Take Small Steps to Improve Heart Health

By Leslee Jaquette, guest blogger

Just taking baby steps toward heart health is a big step toward better overall health, says the American Heart Association (AHA) website. Kari Richie, health and fitness director at Springmoor, a senior living community in Raleigh, N.C., echoes that sentiment with an example.

“A 93-year-old resident scores off the charts for fitness because she is always walking and participating in cardio-aqua and walking with weights classes,” says Kari. “In the Up & Go test (stand up and walk 10-feet around a cone) she scored 5.4 seconds – that’s in the 90th percentile for her age!”

While not all of us can be poster athletes for our age group, we can improve our heart health by taking certain measures, including building up to 30 to 60 minutes of exercise every day.

The Olympics, Retirement Living and Inspiration to Keep Moving

By Ann Burnside Love

Let’s face it: The Olympics are a sedentary sport for us retirees. Right now we’re in the midst of our least active two-week period of the winter, if you’re as interested in the Winter Games as I am. Over the years I‘ve planned my Olympics-watching to make sure I don’t miss any ice skating. I’ll ignore much of the rest to keep my own life going appropriately.

But I get caught up watching skiers and snowboarders do all those hair-raising things they do. I’m always amazed when they take off their helmets and we see such glowingly fresh faces of the healthiest, most beautiful young people alive.

Then it occurred to me recently that much of the same dynamic is going on in my retirement community. (What?) There is a tall, slender lady in her eighties who walks two miles vigorously every day and has done so for years. She’s always glowing and positive, even though she has her own health challenges.