Moderate exercise has many physical and emotional benefits including sounder sleep, increased flexibility and reduced blood pressure. Regular exercise also decreases the risk of stroke and improves bowel and bladder control. Moreover, research has shown that while hormone replacement therapy is a potent treatment for osteoporosis, weight-bearing exercises like walking, jogging or stair climbing appear to enhance estrogen s ability to increase bone density and prevent bone loss. Although experts agree that exercise is vital, sedentary people should first have a thorough physical examination before they begin to exercise. Once medically cleared, older people need to choose exercise programs they enjoy.
Consistency is crucial to reaping any benefits from working out.
Experts recommend at least three 20-minute sessions of cardiovascular exercise weekly. For more information on exercise programs designed especially for seniors, ask your doctor or check the local YMCA or senior center. The final AP story was about Rose Nix Leo. She was a teen-ager when she wrote her first story about a remote spot called Dead Man's Gulch where frontier criminals were supposedly hanged. At 103, Mrs. Leo is still writing, telling readers about the first time she tried to drive a car or mulling over her observation of human nature.