Death doesn't always come in packages. Like a thief in the night, it steals your life every day, in microscopic amounts.

You can fight back.

What I do I call Everyday Fitness, I started when I was in my 50s, although it has evolved considerably over the years. The name is brand new, I am not going commercial, I am just organising my thoughts, definitely a work in progress..

The hardest part is not the exercising, once you learn how, it's enjoyable. The hard part is figuring out what to do and when. That's going to be different for everybody. But I can tell you about what I do, and why I do it.

The idea is to stay healthy, and avoid Pills and Ills... (That's a subtle hint for the Mods, I am nothing if not subtle, as long as you think hammers are subtle)

Sometimes you don't want to do the full range of motion. You could be stuck, could be injury, doesn't matter. Today I was walking forward against a couple rubber bands. I could have gone to a heavier band, but I needed more "time under tension". So I got close to the limit of the bands and broke the movement into 2 parts. The first was the thrust, which I repeated several times. The I did the second half of the movement which involves the butt and back of the legs. That was the first time I have done that, I'll do it again in about a week. I do the walking exercises every other leg day.

But which exercises to do? That's easy, start with easy ones, and then move onto the more interesting ones.

You can find a lot of exercises on Youtube. I like Kneeovertoesguy, but I have messed up knees, so some of his stuff I can't do. But I have found a lot of good ideas from him. One of those is Seated Good Mornings. Start easy, with partial moves. If you don't, you can get really sore for a week, don't ask how I know. He is big on making progress slowly.
https://www.youtube.com/@TheKneesovertoesguy

I like Ryan Hummiston, he's a little crazy, but the kind of crazy where he hooks himself with electrodes to see what muscles are working, that's kinda neat.
https://www.youtube.com/@RyanHumiston

Upright Health is great for beginners. I do one of his exercises that is good for your knees. Lean sideways holding onto the kitchen counter. Let your torso sag, and straighten your torso using just your legs and hips. Do both feet, then turn around to do the other side. I wish I had known about this earlier.
https://www.youtube.com/@Uprighthealth

Mobility with Mitch is another good one for beginners. You may not need this, but it's handy if you do.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFO...kcv07XBGwsLGsQ


Zuu is intense bodyweight exercises. I only do Frogs at the moment, but I am hoping to do more.

I do the first exercise in this video, it's good for the Vastus Medialus.
https://www.youtube.com/@TheKneesovertoesguy

I started doing a daily 20 minute exercise routine in my 50’s. It has served me well and I believe I have fewer cycling related aches and pains as a result. I do my exercises before breakfast about an hour after I wake up and it is a combination of stretching, range of motion, yoga like moves and calisthenics. My goal is to maintain strength of core, arms, legs and hands, maintain balance capabilities, keep joints fluid and ward off arthritis as I get older. I like to ride my bike, swim, walk, hike, ski and ice skate depending on the season and my daily routine has allowed me to continue to enjoy these activities right into my mid 60’s. I also work as a bike mechanic seasonally and since I began exercising daily I have far fewer aches when I start working on bikes and being on my feet each day again each spring.

At 72, it amazes me how cycling alone has kept me healthy and flexible. No weights, no stretching, no supplements or medication, no other physical activity to speak of, other than a bit of occasional walking: nothing but cycling.

Having retired 2 years ago, I spend something like 2 to 3 hours or a bit more a day six days a week on the bike, and, as my GP told me the last time I went in for a checkup, about 5 years ago, I'm healthier than 99.999% of people my age.

It's partly genetic, of course, and partly that I've never smoked or taken drugs and have stayed thin throughout my life, but I'm convinced that regular cycling at a reasonably effortful level has an all but miraculous effect on health.

It's possible that as time passes, I'll pay for being too lazy to work with resistance/weights, of course. if so, studies seem to indicate that starting late in life can still be beneficial.

The issue of whether stretching is a good idea seems to have become controversial, though, with results of some studies having indicated that connective tissue can become weakened. So my laziness there has paid off, maybe.

Exactly what I need, thanks for sharing! I'm adding Chameleons to my daily routine, for a start.

Yes. That is mentioned in the book "Younger Next Year." IIRC, nursing home/assisted living residents who started doing resistance even with light weights very late in life showed improvement.

Interestingly, during my 2021 bike tour from northern Vermont home to Philly I camped at a state park in Copake, NY, the entrance to which is long the Harlem Valley Rail Trail. The former depot there has been converted into store/fcafe. Went for a Sunday NYT and some adult beverages and saw an older fellow taking to a small group of seniors. As I walked by them, I heard him say that he wrote a book called "Younger Next Year". No one is his audience had heard of the book. He was in his 80s and still riding. One of the co-authors, who was an MD, is dead now.

Trakhak Just saw a short piece on local news about the results of a large study of 60+ year old people that shows lifting weights has definite benefits. Even people over 85 gained strength.

I ordered the book through interlibrary loan, looks promising.

Aside from being disinclined to expand my exercise beyond cycling (aka being lazy), some of my reluctance to consider lifting weights is that I might increase the range of weights I'm willing to attempt to lift. As it is, even the diminished near-maximum loads I'm still able to lift are enough to give me pain in my lower back for a day (or several days, or more).

As suggested, the trick is finding what specific exercises and combinations work for a given person. Isn't always obvious, and it'll vary by the ills/injuries one has to contend with when considering which exercises to do.

For the discussion, here are a couple of reference lists I use when exploring options:

• Yoga positions and movements @ SensationalYogaPoses
• Darebee workouts @ Darebee

That yoga site has a huge number of yoga positions along with photos, along with a decent index that can help narrow down the area of the body you're looking for and which exercises can help with strengthening or flexibility of that area. Great reference.

The Darebee site has a wide range of various bodyweight/floor type exercises as well as ones with simple tools (ie, dumbbells, jumping rope, etc).

Good pair of references, if going DIY on an approach. Nice, for hunting down a couple more specific motions or exercises to add to what you've already got, or to shake things up.

My wife and I are in that book.

The bike's been my go to for so long, i figured I needed alittle break, to try other stuff going on at my gym. I'd seen too many girls with too many muscles and I was getting a tad jealous. There are classes of every drescription, with more than a little overlap in most. Some involve weights, kettle bells rubber resistance bands etc, and the classes are a little manic, leaving no time to adjust for change. People have had injuries going to some of these.
I've never had any problems on the bikes.
Dance classes are fun; never done 'em before. I used to play the tunes with my little band, so it's a great thing, and with a low risk factor.
Yoga, Pilates etc stretch you to an unpleasant degree, proportionate with your age and experience.
Interesting dilemma for me to solve is . . .
The aches and pains come through things like bad posture, (takes time to get it right) and age (mid seventies) will preclude more extreme work for some.
I wont to do press-ups since it forces blood to your brain and could become a stroke risk.
Some abs crunches will nicely set off a bad back.
So where does one draw the line? I guess you can only go gently and feel your way in, over a period of time anf hope you don't cross that red line!
Or just stick to the bike.
.

You should be able to make your back stronger safely. A trainer might help with that.

Yep...