Health Topics Neighborhood Health Emergency Prep Publications

Physical Activity for Older Adults

Regular physical activity is one of the best ways older adults can protect and improve their health. Finding the time to get active every day can keep you mobile and independent and reduce the risk of many health problems.

To improve your health and lower your risk of falls, it is important to regularly do:

Moderate and intense aerobic exercises
Muscle-strengthening exercises
Balance-training exercises

Recommended Amount of Activity

Each week, older adults should try to do at least:

Two hours and 30 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise
One hour and 15 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic exercise
Two days of muscle-strengthening exercise
Three days of balance-training exercises

For aerobic activities, exercise for 10 minutes at a time, spread across at least five days each week. Two minutes of moderate-intensity activity counts the same as one minute of vigorous-intensity activity.

For muscle-strengthening, exercise until it becomes difficult to continue. Target legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders, and arms.

Remember, more activity is always better, but any amount is better than none.

Exercises

For aerobic exercises, you can:

Walk/jog
Dance
Swim
Take water aerobics or other exercise classes
Ride a bike
Golf without a cart
Garden, rake or push a lawn mower

To strengthen muscles, you can:

Work with exercise bands or hand-held weights
Carry groceries
Dig, lift or carry items while gardening
Do pull-ups, push-ups, sit-ups or other resistance exercises

To improve your balance, you can:

Walk backwards, sideways, on your heels and on your toes
Stand up from a sitting position
Take a tai chi class

Evidence-based Falls Prevention Physical Activity Programs

Participants who complete these programs have been shown to reduce their personal falls risk. There are many types of programs, including Tai Chi for Arthritis, A Matter of Balance, Bingocize® and more.

For more information, contact your local Older Adult Center.

Exercise: Getting Started

Additional Resources