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Senior Exercise: Part III

By Frederick Corrigan

January 1, 2009: I find myself making the New Year’s Resolution: “I Will Walk 50 Miles A Month, For The Next Year”.

Let’s recap a little: If I walk one half hour per day at a brisk rate of 3.5 MPH, I will walk 50 miles per month.

The seven benefits* this program will give me include:
1. I’ll feel a lot more fit
2. I’ll save on annual medical bills
3. I could improve my cardiovascular health
4. I’ll help fight cancer
5. I will lose weight
6. I’ll accelerate my healing recovery
7. I’ll also battle degenerative disease
*details of each benefit are listed in senior exercise: Part II

When I finished 2008, I was walking 2 ½ miles per hour for 1 hour with a cool down at 2 miles per hour for 5 minutes.
I didn’t think that my 73 year old legs could step up to the 3 ½ miles/hour, so I started at 3 miles/hour, for 1 hour. I kept this speed throughout January and February. Sounds boring, but I kept the TV going.

I also measured the calories used at the end of February. For a 3 mile walk at 3 mph, I would use 220 calories per mile, with the treadmill on a 10% incline, without the incline, 103 calories per mile. So a 3 mile walk would burn 680 calories with the 5 minute cool down at 2 mph.
I decided that I would continue my exercise program using the 10% incline. I might as well burn as many calories as possible.

In mid March, I increased the speed to 3.2 mph. This produced some new figures of performance: one mile in 18.47 minutes, three miles in 56.34 minutes, 737 calories burned with the 5 minute cool down. In addition, it took 108 steps per minute to accomplish this pace.

April 1, 2009, I increase to 3.3 mph and this gave me 1 mile in 18.12 minutes, 3 miles in 54.35 minutes and 752 calories used. I continued to do this every day, because I was still losing a little weight and my breathing and knees were much better.

In mid April I decided to buy a watch that would monitor my heart rate. I purchased a “MIO” watch made by PHYSLCAL, which has many different functions. However, I use only 3 functions, The time, My heart beats per minute and the lighted watch face for checking the time at night. This is the only watch that I wear and it’s more valuable to me than a Rolex. (Cost $49.00)

The readings on the watch told me that as I started my treadmill exercise, my heart rate was 86 BPM and after walking one hour, on the treadmill, my heart rate was 107 BPM.

May 2009 brought another change to the senior exercise program. I started walking 30 minutes one day and 1 hour the next day. When I did the 30 minute program, I would do a series of back-bends, pushups and squats to start using more of muscles. I found that after a short time, my shoulders and knees were much more flexible and my heart rate was lower.

June 2009, I moved the speed up to 3.4 mph. This meant that I would walk a mile in 17.41 minutes, three miles in 53.05 minutes and burn 789 calories.

My heart rate during this exercise started at 80 BPM and increased to 116 BPM, which was improving my cardiovascular health.

The 3.4 mph walking speed was starting to improve my breathing and by the end of May, my idle time heart rate was 72 BPM. My treadmill heart rate would increase to 107 BPM. This was a very good range according to my doctor.

We’ve now come half way through 2009. We can walk and bike outdoors when it’s nice and continue with the treadmill and exercise inside when the weather is bad. We’ll spend time in the vegetable garden, flower gardens, painting outdoor scenes in pastels and enjoy. So we don’t forget, we’ll keep a solid handle on our diet and not pig out on ice cream. (A definite summer weakness).

The weight loss is not great, but the muscle toning, flexibility, breathing and general good feeling are wonderful.

What will the second half of 2009 bring?

Will the seven benefits continue?

Will we reach any or all of our goals?

Senior Exercise: Part IV is on the drawing board!

Contributor's Note

I have worked under my Doctor's advise as I have progressed through this program.

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Wow, Frederick, you are really on a roll. Good luck with the exercise program. I share your enthusiasm for ice cream. Sigh

Thank you for your comments, June.
A little ice cream as a treat once in a while is OK. Portion size is very important as is time of day.
Best wishes.
Frederick

I'm impressed with your persistence in exercising. I should follow your example. I need to exercise but just can't get myself going.

Thank you for your kind comments, Lian.
I hope that you get value from my intel, just start slow and be positive in your outlook to where you want to be,
Best of luck.
Frederick

A lot of it is all about willpower, and Frederick you seem to have it in bucketfulls. Nice Intel.

Thanks for the comments, Geoff.
Willpower is motivated by desire, which is a state of mind.
I need the bucketful of willpower to overcome the bucketful of fat around my belly.
Best to you.
Frederick

I love scientific and data-driven your approach is. If I hadn't read your previous intel which revealed insights to your life, I could have sworn you were formerly a researcher or scientist of some sort.

Keep up the awesome work, I'm looking forward to IV.

Thanks for your supportive comments, Brad.
I hope that my intels will benefit others and maybe even give them some joy in these trying times.
Best to you.
Frederick
.

Love the way you're tracking your progress, it's exactly what can keep you motivated.

Thank you for your comments, Christina.
I actually keep a paper on the treadmill,write down times or beats per minute, minutes and miles each day. I then transfer this information to an excel spreadsheet, which I print out and give to my Doctors.
Staying motivated is a big part of everything we do.
Best to you.
Frederick

Well done and good luck for the future. You have encouraged me to get out and walk too!

Thank you for your kind comments and happy walking, Peter.
Regards.
Frederick

I am getting fit by just READING your awesomely detailed intel Frederick. WELL DONE! Would you be offended if I refer/call you Fred from now on. 'Frederick' = slow, whereas 'FRED' is quick, energetic, lively, fit ... just like YOU!

Thank you for your comments, John. I've been known as Fred all my life and only took Frederick as it sounded more senior for a writer wanabie.
Frendships have been springing up all over the place with this format and I think that is great.
Best to you.
Fred

Another side benefit here is that you may very well keep a shoe salesman employed. Good job.

Thanks for your comments, Franklyn.
I'll probably be helping the treadmill service too,with parts and labor.
We don't always know who we help.
Best to you.
Frederick

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