My partner, 66, has a pretty simple list of reasons.
To live long, without dementia, able to walk, talk and fuck.
He is doing Les Mills classes and spinning.
ETA
and everything
@51arledge said.
This ^^^
Your fitness needs are NOT necessarily the same as your fitness goals, especially as we age.
And it's important to recognize this and ACCEPT this as a fact, a necessary evil if you will, of the aging process.
I'm now 70, and I had never been in a gym (nor played any sport) until I hit 50. I had always been fit and trim due to my work as a carpenter/contractor, but at 50 I began to work as a project manager and I stopped doing so much lifting, climbing, etc. I started developing a belly AND my blood pressure went up. I was referred to a cardiologist who told me I should figure out what to do in a gym.
I determined that I hated cardio with a passion, but I enjoyed yoga and weight lifting. I quickly lost the extra pounds of belly fat and began to build muscle and endurance. My weight in my mid-40s was still around 160 (at 6'-2"), but at age 50 was 175. I brought it back to 160 and have now added 35 pounds of muscle. I have been a steady 195 for over ten years.
My goal with yoga was to work on balance (since many deaths in older people result from falls) and flexibility. I have rather severe arthritis (diagnosed at age 25) particularly in my hands, spine and knees, but I find that if I maintain my yoga practice, the arthritis pain is usually manageable.
I still lift weights 3 times per week minimum, and I keep a fairly fast pace (no chatting on my phone or posting to Instagram!) and that keeps my heart rate fairly elevated for the duration of the workout.
We recently got a puppy so I'm getting lots of walking these days plus a 100 yard uphill sprint every morning as part of his walk.
In many ways, I now feel better than I felt at 50!
This as well ^^^
I have a similar fitness history; skinny as all get out. But not necessarily healthy.
My lower back, which will never be perfect, feels better today than it did when I was diagnosed with degenerative disc disease at 39 years old.
After extensive physical therapy, it was recommended that I look into starting a serious weightlifting program to see if that might alleviate the need for recommended lower back surgery.
I picked up my first weight at 42. AFTER meeting with a certified personal trainer and discussing my issues, he designed a program to strengthen other body parts that would help take the stress off my lower back.
It worked. The initial focus was on my lower body and my abs. And after a few weeks, my back felt better than it had from all the physical therapy. So good that I really got into the bodybuilding aspect of my training. Always mindful of my lower back. And I packed on a lot of muscle. Which was quite a change from being so skinny up until then. In addition to feeling better physically, I felt better about myself mentally and emotionally. I had done something that I needed to do, and while it was a lot of hard work, it paid off in improved health and well-being.
Now 26 years later, my training regimen has changed. I still lift 3 days a week and I have a spin bike for Cardio. I am with the same personal trainer I started with! We now work a lot on balance and core. With the goal of keeping me mobile and as agile as possible as I continue to age.
I also lift as heavy as I can. Still have a lot of my muscle. I try and eat well and make sure I stay hydrated and get sufficient sleep. All of that goes hand-in-hand for optimum fitness. And keeping me on my feet as I continue to age.
