My mother has always avoided exercise, even when I was a kid and she was in her twenties. It wasn't considered feminine. Walking wasn't fashionable then. She thought walking was for children and poor people. She doesn't put on weight easily and could get away with a great deal of inactivity.

Well, she is paying the price now. She barely moves and complains her legs are giving out on her. Well, that's what happens when you barely move.

I have to be active. I put on weight like crazy and have a lot of energy anyway.. She weighs 160 lbs; if I had her lifestyle, I'd weigh about 400. Actually, I understand that many elderly people suffer from dizziness caused by medication and other reasons and this causes a disinclination to move. I had an ear infection recently and got very dizzy and reacted in the same way. I went to the pool anyway and it was very comforting that I couldn't fall. Well, it took over two months to recover from the dizziness and I can't avoid pools for that long. I can put on a pound a week just from inactivity.

So my mother and I are physically incompatible. We just have different body types.

I agree that exercise is very important for the health of older people ( and younger ones) but very few older people have an exercise program or are even interested in having one. For me water exercise is the gold standard for exercise for people over forty but most older people are like cats. They hate the water and in fact, all exercise. This general lack of interest means there are very few serious exercise programs provided for older people as they won't go anyway. The few older people who take exercise seriously, like me, end up being considered honorary young people and doing whatever young person programs they can manage.

The Montreal Heart Institute has an amazing heart health program that about 6,000 people participate in. They have a whole building to themselves with swimming pool programs, gyms, nutrition advice and no kids. This program is not grudgingly tacked on as an afterthought to kids' programs. The staff know how older bodies work. I wish all cities had something like the Montreal Heart Institute programs.

Thanks for sharing. These ideas echo the premise of Dr. Joan Vernikos' book "Sitting Kills". Many of my students are joined in class by their caregivers. A great way for both to get the exercise they need.
Anne Pringle Burnell
Stronger Seniors