Indoor walking exercises can be the answer to your physical activity woes. Walking indoors provides you with a safe and controlled environment while still helping you improve your overall health. Walking boosts your muscle strength, sharpens your balance, and even enhances your cardiovascular system.
Although Visalia, located only 43 miles away from iconic Fresno, has gorgeous outdoor walking areas, the safety provided by indoor walking can't be beat.
To help you get started, we've put together this guide that highlights exercises for every mobility level. We also provide some safety tips so you can keep walking every day in confidence.
Read on to learn more!
If you're new to physical activity or have limited mobility, you'll want to start with beginner exercises. These workouts allow you to maintain a consistent level of safe senior fitness while you work on building muscles and endurance.
Even if you never move to higher levels of difficulty, these exercises will still give you many benefits toward better physical health:
Always start on the low end of an exercise until you feel confident about increasing the difficulty. You can adjust the length of time spent walking for mobility as you see fit, but remember to never overwork yourself.
For seniors who don't have any mobility restrictions, trying moderate exercises could be a great starting point. This way, if they prove too tricky at first, you can always step down to the beginner level and work your way up.
Moderate walking exercises include:
Seniors who are confident in their physical capabilities should focus on more advanced exercises for the best gains. These exercises include extra maneuvers that will push your body and get your heart going faster:
Don't be afraid to adjust exercises to suit your needs and capabilities. It's important to find what works for you without pushing yourself too far. You don't want to injure yourself and lose all motivation to stay active.
There's never a clear answer for finding motivation. It's a personal thing you'll need to figure out for yourself.
Many tried-and-true methods include making the walking exercises fun. This can be done by listening to peppy music or listening to a favorite podcast to help the time go by faster.
Another great way to keep motivated to exercise is to involve friends and family. Encouragement and praise from loved ones can go a long way in helping your motivation stay strong.
You can also turn exercising into a mini-game. Reward yourself when you reach certain goals or keep track and 'score' each day of effort.
Although indoor walking exercises are naturally safer than outdoor ones, you should still perform each walk with typical safety tips in mind.
Warming up and cooling down are the keys to successful low-impact workouts. Going into any workout with stiff joints can make after-workout soreness worse.
Drink plenty of water before and after the workout.
Have easy access to a phone or emergency call system in case of a bad fall. Another good rule of thumb is to work out with other people so you can all help one another in case of an emergency.
Listen to your body. If something starts to hurt, it's time to stop and re-evaluate your exercise regimen.
They certainly are effective as long as you're able to stick with them. That's why it's crucial to find a good balance between a walking exercise that pushes you without going overboard.
Remember to increase difficulty when things start to feel too easy. Walking faster, adding weights to your legs, or adding weight in the form of a loaded backpack can be a quick solution to a walking exercise that feels too simplistic.
Indoor walking and outdoor walking both require the same form to create active aging habits. Try to always remember these core rules:
When combined with a nutritional diet, walking can help reduce overall weight and belly fat. You'll need to stay dedicated to both a healthy diet and a regular exercise routine for the best results.
As long as you maintain a good form throughout the entire walk, then there's no real difference between the benefits of walking indoors compared to outdoors. There are only extra benefits to be gained by walking indoors, since you'll be in a controlled area and can go for a walk whenever you wish.
Try walking in your senior apartments or the community hallways and feel the similar burn of the exercises for yourself.
The good news is that indoor walking exercises are an achievable process for seniors of all physical capabilities. However, it's still important to have a strong support system to back you up during your improvement journey.
Here at Walnut Park, we offer supportive services to our independent living community. We can assist you as much as necessary to help you reach your fitness goals safely. Our maintenance-free mindset can make it easier for you to focus your energy on achieving Visalia, CA, retirement wellness without the added stress.
Contact us today to visit our newly renovated community as soon as possible!