Exercise is a great way to stay youthful and even turn back the clock on aging. If you’re new to exercise or simply want a fitness reboot, here are ideas by the decade. In Your 20s: Experiment with different workouts to find what you enjoy. Make exercise a regular habit that you won’t want to give up, even when career and family make heavy demands on you. In Your 30s: Short on time? Try three 15-minute walks spread throughout the day. To stay fit and retain muscle, do cardio just about every day and strength training two or three times a week. If you’re new to exercise, take classes or have a personal trainer create a program for you. In Your 40s: Enhance your weekly routine by doing both low-intensity exercise, like yoga for stress relief and flexibility, and high-intensity workouts, like interval training or a spin or kettlebell class, to boost calorie burn and muscle elasticity. Expect longer recovery times after high-intensity workouts, so make sure to get enough sleep. In Your 50s: Regular exercise remains a must, but ask your doctor for modifications if you have any chronic conditions. Varying your workouts or taking up a new sport will engage your brain as well as different muscles. Get in at least one or two high-intensity workouts a week and try to take active…  read on >

Playing team sports is a great way to teach kids life lessons about leadership, teamwork and how to socialize with peers. Sports are also a great way to build self-esteem and gain physical skills. Most important, they’re fun. But too many — nearly three-quarters of young athletes — are specializing in just one activity as early as 7 years old, even playing on numerous league-level teams. This puts them at risk for injury, stress, burnout and eventually abandoning sports, according to a report from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). About 70% drop out by age 13 for such reasons as pressure to perform or, conversely, not getting enough playing time. And at least half of athletic injuries are related to overuse. On the other hand, playing multiple sports offers benefits such as fostering a love of different activities that can last their entire lives. To keep kids in the game, the AAP suggests encouraging them to play multiple sports until at least age 15. To lessen the risk of injury, they need one or two days off every week. If the decision has been made to specialize in a single sport, both parents and child should have a discussion with the child’s pediatrician to evaluate whether the young athlete’s goals are appropriate and realistic. Keep in mind that barely 1% of high school athletes…  read on >

Obliques are the muscles that run along the sides of your torso, from the lower eight ribs to the front of the hip bone. They contract when you rotate your torso, so a great way to develop them is with an exercise called the Russian twist. Lie flat on the floor in a spot where you can tuck your feet under a low piece of furniture to keep them from moving or have a workout buddy hold them in place for you. Bend your knees and raise your upper body to make a V-shape with your thighs. Extend your arms in front of you from the shoulders, lifting them until they’re parallel with your thighs, hands together. Tighten your abdomen — think of trying to bring your navel to your spine. Now twist your entire upper body, arms included, to the right side. Hold, then return to start. Repeat to the left. That’s one full repetition. Do two sets of 12 to 15 reps in all. As you get more advanced, you can hold a weight in both hands for added resistance. One type of weight that’s easy to hold is the medicine ball. This is a weighted ball, not the kind of inflated exercise ball that you might sit on for balance exercises. Choose a weight that slows down your movement. Each rep should…  read on >

Flexibility in your upper body is important for many everyday activities you take for granted, like twisting and turning while backing out of a parking space. Try these three stretches to help keep your upper body agile. They don’t require any special equipment and can even be done in your office. Neck stretch: Do this easy stretch either standing or sitting in a chair. Slowly turn your head to the left until you feel a slight pull. Make sure the position feels comfortable, but don’t tilt your head forward or backward. Hold for 10 to 30 seconds, return to center and repeat to the right, again holding for 10 to 30 seconds. Repeat the full movement three times. Shoulder and arm stretch: Next, grab a small towel. Raise your right arm over your head, holding the towel so that it falls along the center of your back. Grab the other end of the towel with your left hand and slowly tug until you feel a slight stretch. Hold for 10 to 30 seconds. Repeat three to five times, then switch hands and repeat. Wall walk: “Walking” up a wall with your hands stretches your chest. Stand facing a wall, with your legs and arms shoulder-width apart. Keeping your back straight, walk your hands up the wall until they’re above the level of your head. Hold…  read on >

No matter your fitness level, adding just a little more exercise may prolong your life, new research suggests. “People think they have to start going to the gym and exercising hard to get fitter,” said researcher Elin Ekblom-Bak, from the Swedish School of Sport and Health Sciences in Stockholm. “But it doesn’t have to be that complicated. For most people, just being more active in daily life — taking the stairs, exiting the metro station early, cycling to work — is enough to benefit health since levels are so low to start with,” she said. “The more you do, the better.” Ekblom-Bak and her colleagues looked at more than 316,000 adults in Sweden, aged 18 to 74, whose heart-lung (cardiorespiratory) fitness was assessed between 1995 and 2015. Participants rode a stationary cycle to determine the maximum amount of oxygen the heart and lungs can provide the muscles during exercise, a measure called VO2 max. Overall, the risk of all-cause death and death from cardiovascular events such as heart attack and stroke fell 2.8% to 3.2% for each milliliter increase in VO2 max. The benefits of increased activity were seen in men and women, in all age groups, and at all fitness levels. The study was to be presented Friday at a European Society of Cardiology meeting, in Lisbon, Portugal. Such research is considered preliminary until…  read on >

Faith-based fitness is on the rise, according to trend-watchers at the American Council on Exercise, with many churches, mosques, synagogues and temples developing programs that promote health and wellness. From exercise classes to nutrition advice and health coaching, congregants can enhance their physical as well as their spiritual well-being. More than just another fitness fad, research has found an explanation for the spirituality-wellness connection: The strong sense of community in faith-based programs can lead to fitness success. That’s especially true when they include partnerships with health organizations, local hospitals, medical schools and other access to medical experts, and when they promote positive behavioral changes and supportive social relationships. These programs can instill a commitment among participants that exceeds that of a commercial diet group, for instance. Studies show that traditional houses of worship tend to offer more disease screening and health education activities, while more modern ones tend to offer disease prevention and lifestyle activities to the community at large. At their core, all such programs address fitness and health issues in a spiritual environment that may make it easier to change habits because of congregants’ belief in their church’s role in promoting health along with the ability to deepen bonds with fellow congregants. If your religious institution offers exercise classes, consider the role they can play in achieving your fitness goals and take the…  read on >