No sport? So you still stay fit!
Not the latest tip, but: climbing stairs works
Endless jogging laps, lifting weights in the gym – all well and good! But sports scientists say, “Those who exercise regularly in everyday life stay in shape.”
It seems that nature has made a stupid mishap. Because from 45, the body needs more exercise to stay fit. Unfortunately, in return, we lose muscle strength and bone mass and run out of breath even faster. So off to the gym or jogging in the park? Not a bad idea in itself.
But not absolutely necessary – provided we exercise regularly during the day.
The crux of the matter, says Dr. Birgit Sperlich, a sports scientist, is that we have developed into a “push-button society”: “Computers and other technical achievements have rationalized many activities away. It may be comfortable, but it is a catastrophe for our bodies.
”Because he wants to walk, run, do something and do something throughout the day – then he will stay healthy all by himself. “It is important that you consider all the pillars of fitness – endurance, strength, flexibility, and coordination,” says the expert.
Here are a few examples to suggest:
- Do a lot of shopping! “The easiest way to get in good shape without endurance training is to do as much as possible on foot or by bike,” says Birgit Sperlich. “According to a WHO study, 50 percent of all car journeys are shorter than five kilometers.
Part of it can certainly be replaced by leaving the car behind for small errands. ”If there is no other way, it is a step in the right direction if you at least don’t park right in front of the shop door.
And anyone who uses public transport can get off one or two stops earlier.
Also effective: an extensive shopping spree instead of online shopping. Or visit colleagues in the office instead of writing emails. It all adds up, and you reach the goal recommended by doctors, namely to take 10,000 steps a day,
- Admittedly, climbing stairs is not the latest tip. But: one of the most effective and particularly easy to implement.
The best thing to do is to put the elevator and escalator out of your life and take the stairs whenever possible. To really train endurance, you should run up the stairs quickly and without interruption. What if your office is on the eighth floor?
Then gradually increase from floor to floor. Or take the elevator for a while and then walk.
- Climbing stairs again: You can’t avoid it: stairs are also recommended to prevent muscle loss and to stay in shape. However, the most effective way to do this is to take two steps at once and always tense the abdomen, legs, and buttocks muscles!
- Don’t be afraid of loads
However, it is important to lift the object correctly and to be able to assess your own strength – then the back will not be strained.
An example: Grab half a water tank with both hands. Bend your knees and only then lift the load.
The back remains straight. The elbows are bent. When weaning, it is the other way around.
You can also carry shopping bags with slightly bent elbows – and strengthen your upper arms at the same time.
- By the way: You can also incorporate small exercises into your everyday life: Do push-ups in the kitchen or in the office. This means light, upright push-ups on the worktop, desk, or on the banister. This strengthens arms, shoulders, and upper back.
- Stretching on the door frame: If you sit a lot, you should always get up in between, walk around, and stretch so that the musculoskeletal system remains flexible.
Birgit Sperlich recommends the following exercise: Stand in the door frame, hold on with your arms on the right and left. Then take a step forward. This opens the chest muscles.
Then stretch yourself up: with your chest pressed out and tense abdominal muscles, stretch the entire front of the upper body.
To relax the entire back, the following extra comfort helps for in-between: Let your arms hang down, bend forward, and swing your body to let.
- Fit in front of the TV: It’s easy to do something for your shoulder joints in front of the TV:
- Sit on the edge of the couch.
- Keep your back straight and circle your arms for a minute: forward 30 seconds, backward 30 seconds.
- Then you strengthen your core: Hold your arms over your head while sitting or standing, and cross your hands.
- Then bend three times to the left, right, front, and back.
- Stand on one leg: “If you have good coordination, you do something for your sense of balance, you can better control movement sequences and prevent falls,” says Birgit Sperlich. Balance on the curb or parquet line.
Brush your teeth on one leg, first on the right, then on the left. Ideally, briefly with your eyes closed.
Another great exercise for eye-hand-arm coordination is: circle your arm from the shoulder joint and balance a cup on your palm – so that it does not fall off, of course.
Here too – change sides three times.
- Make use of waiting times: If you stand on the balls of your feet in a queue or bounce up and down, you strengthen the calf muscles and ankles. Play with small children.
This also trains flexibility. Because crawling on the floor or assembling toys is great coordination training.