Fitness in Your 50’s

Hey friends! Today I’m back and joining some friends to share FITNESS ideas. This could be anything from what we wear, to what we eat, how we work out, literally anything related to fitness. I thought for my post I’d do a brief overview of fitness in your 50’s and share what I do, and of course some of my favorite workout wear. How does that sound? Oh, and since it’s Wednesday I’m also co-hosting our Style Six linkup with more blogging buds.

A good place to start is the basics, and the most common things you’ll hear when it comes to keeping fit are….

• EXERCISE DAILY – An hour of daily exercise is most commonly recommended, and 3 days a week some type of vigorous exercise is recommended. This could be anything a brisk walk to running, or something more intense. The important thing is to move your body.
• EAT A WELL BALANCED DIET – There are apps that will help figure out what your daily calorie intake should be based on your age, physical makeup and activity level. I like to use My Fitness Pal. It’s free, gives you parameters, and allows you to track your food.
• GET ENOUGH REST – 6-8 hours is the commonly recommended amount. You know your body, and what it needs.
• DRINK ENOUGH WATER – This one can be hard. I know it is for me, but I make a real effort to get more water in than I ever have before. Being well hydrated is crucial for your brain to work well, and flushing toxins out of your system. The most common recommendation is 8 – 8 oz glasses of water daily, but you can also use the formula of your body weight divided by 2, and aim for that many ounces.

Keep in mind, I am no expert, nor a medical professional. These are just things I’ve learned along the way. I have a “Healthy Me” Pinterest board where I pin lots of exercise ideas along wit some food ideas. I also have a “Low Carb” board. You can follow all of my boards here.

Now let’s talk a little about my weekly routine.

WORKING OUT/EXERCISE

I personally exercise 6-7 days a week, for about an hour. Somedays that is walking outside at a fast pace, and sometimes it’s on an elliptical. I try to add in weight bearing exercises 2-3 days a week. Frequently it’s some kind of workout from the Healthy Me Pinterest board. This is very important the older we get. Muscle burns more calories than fat, and with every day we live, we also lose muscle mass. #notsuchgreatnews

EQUIPMENT

You don’t need a big fancy gym to workout either. I have never been a member of a gym. I am a very disciplined person. I won’t shower until after I work out…that’s why you usually see me on Instagram in the morning looking like death on a cracker…or you don’t see me until afternoon. But, it keeps me on the straight and narrow. You can purchase hand weights, bands, exercise balls, and all kinds of equipment to create your own workout space anywhere in your house. Would you believe my weights are currently in the blanket basket by the fire place. That way they are right near by when I get ready to do my workouts. I typically would workout in our loft area upstairs, but for the last 10 months that’s been my husbands “office”, so I relocated my weights downstairs.

SHOP EASY WORKOUT EQUIPMENT

EATING

I try to be conscious of what I eat. I have always been aware of my weight. Being shorter and from a family that tends to carry weight easily, I have to be very vigilant about this. I’ve never done a real strict diet program, but I did a round of the Faster Way to Fat Loss several years ago. This helped me learn and understand more about macros and balancing the carb/protein/fat ratio. You can sign up using my link if you want to try it. I think it’s a great tool for learning about balancing nutrition, and she has great workouts. I also recently used a protein calculator to see what the recommended amount of protein is for myself. I know I’m always way under what I should be and this has given me a shove in the right direction to get more protein in daily. #carbsaremysoulmate

I’ve started drinking a Premier Protein once a day to help me get more protein. If I’m left to my own devices, I’m going to choose a piece of toast over and egg, any day of the week. These drinks are an easy way for me to get a quick 30 grams of carbs for only 160 calories.

I have on my list of things to do this year, a post about menopause and why it’s hard to lose weight after the big M. Sadly, this is something we are almost all faced with at some point.

Enough about diet and exercise. Let’s get to something fun, like shopping. Shopping for workout wear that is.

WORKOUT WEAR

I have some definite favorites as far as workout wear goes. If I could only pick one pair of leggings, they would Zella. I have Zella leggings in every length in the color black, and some other colors too.

SHOP ZELLA

My favorite workout tanks are also Zella. The majority of my workout bras are from Target. They are comfortable, hold up well and affordable. I do however occasionally pick up pieces from Old Navy.

SHOP WORKOUT TOPS AND BRAS

A lightweight workout jacket is also a good piece to have during the change of seasons. You can layer it under a sweatshirt or vest for colder days, or take it off and tie around your waist on warmer days. I have one from Old Navy that’s my go to, and I linked several here for you.

SHOP JACKETS

I also have a pretty good collection of active wear from Peach. They have some good options for both working out, lounging and dressing up. Pieces that convert from one to the other. The thing I really like about their leggings is the most of them are reversible. That’s awesome, especially for travel. You can take one pair and get two looks. I just got in a new long sleeve workout shirt that’s super comfy, soft and perfect for wearing alone with leggings or layering under a jacket, sweatshirt, or vest. This was the one piece I was missing in my workout arsenal, so I was tickled to get it. I also got a new vest. Guess what? It’s reversible too. I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about the holographic side of it. All I could think when I saw it was, “follow the call of the disco ball”. Well it’s giving me Saturday night fever because it’s so cute. It reverses to black for a more subtle look, but the shiny side would be great for being out early morning or later in the evening, visibility wise.

Are you into keeping fit? I know this was kind of a crash course on fitness in your 50’s. I feel like I could go on and on, and I’m not any where near an expert, but I am pretty passionate about staying healthy.

I hope you’ll hop over and see what these girls have to share on the topic today. I love teaming up with women in the same stage of life and sharing what works, and what we’re doing to take care of ourselves.

Now it’s time to get to linkin’ up.