Workout to Stay Young Did you know as we age our workout requirements go up?
	It's true, as we age, we need more exercise than when we were younger. Unfortunately, most people get less mobile and exercise less as they age. If you want to keep your mind sharp and your body active and pain free you must exercise wisely everyday with physical training and cardio that helps you, cares for your body and does not harm you. Fascia exercise, weight lifting & cardio are necessary components of your regular workout. Most of us also need MFR Rehab to get us strengthening properly again too. Past injuries, even long forgotten ones, can cause all sorts of pain and symptoms many years later because we never got back to using our muscles correctly and moving properly after injury or chronic pain. MFR Rehab is an integral piece of a healthy workout. I can't tell you how many clients have come to me over the years in terrible pain and some even with extensive injuries and it all turned out to be caused by their workouts. And they didn't even realize it!
	Workout for Long Term Health
	The goal of exercising is of course to increase your strength, balance and cardiovascular health so we have to be sure that is what our workouts are doing for us. If your workout is also taking away your health by wearing away joint cartilage, causing you pain, injuries and increasing your symptoms then in the long run it is robbing you of your health and it is no longer healthy exercise. Now hear me out on this. For long term wellness it may be wise to consider low impact exercises regardless of your age. So many people actually damage their bodies with the exercises they choose. I recommend low impact exercises that you will be able to do your entire life without injuring your body, wearing away your joint cartilage and regretting later in life. As long as you correct your compensations and use your muscles properly it is possible to exercise without wearing your body down unnecessarily.
	Correct Muscle Compensations
	Whatever high or low impact workouts you choose or sports you play they will be much better for your body overall if we correct your compensation patterns. That way you will use the proper muscles for everything you do which will keep your body strong, sound and pain-free much longer. If you're using the wrong muscles even low impact exercises and normal daily activities can hurt and cause problems. Now these compensations are subconscious so you very likely won't know that you are compensating but almost every adult has muscle compensations. If you have chronic pain or symptoms then you absolutely have compensations and correcting them is a necessary part of your healing if you are ever going to be pain free long term.
	Get your ego out of the way
	Be careful about letting your ego choose your workouts and instead choose exercises that are both good for your body long term and that are healthy for where you're at right now. That way you're working out for longevity and not just to be as tough as you can whether it hurts your body or not. Many clients I've treated over the years have intense chronic pain, the cause of which clearly points back to their current or past exercise even from many years or decades ago. You don't have to have a major injury in your history to have chronic pain. Many people have current or previous recreational exercise or sports as the cause of their pain even decades later. Now if you haven't been working out lately, go back slow and steady to set yourself up for success. As an MFR therapist who specializes in pain relief, I can tell you exercise induced joint pain, back pain, injuries and chronic pain are very common. Low impact workouts that cause no symptoms beyond proper muscle soreness are definitely what we're after for long term health. Keep in mind that low impact does not have to mean low intensity! You can still get a high intensity workout and hit your maximum heart rate and get all that good stress relief without the negative long-term effects of high impact exercise as long as we correct your muscle compensations.
	Increased Mental Capacity
	The other big goal of working out is the mental acuity that can come from the increase in circulation & lung function as well as the good muscle usage of a healthy workout. My goal for myself and all my clients is to help them maintain and increase their physical ability and their mental ability for their entire long, healthy life. So many people lose one of these necessary attributes. How can one enjoy a healthy mind without an able body and vice versa? If you are to be fully functional and independent your whole life thru, you of course need both an agile healthy body and a clear healthy mind.
	Sitting is the New Smoking
	Whether you sit for long periods for work, for gaming, for binge watching shows - if you want to be healthy and nimble your whole life through, you need to get up and move. Get your daily exercise on. I'm here to help if you're ready to correct your muscle compensations to get your body moving better which will naturally increase your speed and strength as well as help you maintain or become pain free. I used to work with a doctor who would always say your daily workout at any age should be one you can do when you are in your 90's. That way you'd choose a workout that gives you all the cardio, strength training and movement you need while being kind to and easy on your body. It can be done if we make wise choices with long term wellbeing in mind.
	Do No Harm
	Let your daily exercise routine help keep you nimble on your feet and sharp in your mind. When choosing a workout keep in mind the Hippocratic oath of "do no harm", meaning choose exercises that help you increase your health and that do no harm to your body. You can still push yourself and get all the workout intensity you need or want but at the same time listen to and take good care of your body, and honor and respect its current abilities and boundaries. That way you can always be active, building muscle and increasing balance and flexibility with a bright mind, quick reflexes and a strong, healthy body your whole life through. So, Let's Get Moving...wisely!