Fit-ish: How to approach fitness at every stage of life

Whether you are in your twenties or sixties, you don’t have to be obsessed with fitness to live a healthy life. Brenda Braxton learns about the “fit-ish” approach to wellness.

PORTLAND, Erz. – If you like to exercise, but also like to eat French fries or dessert, then you are what we call “fit-ish”! You try to be healthy, but you are not obsessed. It’s about balance, self-compassion and enjoying life at every age and stage.

This week KGW launched a series called fit-ish to show that you don’t have to live in the gym to live a healthy life.

If you’ve settled down in the last year or so, no judgment. Most of us have, but it’s not too late to move a little more and stress a little less, hence the “ish”.

The right approach to training works regardless of whether you are a millennial or a senior. We partnered with Northwest Personal Training in Vancouver to break it down decade by decade and provide tips to get you started on the right path.

Fit in your 20s

Gen Z and Millennials focus on school, career, or both. The youth are on their side. Many of them can eat and drink what they want without many consequences.

Personal trainer Nate Brown is spot on in this demo. He’s 25 and says this is the decade where you can “work hard” in the gym and burpees are his favorite exercise for this age group.

CLOCK: Fit-ish: How to Embrace Fitness in Your Twenties

He said, “It’s high intensity, our bodies can handle it in our 20s. It’s a full body connection. You increase your heart rate. It allows the lower body to work. You can add pushups where the upper body needs to work. Add then add some jumping to make your body work in a different direction. You can then move on to single leg exercises so there is a lot of progress in what is beautiful, especially in our 20s where we have that ability to do something more strenuous. “

Nate says your twenty is the time to make a habit of exercising – just like brushing your teeth, do it every day.

He says the biggest mistake 20 year olds make is comparing themselves to others. For example, don’t worry about how much other people are lifting in the gym, you do! If you don’t, you could push too hard and injure yourself.

Fit in your 30s

When life in your thirties gets busier – start a family, climb the corporate ladder, or do both – time is short. So 30-year-olds need “exercise efficiency”.

30-year-old trainer Alicia Rose recommends getting the most of your time with combination exercises like an overhead press squat.

CLOCK: Fit-ish: How to Embrace Fitness in Your Thirties

She said, “Exercise efficiency is really very important to people in their thirties. We want to maximize our muscle gains by adding compound movements. Things that work multiple muscles at the same time. So legs and torso and also make sure our cardiovascular system System gets going. Plyometrics, running in place, things that get our heart rate up and our metabolism pumping because, as you know in our 30s, our bodies start to change. “

Alicia says 30 parents can do something with exercise. It all counts, whether you kick a soccer ball with your kids or go “old school” and play hopscotch. She says this is a great way to improve your agility and balance!

And for 30-year-olds without kids, Alicia says, be adventurous with your activities. This is the perfect decade to learn something new, like silk training, gymnastics, or a dance class. And invite your friends to keep it fun and social.

Fit in your 40s

Staying fit in our forties presents us with new challenges. This is the decade when women lose muscle mass and stamina due to hormonal fluctuations as they age.

And men may be dealing with aching joints or back pain that was caused by the wear and tear of competitive sports in the past.

CLOCK: Fit-ish: How to Embrace Fitness in Your Forties

Trainer Jamie Hahn at Northwest Personal Training says strength training is a “must” for women with 40 things. And even if it’s been a while, don’t worry.

She said, “The good news is it’s coming back. Our bodies remember. We want to do it [strength training] two to three times a week for 20 to 60 minutes. It is important that we stick to it. “

Think of two to three sets for all major muscle groups and 8 to 15 reps. It speeds up your metabolism and protects your bones.

What about mild back pain? This is difficult, but if you’re at the point where you’re sneezing and pinching your back, your abs may need to work a bit.

“My number one thing I come across with customers is core strength,” said Jamie. Your favorite way to get after? Boards.

Beginners can simply start with the traditional static position. There are all sorts of advanced variations, however, including hip dips in planking.

Bottom line: if you take small steps every day one day, you will get there.

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Fit in your 50s

Sherri McMillan will proudly tell you that she is 51 years old. Check out her Instagram, it shows off her strong, spirited and active lifestyle.

She started Northwest Personal Training 21 years ago when she moved to Vancouver, Washington. Fitness is their job, but “fit” is their attitude.

CLOCK: Fit-ish: How To Embrace Fitness In Your Fifties

“I want to look great and feel great, but I also want to enjoy life and be pampered and have fun with friends and family and just have more balance in my life. I think as you get older you start doing that and to recognize you I’m not that hard on yourself anymore and I think that’s wonderful, “she said with a laugh.

The biggest challenge for women in their 50s? Hormones that got out of hand, making it easier to gain weight.

“And they start thinking, ‘Oh my god. I need to exercise more. I need to eat less’ and it puts a lot of stress on their bodies, which actually increases their cortisol levels, their stress hormone and sometimes when we ‘need to.’ In our 50s we actually withdraw a little and include more yoga, more mindful movement, more meditation. “

Sherri says there are physical changes in your 50s that you can’t control, like needing reading glasses, but you can control how often you exercise.

“It becomes critical that we build strength for our muscle mass, metabolism and bone density. That goes for every decade, but definitely for our later years. You have to maintain that muscle mass. It really is like that, really is the fountain of youth.”

Fit in your 60s and beyond

Going to the gym when you are over 60 has tremendous body and mind benefits for seniors. And the cool thing about exercise is that it’s never too late to start.

Coach Bob Hoffman said, “Even if you quit and lose some of it, start again because you can win it all back!”

At 61, Bob knew what he was talking about. His clients at Northwest Personal Training in Vancouver include two 79-year-olds and two other 80-year-olds.

CLOCK: How to Embrace Fitness in the 60s

Bob also talked about his own fitness journey.

“I stopped being active in my forties when life got in the way. And I went from very good shape to weighing 230 pounds with high blood pressure, high cholesterol and medication for both of them. I got myself going to let.”

Today Bob did a 180. He’s a triathlete who runs four days a week, rides his bike twice a week, and swims again. He also lifts weights.

“You don’t really want to lift heavy, you want to lift a lot of reps and lower the weight. Just keep working. It really, really changed my life.”

He says the most important fit-ish trifecta for seniors is flexibility, balance, and posture.

The exercise that focuses on all three is the standing stretch to open the arms and chest. A gentle pressure engages the muscles between the shoulder blades – just don’t pull them together. Keep these shoulders away from your ears. There are several ways to change this route. You can lie on the floor with a pillow under your head. Or for seniors who are ready for a bigger challenge – do this stretch over a balance ball.

And remember that exercising with a partner or a group (think dance classes or tennis) is an important social element.

Bob says, “It’s really important to have people who care about you, who take care of you, this community. These bonds are important to us as we get older and keep ourselves healthy not only physically but mentally. “

Exercising your body and brain will keep seniors and the rest of us fit!

CLOCK: Sunrise Extra: Talk to Sherri McMillan from NW Personal Training about the “Fit-ish” lifestyle