People well into their seventies like I am may not know why they lose their balance easily and have trouble with mobility, their backs and muscle twinges. It’s just one of the conditions of aging, they may think. Well that’s just not true, and I urge everyone to take responsibility for keeping themselves in shape. It’s important to the quality of life that you enjoy, and especially if you are retired, you can certainly afford thirty minutes a day to take care of yourself.

I myself do yoga, but there are all sorts of things that you can do to keep your balance and your mobility. Stretching is the most basic, and everyone should do some stretching at least once a day. To be safe, the best thing is to find a book on stretching or talk to someone at a running store or look on a search engine, because there are ways to stretch improperly and you don’t want to do those. Stretching works best once the blood is already flowing, so go for a nice walk before stretching out at home.

Yoga is an exercise for all ages. Many, many seniors do yoga in India, and it has caught on amongst young people here as well. It can be quite demanding or undemanding depending on what you put into it. Yoga is made up of a number of series of exercises that can be performed by yourself or with others. It helps with balance, strengthening and flexibility. I have increased all of these things since taking up yoga in 2001! I can keep up with my daughter on vacations and long walks without trouble.

There are all sorts of exercises that I have heard about but don’t know about in too much detail. I know of swimming pool calisthenics, tai chi, stationary bicycle, and stairmaster. The important thing is to be active on a daily basis! Don’t lose your mobility and balance, because you lose so much else along with it!