Exercise in Retirement

As we reach retirement age, many of us have discovered that along with wisdom, the years also bring extra pounds! But retirement also brings extra time in which we can address this issue, and turn to more active pursuits that will help us lose some of that extra baggage.

Golf is my husband's favorite sport, and while not exactly a hard core aerobic event, you can certainly count a game of golf (WITHOUT using a motorized cart!) as a nice long walk if nothing else. Swinging that club and bending over to pick up the ball also work the core muscles, and certainly helps maintain range of motion and some upper body strength.

I always like to see how many calories I have burned at the end of a day, and have found a web site for a handy reference that is very easy to use: http://www.healthstatus.com/calculate/cbc
Just plug in your weight and the number of minutes you spend at a specific activity, and it will give you the number of calories burned. After all, weight loss is simple math: Calories in, minus calories burned, and you have a net gain or loss. It takes 3500 calories to equal one pound of body weight. So even a small amount of activity, like walking at 2 miles per hour (very leisurely pace) for 30 minutes can burn almost 100 calories. If you don't increase your food intake, in a month you will have lost almost one pound by only adding 1/2 hour of pleasant exercise to your daily routine. That adds up to 12 pounds over the course of a year.

The main point is to find something you like to do, and do it regularly. You can check out the many golf courses in your area by using our directory web site www.oregonretirement.info. Soon to come we will have a national directory called RetireUSA.net. Please write and tell us about your favorite golf course, and we will be happy to include it on our site at no cost.