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Senior Surfers stay fit |
| With fitness after 50 as a theme, who better to spotlight than Hawaii’s senior surfers who trailblazed the way for today’s professionals to earn hundreds of thousands of dollars. Two are in the International Surfing Hall of Fame; several are board shapers and teachers. One runs the most prestigious pro surfing event in the world. One is a state senator and one is a woman. |
Fit after 50 |
| Two East Honolulu women stay in shape by running, paddling, swimming and competing. |
Fitness advice for seniors |
| Being healthy as we age is more than just eating right. It’s exercising regularly and getting medical checkups. Local health and fitness professionals offer guidelines to living the good life after 50. |
DEPARTMENT:
Staying fit after 50
Fitness
after 50 is the theme for this issue. What better cover subject than
senior surfers who stay fit after 50 doing what they love?
We also spotlight two East Honolulu women who stay fit after 50 running marathons and triathlons, paddling and swimming. And, Pursuits spotlights the epitome of an active senior: Aunty Genoa Keawe who’s been entertaining Hawaii audiences for decades and shows no sign of slowing down at age 89.
We all know that health and fitness are important throughout life, but even more important as we get older and our bones get weaker. Eating healthy and exercise are two key ways to improve our quality of life in later years.
We offer a story on the 15 super foods identified by the American Dietetic Association, that when added to a diet improve overall health.
We include a list of exercise programs for seniors at various locales around the island. There’s something for everyone almost every day. There’s no excuse to stay sedentary.
I’m a prime example of someone who was basically non athletic (a sports fanatic but not a participant) and desk-bound most of my working life. I did some walking in California, but nothing regular. When I moved to Hawaii, I decided to get active by joining my husband in an exercise routine. He had joined a fitness center so I did, too. And, I knew I needed guidance, so I signed up for training sessions.
When my first trainer left the state, I switched to another, Lisa LeBlanc Harrington, who has been working with me for more than two years. She now does home training sessions and we meet once a week for 30 minutes. And, I try to do at least two other exercise sessions during the week, either walking or working out at the gym.
My balance and my upper body strength have both improved dramatically and I’ve added muscle tone. In addition, I was diagnosed with periosteoporosis and when I had a second body scan after two years, everything was back in the normal range except for my right hip.
I think the weight training and core strengthening exercises helped this turnaround. I also take calcium supplements along with a multivitamin and drink milk at least once a day.
I don’t think I would have survived my other job standing on my feet four to six hours a day three to four days a week for more than two years without these training sessions.
So, go out and do something active whether it’s walking around the block, climbing up Diamond Head, hiking Makapu’u, riding a bike, swimming, surfing or paddling. See how much better you feel and how much healthier you’ll be.
Aloha,
Dianne Glei