Staying active – the importance of staying active for over 65s

Exercise has huge benefits for health and regular physical activity remains just as important as you get older.

What are the benefits of physical activity?

Physical activity can help:

increase balance and coordination
increase muscle strength
prevent falls
prevent and manage health conditions such as stroke, heart disease, obesity, type 2 diabetes, osteoarthritis, cancers and depression
reduce the risk of premature death
improve sleep
enhance wellbeing and quality of life
increase social interaction.

But the type and amount of exercise you should do changes as you age. Here are some tips on exercise that is suitable for people over 65.

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Spend more time being physically active and less time sitting down

Doing housework and other daily activities is good for you as they keep you moving and help reduce the time you are sitting down. Don't stretch yourself too much – the key is to do something within your capability. Even small amounts of physical activity can have great benefits on your health.

Aim for at least 30 minutes of aerobic activity, 5 days a week

Aim to do physical activity that increases your breathing and heart rate for at least 30 minutes, 5 days a week. These activities are known as aerobic activities and can be classified into moderate or vigorous intensity.

Moderate intensity exercise

These activities increase your breathing and heart rate slightly but they are noticeable. You can still chat during moderate-intensity activity.

Examples include:

cycling
brisk walking
kapa haka
stair climbing
walking
golf
housework
swimming
playing with grandchildren
waka ama
kaumātua line dancing
water aerobics.

Vigorous-intensity exercise
These activities increase your breathing and heart rate significantly. You are not able to chat during vigorous-intensity activity.

Examples include:

walking uphill
heavy digging
fast lane swimming
cycling more than 16 km/h
fast dancing.

Include flexibility, balance and resistance activities

Some activities can improve flexibility, balance or resistance. Aim to do 3 sessions of flexibility and balance activities as well as 2 sessions of resistance activities per week.

Resistance activities	Flexibility activities	Balance activities
carrying shopping chair raises cycling golf hill walking knee lifts modified tai chi stair climbing swimming waka ama water aerobics weight training	ankle stretches bowls gardening golf housework kilikiti modified tai chi Otago Exercise Programme petanque (French bowls) Pilates stretching washing car yoga	bowls chair raises cycling less than 14 km/h golf modified tai chi Otago Exercise Programme petanque (French bowls) Pilates poi toa social dancing standing on one leg waka ama yoga

Start slow and build up gradually

Try to start off any physical activity slowly and build up gradually to the recommended level.

If any of the following applies to you, talk to your doctor before starting or increasing levels of activity:

you have not exercised regularly in the recent past
you have one or more health conditions
you have any injuries.

Recommendations for older people who are frail

It is important to be physically active even if you are frail. You can do these safely by:

checking with your doctor first before starting or increasing physical activity
speaking to your doctor about whether vitamin D tablets can be beneficial for you
being as active as possible and reducing sedentary behaviour
starting off these exercises slowly and building up gradually
aiming for a combination of low-impact aerobic, resistance, balance and flexibility activities.