Older adults may find it difficult to achieve a physical fitness goal, but the President’s Challenge offers a way for seniors to begin to get more active, the ability to record exercise and apply for an award, and it gives seniors an added goal of another fitness level to achieve once the program is completed.
How Much Exercise Should Seniors Get to Stay Healthy
The President’s Challenge is a six-week program that encourages a fitness goal of moderate exercise at least 30 minutes per day on at least five days per week, which is an exercise recommendation endorsed by several groups, including, but not limited to:
- President’s Council for Physical Fitness and Sports
- American Heart Association
- American College of Sports Medicine
- American Diabetes Association
Those who wish to use a pedometer may record steps with a recommended goal of 8,500 steps per day. According the the President’s Challenge web site, sedentary adults on average may walk approximately 5,000 steps per day, so this walking goal adds enough to be similar to the goal of 30 minutes per day goal above.
How Can an Older Adult Keep Track of an Exercise Routine
An activity log form can be completed online or printed and completed and mailed to the President’s Challenge Program. Participants may log exercises in increments as short as five minutes at a time. The form gives participants the ability to keep track of activities that can be simple and part of a normal routine, such as cleaning the house, mowing the yard, or going for a walk. Exercises may also be more formal, such as taking a group exercise class like yoga or aerobics, dancing, or coaching an athletic team. Participants may also include the number of steps recorded via a pedometer.
The President’s Challenge program realizes that some people may have circumstances that prevent completing the six-week program in exactly six weeks, so participants have eight weeks to complete the six-week goal. Those completing online forms may go back as far as 14 days to log activity and online points can be accumulated to count toward additional awards.
