In Shape For Life

After the age of 40, we tend to lose about 0.5 to 2 percent of our muscle each year. If you aren't concerned about looking good, then also realize that this loss is a large factor in falls in older age, which can most often lead to fractures and even death. The good news is that there's an answer to helping fight this. Follow these steps and you will find yourself getting in shape for life:

Step 1: Don't sit too long

The first goal is to avoid sitting or resting for long periods of time. A study in the Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise found that people who sit for most of the day are 54 percent more likely to die of a heart attack. The shocking fact is that this is independent on whether you smoke or exercise! It doesn't matter if you exercise or smoke. Sitting long periods still increase the risk.

Step 2: Start a Walking Program

Start with small steps. The best way to do this is get a simple pedometer. Those cost a few dollars and are well worth it. Stick to your regular routine for the first week and record how many steps you walk every day. Do this every week until you can get to a goal of 10,000 steps per day. This is the big goal so don't aim for it from the start. It's about aiming for smaller goals first and then reaching them.

Step 3: Start a stretching (warm up) program

Good news is that you don't need to spend as much time holding a stretched position as we previously thought. That's because we are often confused between stretching and warming up. Warming up is about moving body parts slowly and through a full range of motion until your muscles get warmed up. This is the best thing to do before you start any exercise program. Research has shown that static stretching, those positions that you hold for several seconds, can sometimes be responsible for increasing injuries, not decreasing them.

Step 4: Start a strengthening program

Researchers at University of Michigan Health System found that an adult can add 2.42 pounds of lean muscle and increase overall strength by 25 to 30 percent after 18 weeks of resistance training. This can occur well into the 80's and 90's so its never too late to start.