAA.
Working on your stamina—how long you can stay active without getting tired—really matters as you get older, ScienceDirect explains. Activities like walking, jogging, biking, swimming, tennis, and dancing not only keep you fit but also help you handle everyday tasks more easily. Plus, regular cardio workouts are good for your lungs, heart, and blood flow, and they lower your chances of getting chronic diseases, according to the National Institutes on Aging. To help you find the right exercises, we talked to Portia Page and Samantha McKinney, CPT, a personal trainer at Life Time. She shared her top picks for boosting your endurance as you age. Here’s what you need to know to keep your energy levels up for years to come.
Dance
“Dance is an obvious best cardio exercise to boost your endurance for me as it’s fun,” says Page. “Whether it’s going to a structured group class such as Zumba or Aerobics Dance classes or just putting on your favorite tunes and dancing around your living room for 30 minutes—when we are having fun, it’s much easier to ‘want’ to do it and to stick with it—helping to create a routine that promotes consistency,” she adds.
HIIT
“The High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is a bit more rigorous, yet with alternating moderate to high-intensity bursts. It’s quick to improve overall heart health and stamina,” says Page. Here’s her quick HIIT workout sample:
- Warm up – brisk walking and/or a jog (5 mins), dynamic stretches (moving) for the hamstrings, quadriceps, ankle & wrist circles while balancing on 1-foot, side bends (side to side), add lunges to squats to lunges (3 mins)
- 3 mins: 1st interval: Squats (30 secs), Squat/Heel lifts (30 secs), Squat Jumps (30 secs) – repeat 2 rounds
- 3 mins: cardio: Jumping Jacks (1 min), Plyo (Jumping) Lunges (1 min), Burpees (1 min)
- 3 mins: 2nd interval: Push Ups (30 secs), Frog Jumps (30 secs), Reverse Tabletop Marching (30 secs) – repeat 2 rounds
- 3 mins: cardio: repeat above cardio section
- Cool Down: Dynamic stretches from warm up (3 mins).
Swimming
As you age, wear and tear on your joints can take its toll. Fortunately, low-impact activities like swimming are an excellent alternative to high-impact endurance activities (e.g., running) since they’re easier on your joints, research shows. Plus, water’s buoyancy cancels out the earth’s gravity, putting less pressure on your joints, according to Swimming World.
Joining an aqua class can be a fun way to boost your endurance while socializing. “Aqua classes help elevate your heart rate, get in a cardio workout, and build community,” says McKinney. “However, consider first taking a few swimming lessons to learn proper form.”
Cycling
If you’re looking to improve your endurance but save your knees and reduce injury risk, cycling may be the option for you.
A review of several studies published in the European Review of Aging and Physical Activity found that adults aged 70 and older who started cycling experienced improved cardiovascular function, better metabolic outcomes, and increased cognitive performance.
“For many, interval training on a treadmill can be hard on the knees. Using a stationary bike with added resistance is a great way to incorporate high-intensity training without the jarring, pounding impact of gravity that can happen in other modalities,” explains McKinney.
Pickleball
Who says endurance exercise has to be repetitive and boring? If you’re up for it, sports like pickleball, tennis, and squash are fantastic ways to increase your endurance while having fun.
For example, besides improving cardiovascular health, researchers from a 2021 study observed that older adults who played pickleball regularly for six weeks enhanced their vertical jump height and cognitive performance. In addition, the participants reported less joint pain.
“There’s something to be said about making exercise fun, which is why incorporating non-traditional methods of cardiovascular training that involve others can help a lot,” states McKinney. “Pickleball popularity is on the rise, and one of the reasons is because it can provide a great workout that doesn’t feel like exercise. In addition, the time passes quickly, allowing more total active minutes per week.”
Walking
Whether you prefer a brisk morning walk or a relaxing evening stroll, walking outdoors can work wonders for your cardio and endurance.
“Lower intensity activities like walking lay the foundation for your endurance and aerobic capacity,” says McKinney. “Walking trains your body’s ‘engine’ to help burn fat more efficiently and to better recover from higher intensity exercise.”
If you want to push yourself, try incline or speed walking for an extra challenge. And if you enjoyed this article, don’t miss How Long Your Walking Workout Should Be To Shrink Belly Fat.
