Staying fit in her 70s
This septuagenarian proves that it is never too late to start going to the gym as she only started doing so in her 60s!
IT pays to stay physically fit, and it is never too late to start – just ask Nisha Mohd Ibrahim.
She was 66 when she first joined a gym, and it happened by chance.
Prior to the movement control order (MCO), she would make a trip from Penang where she lives, to Kuala Lumpur, once every one to two months, as her three daughters and a granddaughter live there.
“I was walking down from the LRT station in Petaling Jaya (Selangor) and a group of people were giving out flyers for a one-week free trial at a gym.
“Since I had a week left in KL, I thought I’d give it a try.
“Prior to that, I had never entered a gym before!
“I tried a couple of classes such as Pilates, yoga, RPM (an indoor cycling workout) and liked it, so I signed up at the branch in Penang.
“That was a decade ago,” says the 76-yearold.
Older people at fitness centres are not exactly a dime a dozen, so the septuagenarian – also being a woman – naturally draws plenty of attention when she is working out.
“At the gym, nobody my age attends Body Pump (a resistance workout using a barbell and light weights) classes.
“I’m always standing in front of the instructor, while the rest of the members will stand behind.
“I’m not worried about what other people are saying because I’m in class to exercise,” she shares.
Slowly, she learnt how to use gym equipment and do body weight exercises such as planks, push–ups and squats, among others.
Last year, she even emerged as the planking champion in a mini challenge organised by the gym – she managed to hold the position for an impressive five minutes!
The person who came in second was 30 years younger and called it quits a few seconds before Nisha.
“It was all in the name of fun!
“Who would’ve imagined I’d be taking part in challenges at this age?” she says, smiling.
HOME workouts have become popular again as people stay at home during the Covid-19 pandemic.
You can hop on a bike, perform some yoga, jump rope or follow fitness trainers who lead workouts online.
“People have been trying to find normalcy,” says Jennifer Noiles, Exos performance director at Mayo Clinic Orthopedic and Sports Medicine in Rochester, Minnesota, United States.
“During times of stress, structure is key. Give back to yourself through movement, nourishment and exercise.”
Noiles encourages you to take a thoughtful, progressive approach to exercise so that your sessions don’t just become a string of random workouts.
Success needs a road map, she says.
She offers these tips for keeping the progress and momentum in your workouts:
For example, if the kids are up at 6.30am each morning, get in a 30-minute workout before they’re up.
If your work team has a daily conference call at noon, set some goals that you want to accomplish right before, during or after that call.
Perhaps you can aim to finish your glass of water by the time the meeting is over.
Not everyone has a separate room to dedicate to a home gym.
Consider creating a space in the living room, your bedroom or at the porch.
You may be new to exercise. Or you may be coming back after recovering from injury. Or you may be an elite athlete.
Choose workouts suited to your situation.
This will help take the guesswork out of your fitness and wellness programme.
Many gyms and fitness instructors now have exercise videos online (Editor’s note: The Star Media Group’s various Facebook pages, including The Star, also hosts a workout session by professionals every Thursday at 6pm and Saturday at 10am).
Before the pandemic, you might have judged yourself by how much weight you lifted or how many metres you rowed.
Now your goal could be creating new fitness habits in this new environment.
“To create a habit that you’ll be successful at, it needs to be easy, obvious and something you’ll enjoy,” Noiles says. — Mayo Clinic News Network/Tribune News Service