Exercise Tips - How You Can Exercise After 40 Years Old

So you're now forty years old. Is this the time to start modifying your workouts?

I thought it was time to write an article for people who are forty or older. When my friend turned forty years old it was not a big deal. Exercising has always been a part of his life for so long, that he never thought about changing his routine. I know through experience that some individuals have to modify their routines in order to avoid injury.

Till one day about a year and a half ago my friend injured his right shoulder. I told him to ice it and go see a doctor to see what the problem was. The doctor told my friend it's the rotator cuff. Now that was a shock to me considering it happened quickly and without any warning. So he started rehabilitation on the shoulder three times a week and also had some ultrasound done. It was not a tear but some inflammation in the tendon area. Doctors called it tendonitis.

Doctor says it happens as we get older, tendons, ligament, and joints become inflamed. Most people have to start to change their routines. Start to think about exercising differently. So how much different? I will show you.

Most people can still exercise after an injury. Inflammation usually subsides with antibiotics or rest. Severe cases rehabilitation or surgery. Lucky for my friend he got better through rehab, (shoulder).

Depending on the injury, your doctor will give you the best advice on how to get better. Once you are feeling better and it's time to start your routine again. Changes are probably going to be needed.

Your body needs to be warmed up before exercising any particular body-part. I like to start my workouts by stretching my body to loosen it up. I also recommend walking on the treadmill for ten to fifteen minutes before working out. This helps getting the body ready for resistance training.

There are many other ways to warm up your muscles and prevent injury to yourself. One way is to start by exercising the body-part with very light weight for one to two sets. Then add more weight to increase your strength. Make your very last set the heaviest and always use strict form. If the weight starts to hurt your body stop at once.

Another way is to lift light weight and add more repetitions, about twelve to fifteen reps. Going lighter is not going to hurt you if you are looking for muscle growth. Actually you may like going lighter, you get a great burn and your body may recuperate quicker.

Rest is also important. Sometimes you just need an extra day of rest as we get older. People over forty sometimes need extra rest if they experience problems with inflammation. Most of the time an extra day is all you need to stay strong and stay on your fitness routine.

I hope in no way have I made forty years old sound very old in this article. Some people who are forty plus never experienced these problems and still workout like they were in their twenties. My intentions are to help the ones that are having problems with their routines because of age factors. I always would love to see people of all ages workout together. It just happens that as we age it's important to modify the workouts so injuries don't happen.