As you get older, your bone and muscle density decrease, and these bodily changes can present new challenges in performing everyday movements that may once have felt mindless—like going down a set of stairs or standing up from the couch. "You can't do everything at the same capacity that you used to, and the longer you don't use muscles, the more they shut down," says Will Torres, trainer and founder of New York City-based movement studio Willspace, previously told Well+Good. Because of this, functional training—which focuses on building the strength and mobility you need to continue to do those everyday movements comfortably—is key.
- Anthony Crouchelli, CPT, a fitness trainer, certified personal trainer, and the director of talent at Liteboxer
"Crossing into your sixties is a more crucial time than ever to focus on functional strength training and mobility in your workouts, as they are the primary types of movement incorporated into your daily routine," says Crouchelli. "Moving towards a different style program of combining functional strength with mobility would be a perfect balance of staying strong and centered all at once." He explains that functional strength training helps build the fundamentals you need to perform push, pull, hinge, and core movements on an everyday basis, while mobility helps to maximize your range of motion in performing these movements.
With that in mind, instead of going all-in on HIIT workouts or multi-mile runs, Crouchelli suggests stacking your routine with a solid balance of strength training and mobility workouts (like yoga and Pilates) three to five times throughout the week. No matter what type of workout you're doing, be sure to listen to your body and modify the moves as needed to stay moving with ease for a lifetime.
Need some help getting started? This workout combines strength and mobility training into an easy-to-follow, 25-minute session.
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