(Editor's note: This podcast is from The Not Old – Better Show.)
Paul Vogelzang recently gave electric muscle stimulation a try. As part of our Fitness Friday series, today's interview is with Connie Ruiz, founder and executive director of Personal20, an electric muscle stimulation company based here in Northern Virginia.
Electric muscle stimulation, also known as EMS, is just what it sounds like: using electricity to stimulate muscles to contract. With EMS, over 36,000 muscle contractions occur, targeting deep muscle fibers. This happens as you do an exercise workout program with a skilled personal trainer who is approved to work with this new wearable technology.
The "you" in the last sentence is actually "me," as I recently gave EMS a try. I went to the Personal20 facility in Herndon, Va., put on the electrodes and spent 20 minutes exercising, all coordinated by Ruiz.
During today's show, Ruiz and others I spoke to during my visit tell us how and why EMS works and why it can be especially helpful and effective for older adults and people with physical limitations.


LISTEN: How Electricity Can Boost Your Fitness Routine

Paul Vogelzang

(Editor's note: This podcast is from The Not Old – Better Show.)
In today's Fitness Friday podcast, we hear from Sabrena Jo, the director of science and research content for the American Council on Exercise, about post-workout recovery.
Usually, when we talk about fitness with Jo on The Not Old Better Show, we talk a lot about activity, but not a lot about recovery from activity. As Jo reminds us, as we get older we tend to spend less time in physical activity than when we were younger and even less time recovering from the limited activity we do do.
The time it takes our bodies to recover from exercise depends on many biochemical, hormonal and physiological processes that can affect the repair and remodeling of protein in muscles and connective tissue. It's quite complex.
Research on age-related muscle recovery has produced inconsistent results.
Some studies have found that in older ("masters") athletes, muscles recover more slowly than in their younger counterparts, while other studies have found similar recovery rates between older and younger athletes. It may depend, in part, on the type of exercise. Older athletes tend to recover better from intense cycling, for example, than from running, which leads to greater muscle damage.
Jo provides us with sound advice on the best ways to help our bodies recover well from exercise. For example, to give muscles a day off to recover between workouts, you could do a lower-body workout one day and an upper-body workout the next day. Another option is to alternate days of strength training with days of cardio workouts.


LISTEN: Why Muscle Recovery Time Is Important for Fitness

(Editor's note: This podcast is from The Not Old – Better Show.)
Yoga educator, Leslie Kaminoff, prepares to lead a breath-centered practiceToday's show is another great one in our Fitness Friday series. We hear from returning guest, Sabrena Jo, director of science and research content for the American Council on Exercise (ACE), a nonprofit that sets fitness industry standards and provides certification for exercise professionals and health coaches.
Jo tells us about some fascinating research that suggests yoga is as good as it gets when it comes to getting great exercise, stretching, fitness, strengthening and improving our functional ability significantly.
The experts and the research show that when you do yoga poses, you're putting your body in positions and orientations that you ultimately have to support with your muscles. So, you're lifting weight, although you're not using weight machines, deadlifts or dumbbells, but getting the same results.


There's More to Yoga Than Flexibility

(Editor's note: This podcast is from The Not Old – Better show.)
Today's show is part of our Fitness Friday series. We hear from returning guest, Sabrena Jo, a favorite with our Not Old – Better audience. She is the director of science and research content for the American Council on Exercise (ACE), a nonprofit that sets fitness industry standards and provides certification for exercise professionals and health coaches.
ACE also works with policymakers, fitness industry leaders and community organizations to promote exercise as a way to stay healthy and prevent inactivity-related diseases.
Sabrena Jo shares important information about the latest government guidelines on exercise. They reflect a broader definition of what it means to be active. It isn't only about vigorous exercise like jogging and weight-lifting, but also less-strenuous activity, such as taking the stairs instead of the elevator, bird-watching and parking the car farther away from your destination so you walk more. Every movement counts.


Every Movement Counts, So Just Get Active

(Editor's Note: This podcast is from The Not Old – Better show. )
This "Fitness Friday" edition of The Not Old — Better Show features returning guest Sabrena Jo, the director of science and research content for the American Council on Exercise (ACE) and a returning exercise expert.
In this episode, she shares new research from ACE about what it takes to stay active during your day and combat the sedentary lifestyle. Listen to the podcast here:


Exercise Tips on How to Combat the Sedentary Life

(Editor's note: This podcast is from The Not Old – Better Show.)
In today's Fitness Friday show, we hear from returning guest, Sabrena Jo, director of science and research content for the American Council on Exercise (ACE). Jo talks about great ways to get kids and grandparents exercising together and having fun at the same time. She will talk about a few exercises you can do on your own and with the younger generation.
Spending time with your grandchildren while getting exercise is a great way to counteract our tendency to be less active as we get older. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, less than half of U.S. adults exercise enough to meet health guidelines, and even fewer older adults tend to do so.
While getting older is a predictor of reduced physical activity, children today also tend to get less physical activity than they did in previous generations — to the detriment of their health and physical development. So, why not set a great example for your grandchildren and have fun at the same time?


The Benefits and Fun of Exercising With Your Grandchildren

(Editor's note: This podcast is from The Not Old – Better Show.)
As part of our Inside Science and Technology interview series, today's show is an interview with Dr. Pradeep Reddy, a research scientist at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies.
As we all know in the Not Old Better Show audience, aging is a leading risk factor for a number of debilitating conditions, including heart disease, cancer and Alzheimer's disease, to name a few. This makes the need for anti-aging therapies all the more urgent. Now, Salk Institute researchers have developed a new gene therapy that is showing promise as a possible way to decelerate the aging process in humans. It uses CRISPR genome-editing technology.
Reddy is a research scientist with a focus on aging, genetics, stem cells and biochemistry. The Salk Institute prioritizes scientific research for cancer, Alzheimer's disease, aging and other areas of science, and is considered one of the top five research centers in the world.


New Gene Therapy Could Slow Aging in Humans

(Editor's note: This podcast is from The Not Old – Better show.)
Today's podcast is part of our Fitness Friday series. We've got an important story about the value of Tai Chi, which has a profound effect on the brain, balance, well-being and blood pressure. Tai Chi can help older adults gain balance and strength which helps prevent falls and injuries. I spoke with Dr. Lewis Lipsitz, Harvard Medical School professor and researcher on aging.
Check out some local Tai Chi classes and enjoy the many benefits that come from this gentle physical exercise, stretching and mindfulness.
I want to thank Science Daily Senior Fitness News, Harvard Medical School and all those who have participated in bringing this show to you.
 


Practicing Tai Chi Can Help Prevent Falls

(Editor's note: This podcast is from The Not Old – Better show. )
Today's show is part of our Fitness Friday series, and it's another great one in our Fitness Friday series. We'll be hearing from returning guest, Sabrena Jo, who'll join us in just a minute.  Sabrena Jo is a favorite with our Not Old Better Audience and is the American Council on Exercise, Director of Science and Research Content. Sabrena Jo will be here to share new research about one of my favorite topics, the Brain, cognitive functioning, and balance supported by exercise.

And, we've got some excellent Fitness Friday News, from the University of Southern California, about when it comes to measuring your fitness, no one gets it right.  We'll answer the question, why it's not your fitness tracker, it's you.

Listen to the podcast here:



What Is the Effect of Exercise on the Brain?

(Editor's note: This podcast is from The Not Old – Better show. )
Today's show is part of our Fitness Friday Go4Life Month celebration series, and another of our Fitness Friday programs. We include an important story about a program from the National Institute on Aging, one of the 27 institutes and Centers at the National Institutes of Health.
Do you want to learn easy ways to increase your activity level in everyday life? The National Institute on Aging, part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), is launching its annual Go4Life Month in September 2018. This year's theme is "Get Ready! Get Moving! Go4Life!" The program offers free resources to help older adults work out a bit more, push themselves a little harder and try all types of exercise, and director, Stephanie Dailey is on the podcast to discuss Go4Life with us.
Listen to the podcast here:
 
For more information on Go4Life:  https://go4life.nia.nih.gov


Easy Ways to Increase Your Activity Level in Everyday Life

In the last 10 years, Americans aged 60 and older have amassed debts quicker than all other age groups, partly because too few saved enough to retire comfortably. This series seeks to raise awareness about common debt traps and how to escape them

For some, leaving the workforce proves to be unfulfilling or not financially sustainable. We’ll feature stories about people who ‘unretire,’ including those who start a new business.

Making the choice to grow older at home requires careful consideration and planning to ensure you or your loved one can live safely, independently and comfortably for as long as possible.

Debt Free

The Great Unretirement

A New Age for Aging in Place