From "104-year-old cyclist named world’s greatest centenarian athlete", Helen Thomson refers to a research from Romuald Lepers about how age affects athletic performance. Lepers and his colleagues analysed the performance of Robert Marchant, oldest world's record-breakers cyclist, and other centenarian athletics. Their studies have shown that the performance can be maintain until around the age of 35 to 40 before decreasing by 10 to 15 percent per decade. However, it also depends on type of sports.
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My Yes/No question is:
Is anyone too old for sports?
My answer is:
No, no one is too old for anything.
Support
You think that you're getting too old for something, but actually that is only another excuses. No one is too old for anything. Most people let their fear stop them from what they want, they let it hold them back. They worried about something that's not happened yet. You just need a little more courage to start and then you will be surprised.
As well as learning, the research referred in the news supports the idea that it's never too late to start exercise. Doing exercise has many benefits for both physical health and mental health. Most people know that but why we don't do it as part of our routine? Well, I know the answer as a little voice of my laziness inside me screaming many reasons for that. We usually think that we will do exercise when we have time, but we will never have time for it unless we make it. For example, my mom always complaining about her back pain and joint pain. I told her that yoga might be a better way from only taking medicines. She said she was tired and had no time and too old, she just wanted to relax and do nothing after work. I do get that feeling after 2 months of internship and I'm really appreciate weekend since then. Anyway, I still manage to go to gym or go swimming at least 3 days a week. Besides from too old, have no time is another popular excuses.
However, for people more than 60 years old, they can start from doing little exercise or moderate aerobic for their good health. But for people below that age, every sports and exercises are just fine. Yoga is something very good for people with some health problems. In my opinion, if you don't want to do too much work out, yoga is a good choice and good start. I've joined the class for a month with others in both genders and in all age range. One old lady was doing far better than me and she's started doing yoga only three months. Although I think yoga is good, I don't like it very much. To do yoga, it requited concentration and balance which I find it's boring. Some sports are suitable for some people. We just need to find what makes we feel enjoyable, so that we can doing it continuously.
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Reference
Thomson, H. (2016, August 15). 104-year-old cyclist named world’s greatest centenarian athlete. New Scientist. Retrieved from https://www.newscientist.com/article/2100971-104-year-old-cyclist-named-worlds-greatest-centenarian-athlete/
It's a nice article here. I agree. No one is too old for their passions to unleash your inner self. Passion is what keeps us alive, regardless of age. The more you grow up, the extra courage you require to prove your ability. However, there are something that I come up with and want to add. I do believe that age is just a number which should hold you back to do what you really love, but in the meantime; your aging body is real and can never functions the same way as it did when you were young. Sports which require heavy physical contact such as football, basketball or rugby may not be a good idea for elder people. So I think you can still do anything you love as long as fits your health condition.
ReplyDeleteI like your responses both Bonus and Mieng. No one is too old to play sports. But other people and I always refuse to play sports by the common reason that they don't have time. I like swimming but I always lazy to practice. It's real that people who play sports which they are interested have a good health and also keep their long life. But some sports which are too heavy for elderly people, such as boxing or bicycling a long distance, aren't suitable for them. So young, adult, and elderly, should have a time for exercising because it always has a lot of benefits which make you have a good health and happiness.
ReplyDeleteI'm slightly disagree with you about elderly people shouldn't doing cycling. According to the article I have used as my source, this guy, at the age of 104, did 26.93 km cycling in 1 hour. That's a long distance in my opinion. But it might be an exception for him. What you said might be right, in term of general elder who haven't done any sport for a long time. It also depends on many factors as well. However, I think if ones want to do "heavy sports", it is possible with a proper practice and motivations. Human body is amazing.
DeleteThe fact that doing X has some benefit in the future has never worked very well to motivate me to do anything. I'm not very good at saving money. In fact, I'm bad at saving money. When I was a child, I gobbled up my lollies very quickly, and then had none while my more sensible sister still had some of hers left.
ReplyDeleteIf I do things, it usually has to interest me at the time, so to get some exercise, I try to enjoy it as I'm doing it. I use to work out in Lumpini Park at one of the free gyms there. That was fun: the other poeple varied from old men, some at least in their sixties, to young guys working in the bars around my home on Silom. The atmosphere was friendly. and it was a pleasure to go early in the morning. Well, maybe not a pleasure, but at least it was enjoyable once up and there. The other early risers made great use of the park in their varied ways, from sipping tea and gossiping, to singing, doing Taichi and so on. And from 5:00 AM to 7:00, it was pleasantly cool and fresh.
But then I got older and busier.
After I'd clicked "Publish" I was reminded of evolution, which also only works in the here and now. Nature cares nothing for the future, with every living species having evolved as a result of the conditions now, which produces the wonderfully strange animals, plants and bacteria that fill the world for us to wonder at and exploit, as they do each other to gain an advantage right now. Humans and perhaps a few other animals (biologists?) have a concept of time that allows us to make plans to make the future the way we want it to be, but we still have to work on what exists now, including our own psychology now. I sometimes wish my psychology was a bit more future oriented. At least I enjoy getting up early and sipping a strong coffee as I catch up the news.
DeleteAnd Bonus has given us lots of ideas to respond to.
I think encourage everyone to exercise is a good way to maintain their health. As you getting older you will lose more and more muscles, exercise would help build the strength of muscles and would slow the muscle loss which mean that you can still walk or eat by yourself when you’re very old. It also benefits your body, mind and brain.
ReplyDeleteThis is truly inspiring story. People always seek the excuses when they have to start doing something. That is why the hardest part to do something is the starting point. I really admire this elderly. He does not only inspire the senior citizens but also young adult to have the courage to do something new. I can't even imagine when I am 100 of age. Can I still run or just walk or be alive?
ReplyDeleteI am agree with everyone here that there is no age limit to start doing something especially sport. For example, my father has ever stayed in hospital for almost a month because of the incidence of fall. This made my father incapable to walk and need to sit on wheelchair over the time that physical therapy is not completed. However, after he recovered and was able to walk normally again, he started to do bicycling at the age of 64. He has been bicycling every morning for 2 years up to the present. His health is in very good condition, and he has never been back to hospital again since then.
ReplyDeleteKen's story reminds me that I don't have any good reason for not getting a bit more exercise a bit more regularly. But there are books to read, beds to lie in, and NetFlix to watch! And food to be eaten. And homework to check, mustn't forget that excellent reason not to get more exercise.
DeleteI agree with you that it's never too late to start exercise. However,they should concern their age before doing exercise. There are a various kind of exercise which are appropriate for the ages. For example, boxing, girls who play boxing normally are teenager to middle age because they have to kick and punch which may effect with their bones. Thus, boxing isn't suitable for older age.
ReplyDeleteIt's kind like the saying that "No one is too old to learn".
ReplyDeleteI think it applies to sport also. As the health education and medicine science are more advance, people know how to take a better care of themselves. Thus, there are more old aged people who still can be in a marathon running. This can be seen in Japanese senior population.
I wish my mum would get a bit more exercise. She used to go bowling with her octogenarian mates at the local club, and that was good for her. I'm not how much bowling they did, but at least they got up and moved around. Now, she spends a lot of time watching the news and getting angry. I'm sure that getting angry because she lost a game would be healthier. And the club also an awful restaurant that at least serves decent wine, a glass or two of which with her mates might be a healthy swap for a couple of hours depressing TV news.
ReplyDeleteI will take my dad as a example. Now, he is 47 years old. He used to be a soccer player in High school. Although he had a chance to be in national team, he decided to study hard and get a degree in Architecture. 3 years ago he did not care much of his health. However, when we are having the free time he will come out and practice football/soccer with me.
ReplyDelete