It is recommended that individuals 60 years old and up get around 150 minutes (2 and a half hours) of moderate-intensity and muscle training exercise a week.

Gauge what intensity is right for you by how you feel — moderate activity can feel somewhat hard. Here are clues that your exercise intensity is at a moderate level: your breathing quickens (but you are not out of breath), you develop a light sweat after about 10 minutes of activity, you can carry on a conversation — but you cannot sing.

Vigorous exercise intensity can feel challenging. Here are clues that your exercise intensity is at a vigorous level: your breathing is deep and rapid, you develop a sweat after only a few minutes of activity and you cannot say more than a few words without pausing for breath.

Both moderate-intensity and muscle training are important, but an essential step before this is stretching. This improves mobility, balance and warms up the body -- Healthline.com offers a great exercise plan that includes stretching.

Stretching can be done everywhere and should be a daily routine for ages 60 and up. There are targeted stretches for each major part of the body: neck extension and flexion (the up and down movement of the neck) shoulder and arm overhead stretch, seated toe top, upper back stretch and seated hamstring stretch. The full list with instructions can be found on morelifehealth.com.

Good exercises include swimming and water aerobics, chair and restorative yoga, walking, resistance band workouts, stretching and wall push-ups. These are easier on the body and will not cause major strain on the body, joints and muscles.

If you prefer outside workouts, make sure you dress in warm layers and consider a compression sock with Merino wool. Merino wool provides natural thermoregulation and moisture management, making them great for all day, everyday wear. This fabric is naturally durable, antibacterial, and blister-proof. Sigvaris offers different varieties of Merino wool socks and all Sockwell products are made with this wool.

If you prefer group workouts, then community centers are the place for you. They often offer all the recommended classes for older age groups and can help modify moves when needed.

At home workouts are a great alternative, especially during days of inclement weather. Using household items like cans of soup or water jugs can be great options for muscle training. Household items like PVC pipes and wood can be used to create DIY weights. Moderate-intensity exercising can include walking around the house or on a treadmill, if accessible, and dancing. YouTube also offers good on-demand at-home workouts, including yoga.

Shape.com has great how-to's for making at-home weights and YouTube creator Rom DGs’ video shows how to make several types of weights from everyday household objects.

Older age groups should avoid exercises like abdomen crunches, squats (chair squats are ok), deadlifting, high intensity interval training (HIIT), long distance running, overhead and bench presses, toe touches, power cleaning and stair/rock climbing. These activities could result in bodily injury because of the strain on your body.

Household cleaning tasks can burn calories too and can count as exercise. Some gentle cleaning tasks are dusting, sorting clothing and silverware to polish. Power cleaning and other extreme methods are too aggressive on the body.

If you are just starting to exercise or do not know where to begin with weights, More Life Health offers helpful YouTube videos that go step by step through the exercises. Each workout can be modified to cater to your needs and mobility.

When the colder weather creeps in, it can be hard to find exercises to stay active without having to take necessary precautions. At home and indoor workouts are great options that provide several types and are easily modified. Which activity are you going to try this winter?

With summer in the midst of transitioning into fall, winter is just around the corner. Now is the time of year when your immune system will be put to the test and the common cold will run amok. Staying healthy during the colder parts of the year can be a real challenge, but there are a few ways you can stack the deck in your favor. Here’s what you need to know in order to stay healthy as the seasons change.

Prioritize the Immune System

The entire point of eating food is acquiring the vitamins and nutrients that your body needs in order to operate and to maintain itself. However, protein and carbs often dominate the conversation, and it’s sugar and fat that play the roles of the villains. During the latter half of the year, when your immune system is the most necessary, your diet needs to provide the components necessary for a strong immune response. Protein is one of the many nutrients that can help you in this regard, but arguably more important is vitamin C.

Vitamin C is the vitamin most strongly associated with the strength of the immune system, along with other necessary benefits to your body such as maintaining healthy skin, blood vessels, bones and cartilage. Vitamin C is important to your immune system since it helps with the production of white blood cells, known to fight against infection and viruses. Citrus fruit is well known for having high vitamin C content, but potatoes and tomatoes are also high in this vital vitamin.

Vitamin D, on the other hand, is best gotten through exposure to sunlight, and sunlight tends to be much sparser and less bright as winter approaches. You can also consume Vitamin D through foods such as fish, soy milk, and egg yolks. Vitamin D also plays a major role for your immune health. It has both anti-inflammatory and immunoregulatory properties and is crucial for the activation of immune system defenses. Vitamin D is known to enhance the function of immune cells, including T-cells and macrophages, that protect your body against pathogens.

If you aren’t getting your daily dose of important vitamins, dietary supplements can help you fill in the gaps. Greens powder, for example, can help boost your immune system with a variety of ingredients that you might otherwise not even consider eating in a convenient form that can fit neatly into any diet

Stay Active

You would be forgiven for thinking that humans hibernated during the winter. Although this isn’t the case, colder, less hospitable weather tends to keep people indoors and sedentary. This, in tandem with multiple holiday feasts, causes many people to pack on pounds and lose muscle mass. Likewise, a lack of activity can weaken your immune system, so it’s important for you to find ways to get regular exercise even in the dead of winter.

For starters, consider the efficacy of a home gym. By bringing the gym experience to you, you can eliminate the commute to a proper gym without sacrificing the quality of the machine assisted workouts that it provides. A more cost effective solution is simply buying more low tech, but more affordable, workout gear such as simple weights. If you don’t have any equipment, don’t stress. Using your own weight while exercising will still benefit you. Examples of exercises that use your own weight are planks, pushups, or squats. You can easily follow at home workouts that are low impact through youtube or blog posts. While these workouts perhaps aren’t the most effective, it’s better than nothing and it’s easily attainable.

No matter what exercises you decide to focus on, you should get at least 30 minutes of movement per day at least four times a week, especially cardio. This doesn’t have to be extreme and push you to your limit. Simply walking around your neighborhood while the weather is still manageable is a great way to get fresh air while staying active. Once it’s too cold to leave the house, try doing laps around your kitchen and living room or climbing the stairs.

Stay On a Sleep Schedule

As winter approaches, days get shorter and nights get longer. This can disorient the body, because the body depends on an internal clock known as the circadian rhythm in order to know when it’s time for bed. Darker evenings can trick the brain, however, and that can result in an uptick in fatigue that can derail your sleep schedule if you let it. Sleep deprivation can occur not only as the result of too little sleep, but also because of restless sleep. When you don’t stick to a 24 hour sleep schedule, it can cause a more turbulent sleep experience that can leave you feeling groggy and, more importantly, impact your physical and mental health. In addition to this, the lack of vitamin D from sunlight can cause a decline in mental health, a phenomenon known as seasonal affective disorder characterized by depression. Poor mental health can also cause the immune system to weaken on top of not getting proper rest, so keeping track of when and how much you sleep is even more pivotal.

Winter has historically been a challenging time for humans, and that remains the case in the modern era. While the risk of starving or freezing to death isn’t ever present in the colder months, your health can still suffer. These tips will help you be at your best all year round.

Mia is a devout fitness instructor, mother and writer. She loves sharing her knowledge through blogging, teaching and writing.

Strength training is essential for senior citizens to maintain a healthy lifestyle. A strong body is one that encourages independent lifestyles through improved mobility and stability. Building up and maintaining consistent body strength keeps bones healthy, prevents falls, and even reduces the pain of arthritis. Before beginning an exercise regimen at any age, it is helpful to consult the family doctor or an expert in fitness.

Benefits of Strength Training in Senior Years

Strength training at any age is important for staying fit, but it is especially vital for those in their senior years who want to remain independent and free of chronic conditions. Senior strength training can reduce symptoms related to such chronic diseases as arthritis, obesity, osteoporosis, heart disease, and diabetes. Utilizing a full range of motion trains the muscles in controlling the body while it is moving. Start slow and let results snowball as you progress. Perform movements that do not hurt and are even fun to act out. Stepping, squatting, jogging, hopping, walking, lunging, and skipping are all ways to move more.

In North America, slips and falls are among the leading reasons for injury and death among senior citizens. Strength exercises improve balance and boost confidence while moving about. By taking the time to exercise and to do some strength training, you are helping your body be strong in the face of the worst possible scenario. Beyond avoiding fatal falls, physical fitness assists in living a longer and healthier life.

Independence is important for anyone, but especially older adults who do not want to have to change their ways of life. Those that exercise regularly do not rely as much on others. With regular strength training, you can maintain the ability to walk about, bathe without assistance, cook for themselves, dress without aid, and independently use the restroom.

Beginning a Strength Training Regimen

Once you turn 50 years old, your body loses muscle strength at a rate of 1 to 2 percent per year. After 60, this goes up to 3 percent. Strength training assists in regaining the lost muscle. Exercise also slows the aging of cells. It goes beyond making seniors feel young and actually disengages the aging process of the chromosomes. Thus, you should strength train twice a week at minimum.

Lifting weights can seem daunting to someone who is just getting started. Weight lifting is just one way to increase strength, however. Instead, seniors should begin with bodyweight exercises. People who rush to lifting weights can sacrifice form and ignore biomechanics. Start with squats, lunges, dips, shoulder presses, step-ups, push-ups of some variety, and bicycle crunches. The push-ups can be on your knees or toes or against a wall or counter top.

From that point, you can begin to add weight with resistance bands or dumbbells. Also, strength work should be performed on nonconsecutive days. Cardio or walking should take up some time on the days in between to assist with recovery. This basic routine of fitness is important as it keeps the joints moving smoothly and helps maintain proper gut flora to help digestive machinery do regular work.

At-Home Exercises for Senior Strength Training

There are two easy exercises that active seniors should focus on. The first is the squat. Squats are valuable because they maintain a strong trunk and legs. They will provide confidence and power to stand up from a chair or a couch. Aging people lose strength in the butt and legs, causing difficulties in daily living. Squats fight against this loss.

The second main exercise is the push-up. Particularly for those at risk of falling, the motion of pushing upward is vital. If you strengthen your upper body and arms, you maintain control of your motions even on the floor. Combining squats and push-ups offers a well-rounded beginning to strength training for seniors.

To have a long, healthy, and independent life, strength training is essential. It boosts the immune system and the mood, both of which can suffer as aging proceeds. Strength training for seniors prevents accidents and makes those that occur less dangerous. Follow these guidelines to get started as an active, more healthy you.

Mia is a devout fitness instructor, mother, and writer. She loves sharing her knowledge through blogging, teaching, and writing.