Aerobics Exercises for Seniors and People with Disabilities
Aerobic exercise is when the body uses oxygen while producing energy for physical activity. ‘Aerobic’ means 'with oxygen' aerobic metabolism occurs when the body breaks down fat and glucose by combining with oxygen.
Exercise is aerobic if it is performed continuously around 20 to 30 minutes is a sufficient amount of time to gain health benefits. Whatever you choose to do, it should be something you enjoy.
During intense aerobic exercise, the body uses more oxygen, and breathing and heart rate increase. Over time, regular aerobic exercise will improve a person’s health and fitness and reduce levels of body fat. Regular physical activity reduces the incidence of cardiovascular disease and helps to prevent diabetes, injury and some forms of cancer, as well as positively influencing mental and social health and wellbeing.
Aerobic exercise and fitness can be contrasted with anaerobic exercise, of which strength training and weight training are the most salient examples. The two types of exercise differ by the duration and intensity of muscular contractions involved, as well as by how energy is generated within the muscle. Initially during aerobic exercise, glycogen is broken down to produce glucose, which is then broken down using oxygen to generate energy. In the absence of these carbohydrates, fat metabolism is initiated instead.
While heart rate monitoring has problems in application for some disabled athletes, it is still the most widely used technique for monitoring exercise intensity in all populations, and it should be included in the programming for adaptive aerobics classes, as well as for disabled athletes within mainstream studio aerobics. Several limiting factors on the heart rate being used with standard ranges must be acknowledged; the disabled athlete may have a disability that limits the trainable, usable muscle mass, the disabled athlete may have impaired cardiovascular or autonomic function, the disabled athlete's anaerobic threshold may differ from an athlete without disability and the athlete may be influenced by drugs that alter physiologic responses to exercise.
Among the recognized benefits of doing regular aerobic exercise are:
Strengthening the muscles involved in respiration, to facilitate the flow of air in and out of the lungs.
Improving circulation efficiency and reducing blood pressure.
Increasing the total number of red blood cells in the body, facilitating transport of oxygen.
Improved mental health, including reducing stress and lowering the incidence of depression.
Strengthening and enlarging the heart muscle, to improve its pumping efficiency and reduce the resting heart rate.
Toning muscles throughout the body.
Some people may suffer repetitive stress injuries with some forms of aerobics, and must choose less injurious, "low-impact" forms of aerobics, or lengthen the gap between bouts of exercise to allow for greater recovery.
Always consult with your doctor before embarking on any new fitness program, especially if you are over 40 years, have a pre-existing medical condition, or haven’t exercised in a long time.
Articles
| Pub. Date | Topic | Author |
|---|---|---|
| 2011-08-25 | Lose That Belly Fat with Aerobic Exercises | Duke University Medical Center |
| 2010-06-24 | Aerobics Effective Exercise for People with Rheumatoid Arthritis | Wiley-Blackwell |
| 2010-05-17 | Aerobics Better Than Pedometer-based Walking Programs for Health Benefits | University of Alberta - Faculty of Physical Education and Recreation |
| 2010-04-26 | Aerobic Exercise Good for Brain | University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences |
| 2009-10-25 | Aerobic Exercise Helps Elasticity of Arteries and Diabetes | Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada |
| 2009-09-09 | Aerobic Exercise Reduces Fatty Liver Health Concerns | Wiley-Blackwell |
| 2009-02-12 | Aerobic Exercises for Healthy Heart | Blake Hagen |
| 2009-02-12 | Aerobic Exercises Improve Mental Health | Blake Hagen |
| 2009-02-12 | Aerobics for the Whole Body | Jerome Carter |
