Exercise Knows No Age

People are living longer. We owe this above all to improved living conditions and advances in medicine. However, as we age, the risk of disease also increases. A major problem is lack of physical activity. Insufficient exercise in older adults accelerates the age-related loss of muscle mass, muscle strength, and physical function (sarcopenia). Inactivity also contributes to the development of age-related lifestyle diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, or certain types of cancer.

To enable successful aging and reduce dramatically rising care costs, innovative approaches are urgently needed. Only in this way can we overcome the social and demographic challenges.

One such approach is physical exercise. Regular training is the best medicine to counteract muscle loss, frailty, and dependency in old age, to maintain quality of life, and to extend the health span. Exercise-promoting measures should be offered especially where older people live. This applies in particular to senior care facilities, since the lives of many older residents there are linked with a reduction in physical activity. Due to the limited mobility of most residents in senior facilities, exercise programs should be implemented directly on site. However, there is often still a lack of effective and innovative exercise programs offered on a regular basis.

Of course, I still want to exercise – I’m only 80 years old …

Exercise Knows No Age! - true to this motto, we at Preventive Sports Medicine and Sports Cardiology, together with the Beisheim Foundation, launched the comprehensive movement concept „bestform. Exercise Knows No Age.