PowerLiving with Kimberlee Langford
PowerLiving with Kimberlee Langford
Living Vibrantly at Any Age: Why Movement Matters More Than You Think
Hey, hey, friends, it's Kimberly here. I'm so glad that you joined us today as we talk about purposeful movement. There are so many benefits to exercise and I know you've probably heard them all before, but today I just really wanted you to just kind of have an open mindset. If you're already exercising on a daily basis, pat yourself on the back. Hopefully you're going to learn a little bit about some of the benefits that you are providing for yourself. And if you're like many folks, I find that folks who don't exercise usually do so for one of two reasons or both. One is yeah, I know I need to exercise, but I hurt. If you've got back pain, knee pain, hip pain, it hurts when you walk, my feet hurt whatever that you know. That can really get in the way of being able to move and to exercise and I totally get that.
Speaker 1:Other folks much like myself, uh, years ago, uh, I found myself in a place where I wanted to exercise but I was so busy and you know, for a lot of folks I think a lot of us in the US are in that position. You know what the heck you know you don't understand. I start my day at you know early and I hoof it all day and at the end of the day, I get home and where am I supposed to find this time Right? So it's not. That's not an uncommon obstacle. So for today, I just wanted to share some quick hacks, just some things that you can think about as you contemplate embarking on a habit of some kind of daily activity. Now, the American Heart Association and, uh, you know, the American Diabetes Association we all recommend 150 minutes a week of some kind of physical activity. Right, so it's about 30 minutes a day. Um, and for some of us, starting off with a 30 minute a day is just really challenging. Either it hurts or I just don't have 30 minutes a day.
Speaker 1:Now I've known other people who think, yeah, it sounds good, but you know, I need to get some. And, matter of fact, I heard this same story once from a coach I used to work with. He said you know he was describing this this client of his who said, yeah, I'm going to start exercising, but you know, I got to go get my, my jogging shoes, my right aerobic shoes. You know you got to have, you know, specific shoes to do your activity. And then I got to go get the right workout gear and I got to go check out the gym and then of course they want you to tour and see the lockers and you know I just got to have this bulk of time to set this all up, right? He said, you know he stopped her. And he said, you know you don't need any of that stuff, you just need somebody behind you to yell, move.
Speaker 1:And I have felt like that before. It was overwhelming, uh, that, once upon a time. But I got to tell you really and truly in my career, the people who I see, who have hard lives in their older years and who are more dependent, these are folks who don't. They don't exercise, folks who live well and remain independent and vital and vibrant and happy and independent. I promise you 100% of those folks they exercise. And so, if you want, what other people have figuring out what they're doing, that you're not. That's the secret thing. And when I have worked in my career, you know I've worked with a lot of really older people in their late nineties who, matter of fact, I got it.
Speaker 1:I'll just share a few stories about some of the benefits. I had a gal live behind me one time. She was 90. I think she was 94, 95 and vibrant, beautiful, go to see her. She'd always put on her wig and, uh, I gotta tell you she was an active pilot wicked sexy, how do you like that Active pilot? And she just cut back from doing triathlons, triathlons and just doing a marathon. And I'm like, shut up, I couldn't do a marathon, a triathlon, get out of town and she, she, just she, was independent. She lived life on her terms. She would. She used to fly in to pick up her grandkids at school for lunch, wicked, cool, right.
Speaker 1:I had another gal I went to go see one time. She was 92 when I went to go see her because she'd fallen and fractured a hip. Now, 92 year old ladies with fractured hips do not stay home. They end up in a nursing home because they can't get up, they can't get on and off the toilet, they can't get themselves into bed and then they die of pneumonia, right. And so I went in to this visit. I was doing home health nursing at the time and I thought for sure, um, I was going to end up having to call 911 for her. It just wasn't going to be good. I've been in that situation before and it's it's really difficult. Well, I walked in to see her and, I kid you not, she could have taken me. She looked amazing, she was up and around. I know she had some pain, but she was up and around and I tell you she healed faster than most 30-year-olds that I had worked with before. And her secret she was a yoga mama. In fact, she told me she had just quit doing inverted poses on her paddleboard the year before. Wow, right, that's when I became a yogi as well, because that really impressed me.
Speaker 1:I've worked with a lot of people who do any kind of activity Walking. I had another 96-year-old friend who lived across the street from me and she walked everywhere. We lived in a small town in North Idaho. She walked everywhere in all kinds of weather and she was amazing and she lived independent, independently until she she died of old age, which is a great way to go.
Speaker 1:So I'm just going to encourage you as you think about you know, most of us when we think about exercise, we know we need to, we know we should. I'm going to encourage you to stop shooting on yourself, right, but we want to, most of us, it's just. We're just not quite. We don't. We don't really have tangible enough reasons, compelling reasons. If you will, that will be the gas, the fuel for us to push through and develop the habit. So I want you to think about if you were to consider exercising if you're not now and you were to consider exercising, why would you? Why would it be important for you? And just think about for a minute, think about what are some reasons why you think you should or why you want to exercise.
Speaker 1:For me personally, I really, truly I'm getting older. As I come into my 60s. I want to be able to be independent when I get older and if I can be 120 and find my own car keys and I recognize my kids and my grandkids and I can come and go as I please and dress myself and do all that stuff, I'm all for it. Right, and that sounds like a far off, but it's not right. Tomorrow's going to come. You know. As soon as tomorrow comes, it's going to be here.
Speaker 1:So think about your reasons. I also like to feel good. When we're heavy, when we're a little on. The heavy side puts a lot of strain and pressure on joints, particularly the knees, the hips, the back, and when you have pain in these areas, life is just hard. So there's a lot of reasons why. Think about your reasons and I'm going to encourage you to write them down and these whys, these reasons, are going to be the fuel for you that, on days when you don't feel like you want to exercise, this is why you're this is. This is the fuel that you're going to tap into to help you continue that habit. Now, keep in mind it takes about three weeks to start to develop a habit and I promise you, if exercise is something that you do want to develop a habit of and I highly encourage you to do so, particularly for your kidney health, if you have diabetes and you want to put it in remission hard to do that without exercise. If you want to grow older and feel well and be independent, it really is a must. But what I'll tell you is is that developing that habit where it's no longer difficult to do is a game changer for you, and these next three weeks are going to be really important.
Speaker 1:Now we know CDC recommends every medical body recommends 150 minutes of moderate intensity, some kind of physical activity a week, adding in a couple days of strength training. This is really important as part of the guidelines for physical activity for Americans and well backed by science. So, but for some of us, this is like a big step. If you're not exercising at all, you know you might not start off with 30 minutes, particularly if you have knee, hip, back, foot pain, right? So what I'm going to encourage you to do, especially as we start talking about carving out a habit, is to first create a space for it.
Speaker 1:Right, you don't have to be perfect. All we want to do is carve out a space for this habit to take root, and I'm going to encourage you to plan it into your schedule and just start with no less than 12 minutes 12 to 15 minutes. Now, that being said, I've known folks who've had to start with five minutes because it was 12 minutes was too much. Certainly, this is something that you can work with with your nurse coach. Definitely, talk it through with your doctor, your healthcare provider, to make sure that you're mapping out a safe plan as you begin your new habit of physical activity.
Speaker 1:But the first step really truly is to carve out a space for that to happen, and don't judge yourself too harshly. You don't have to be perfect right now. Today, from what I hear, we have an eternity to become perfect. Right, an eternity is a forever amount of time. So let's just start easy 12 to 15 minutes, and you might start off with just setting a goal. I'm going to do that three days a week and get in a habit Now I'll be the first to tie. I think things are easier when we develop a daily habit of exercise than every other day. So, however, however, you need to start. If you feel like I need to start three days a week, then certainly do that, but it's going to be a whole lot easier when it's every day, whether you feel like it or not, just some kind of purposeful movement, whether it's going for a walk, walking in place.
Speaker 1:I don't know how you pronounce her last name Leslie Sansoni. That's how I pronounce it S-A-N-S-O-N-E. She has some free walking videos on YouTube. She also has some kind of a paid platform. I have her videos on Amazon Prime. I love her program because it's just simple. It's just walking in place. It's fantastic.
Speaker 1:Now, for those of you who have knee, back, hip pain, you might try walking in a pool. A pool takes the weight off of your joints and can help you just get some movement going. You might talk with your provider. Sometimes you can have a prescription written for water exercise and if you have issues, particularly with your spine, with pain, or if you have issues particularly with your spine with pain, or if you have heart issues, I highly recommend some, some guidance, not only with your health care provider, but maybe asking for a physical therapy referral so that you're you're sure that you have a safe plan and you have somebody watching out for you to make sure you're not going to get hurt as you develop this habit. Water exercise can be a great way to help, especially, you know, if it's a lot on your joints to get moving. That being said, some forms of activity are highly effective. You can do even on your bed.
Speaker 1:I encourage you to look up some information on Pilates I shared in another program about Joseph Pilates. So he was a prisoner of war in Nazi Germany and you know, around him his fellow prisoners were emaciated, they were wasting away under the hardships and he was vibrant and he was healthy and they couldn't figure out why it was this form of exercise that he did that we now know as Pilates. Matter of fact, they had him train their guards in Pilates. I couldn't have done that for sure, but anyway, his story is highly inspirational and a lot of Pilates exercises you can do, laying down. So even if you're like, hey, I, I can't even stand some kind of movement, any kind of movement is better than none. What happens to the tin can man when he doesn't move? Right, he just he gets stuck and it hurts. Right, you get creaky, right. So so some, there's so many benefits to exercise. We get a little juice in the joints. So for arthritis, we know that movement helps with arthritis. Cholesterol movement helps.
Speaker 1:When you think about the role of exercise with cholesterol management, I think about exercise as a lot like running hot water, right? If I came over to your house every morning and poured bacon grease down your kitchen sink, well, first of all, you're not going to let me come over for breakfast anymore, right? But probably the first thing you're going to do is flip on the hot water, right, because it moves that stuff through, melts it off and moves it through. Exercise is a lot like that. When it comes to cholesterol, right, high fiber is important to help manage healthy cholesterol levels. High fiber you have two kinds of fibers. I'm divulging a little bit, but it's pertinent. Two kinds of fibers insoluble fibers, the kind of fiber, the fiber like ribs on a celery stick and that kind of fiber kind of goes through like a roto-rooter through your colon Fantastic for bowel health and regularity and moving toxins through the colon. Other fibers, soluble fibers. These are found in like vegetable skins and your whole grains, and this kind of works like a Roto-Rooter, like scrubbing the inside of your blood vessels Super fantastic. So, when it comes to cholesterol, this is why high fiber and exercise are some of the key foundational principles to helping you maintain healthy cholesterol levels, keeping that stuff moving through.
Speaker 1:Same thing we know people, even on dialysis, do better when they're moving. Right that it helps to have circulation. We need circulation super important. So exercise helps to circulate things through for good energy flow, for blood flow, for vitality. Our skin looks better when we exercise, don't you love that? You go for a run or a brisk walk and your face is nicely has a nice little healthy glow. It's fantastic. So there's a lot of benefits to exercise. So we're aiming for 150 minutes, right, but we're going to start off with even just 12 to 15 minutes a day and all we're doing is we're beginning to carve out a space in our life to make room for some purposeful movement.
Speaker 1:I don't care what kind of movement it is at this point, I just want some movement, like I said, whether it's rebounding. You have a little trampoline that can be easier on the joints too and even just kind of bouncing and moving stuff around. That's helpful. A stationary bike is fantastic Anytime you can get outside and go for a walk. I've known matter of fact I've had worked with truck drivers who would get a little dog to take with them in the truck because the dog made him stop to let the dog out and they do laps around the truck Fantastic.
Speaker 1:So whatever that looks like for you it might mean a gym, but know that you don't have to pay for a gym. You can work out right in your living room. You don't need much space at all. Takes no space even just to stand where you are and just walk in place. Get some movement going right. Do some arm circles are and just walk in place. Get some movement going right. Do some arm circles. Think about every joint in your body and see if you can move every joint in your body right. Go through from hand to toe. Just start moving.
Speaker 1:One thing I can promise you is that as you start to carve out a space for this new habit of exercise. It will get easier. You're going to start to feel better with, with movement and pretty soon that 15 minutes is going to feel so good You're going to find yourself going for 20 and then 30. And then pretty soon you're going to be in this, this habit of exercise, much like today. You probably don't have to set an alarm to remind yourself to brush your teeth, right. You've been doing it forever. Morning and night you brush your teeth. If you don't, let's talk right. But you probably don't have to write it in your date book anymore. It's a habit. Most of us do those kinds of things without thinking. This is going to be the same kind of thing For those of you who work at a desk, like myself.
Speaker 1:We have a sedentary job. There's a lot of ways to shake that up. So you can. It doesn't take a whole lot. I have here a stationary desk that I can raise up and so I can type. I've also got a little strap, a board, to my treadmill. Have a treadmill desk, even just taking breaks, setting an alarm and doing just some sit to stand treadmill. Have a treadmill desk, even just taking breaks, setting an alarm and doing just some sit to stand exercises activating the big thigh muscles and the butt muscles, so we get some movement going again.
Speaker 1:Yoga, chair yoga where you're actually moving all these muscles, particularly in the upper back. We tend to stretch out the upper back when we work at our desk all day. Get some opposite movement going. There are fantastic videos on YouTube on chair yoga, desk yoga, even getting a ball. A ball is pretty inexpensive and I love the ball. You can sit at your desk and do some hip circles, you can do some bouncing and to get out activating the leg and the thigh muscles.
Speaker 1:Anytime you can change it up. If you're lucky enough to be able to work from home, just getting up and moving your computer to a new location can be not only incredibly refreshing, but that little change of exercise or a little change of scenery and movement you get holding your body in a different way. Make sure that you're getting up to take a break. I encourage folks to take at least two 10 minute breaks during their workday and then get outside around lunchtime, go for a short walk. Go for a short walk, do some running, jogging in place, whatever that looks like for you, but make sure that you're moving a little bit more and sitting a little bit less. So every day, ideally, we're going to get some purposeful movement in Now.
Speaker 1:Keep in mind, muscle strengthening or some kind of a resistance exercise is also important to incorporate, at least two to three times a week. This is especially important for those of us over the age of 35. Remember, we lose 7% of our muscle mass every year after the age of 35. So by the time you're in your mid 50s, 60s, it's a lot of muscle we've lost. So if you and I are actively working to build muscle, we're losing it at an alarming rate, and those muscles that we require to get on and off the toilet in our 90s aren't going to be there if we're not building them today. So this is really, really important.
Speaker 1:There's a lot of inexpensive ways that you can use muscle strengthening activities. I love the resistance bands. You can use muscle strengthening activities. I love the resistance bands and those of us who work at a desk you can get some bands. This is a really tight one, so this will make me look like a wimp, but I love these as well. I can put them around my knees and work out my thighs. I can work out my triceps, but I loved oh, this one's really tight. I had picked a bad one to show you, but they're relatively inexpensive. Doing some of these where you're really stretching out the upper back If you're sitting at a desk all day just feels amazing. Doing some of these opening stretches are incredible.
Speaker 1:Free weights are great, even your body weight. Your body weight is always there. You can utilize it, even at your desk. You could even get up and do some leaning. Go ahead and do some little push-ups movement. Or at your kitchen, when you take a break and you go to the break room to grab your lunch out of the fridge, do some of those on the wall or on a countertop or whatever and really get some of, especially if you're sitting at a desk. It's really important.
Speaker 1:If you have questions and you need some brainstorming ideas, you know how am I going to get this started. What would this look like for me? Make sure that you bring that up with your nurse coach. It's one of our favorite things to help folks with. And if it's been a while or, like I said, if you have issues with your spine, with your heart, make sure that you speak with your doctor. Ask for a PT referral, even one or two visits with a good physical therapist can make all the difference and help you or set you up for success. Let's see. Am I missing anything?
Speaker 1:I think we've also talked about, for those of you with diabetes, how significant especially resistance exercise, strength training, is right. It makes it makes ourselves more receptive to insulin, whether that's ours or through medication. I would say that in many cases, exercise can be as effective as a medication. For many folks it can be so, particularly if you have diabetes. Developing a habit of exercise is critical. So I would love to hear from you your nurse coach would love to hear from you what kinds of help do you think that you need to set up for yourself so that you can start this? Is it, you know, getting a referral for PT? Is it checking in with your physician? Is it maybe making a list of some activities that you want to try? Some folks I've known couples who've taken the dance class three nights a week is a fun way to move their body with their partner. There's so many fun ways that you can incorporate purposeful movement. This is movement that's going to help benefit you for a lifetime and beyond. We believe in you a squillion percent. We're here for you every day. You'll find some other materials here in this program that you can track your activity. I encourage people to put it in your date book when you first get started.
Speaker 1:Make a habit. You know some of you are going to find it easier to work out in the morning. For me myself, uh, I, when I developed this habit, I went to bed in my workout clothes so I could just roll out the door, roll out of the bed and just start start moving. Um, other folks I know will put their shoes by the uh, by the end of the bed and just start moving. Other folks I know will put their shoes by the end of the bed so that when they get out their feet hit the shoes and that's their cue that hey, I need to go for a walk.
Speaker 1:Other folks really prefer taking a break at lunchtime. I know my husband he'd much rather, you know, take that break at lunchtime and head to the gym and go for a quick swim and he feels refreshed and can get back to work and with a fresh mind and body. Other folks say, hey, you know what? The end of the day, that's my prime time. I work a really stressful job and it's really important for me to blow off some steam at the end of the day and then I can shower and I'm ready for bed relaxation Wherever that's going to look like for you. The key is to just carve out a space for it right now and let your nurse know, let your nurse coach know, that you're ready to start on this program, and we'll link arms with you, so to speak, and be your accountability partner and help you succeed in this goal that you set for yourself. We believe in you a squillion percent. Make it a great day. Bye, friends.