Articles
The Journal on Active Aging brings articles of value to professionals dedicated to older-adult quality of life. Content sweeps across the active-aging landscape to focus on education and practice. Find articles of interest by searching the article archives in three ways: Enter a keyword in the articles search bar; click on search by topic; or type a keyword or phrase in the general search bar at the top of the page.
Topic- Exercise
Strength training for frail older adults by Wayne L. Westcott, PhD, CSCS
There are numerous health-related reasons why adults of all ages should perform regular resistance exercise. Research has demonstrated that strength training is an effective means for:
• increasing muscle mass
• raising resting metabolic rate
• reducing body fat
• increasing bone mineral density
• improving glucose metabolism
•increasing gastrointestinal transit speed (i.e., how quickly food travels through the digestive system)
Exercise
Circuit play in the pool by Mary E. Sanders, PhD, FACSM
Seventy-six-year-old Stuart Brown is a fit, lighthearted physician and psychiatrist who works out of a tree house in his Carmel Valley, California, backyard. After 40 years of research where he conducted over 6,000 play studies, Brown is hooked on the power of play to maintain a resilient, healthy and joyous life. In his book Play: How It Shapes the Brain, Opens the Imagination and Invigorates the Soul,1 he helps people find the style of play that makes them feel happy, even when faced with difficulties.
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Liquid fusion: Dive into blended shallow-water program ideas by Mary E. Sanders, PhD, FACSM
During the International Council on Active Aging’s recent conference, I presented a preconference session with educator/trainer Mary Curry in which we shared new ideas to attract land participants to water programs and add variety to offerings. We chose some of the top land-based trends in fitness—mind/body exercise, sports, and dance programs—and created the essence of these movements in water. We then organized the ideas into a “fusion” format.
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Dance for older adults: a fun approach to exercise by Terry Ferebee Eckmann, PhD
If you want to increase physical activity among older clients, consider adding dance to your fitness/wellness programming. There are many reasons to incorporate dance into your activities. Dance to music is fun. And people are more likely to become and stay physically active if they enjoy what they’re doing. Dance can add variety to group fitness classes or a new dimension to services offered to this population. In addition, dance is a great physical activity—one that offers important benefits for older adults.
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Targeting physical activity to women 55-70 by Shelley Callaghan
Within the growing population of older adults, women ages 55-70 are part of a unique group that needs to be targeted. The investment made today will go a long way to ensuring these women are healthy over the long term, reducing the burden on the health system and increasing their quality of life as they age.
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Plan exercise for individuals using assistive devices by Joseph Kachelman, MS, Kent Brown, MS and Robert Topp, RN, PhD
Difficulty in ambulating, more commonly known as walking, affects 8-19% of older adults in the United States who do not live in an institution.
Ambulatory assistive devices—including canes, crutches, walkers and various joint braces—help people to walk by supplementing the sensory (proprioception, vision, vestibular sensation) and motor components (muscle activation) that are needed to maintain one’s balance while moving
