How Can Electrical Muscle Stimulation Benefit Seniors?

Electrical muscle stimulation is well-known within the fitness community to have several benefits regarding muscle strengthening, weight loss, toning and one’s overall health. However, did you know that electrical muscle stimulation is extremely effective for older people? Older people exercise too! Older people can exercise straight into their old age – there’s no limit! Many of the benefits of electrical muscle stimulation make it uniquely helpful to seniors. We know that exercise is beneficial for almost any age group, but electrical stimulation effectively addresses problems that are unique to older people.

In this article, we’ll explore the reasons why electrical muscle stimulation is beneficial to seniors. If you know an elderly person who is struggling to get an appropriate amount of physical activity in their day, you may want to suggest electrical muscle stimulation for them.

Benefits of electrical muscle stimulation for seniors

Joint-friendly workout

Many elderly people suffer from a common but debilitating issue – achy joints. Painful joints disrupt life in many ways, including making simple tasks difficult to do. Of course, exercise is impacted by this, making electrical muscle stimulation sessions especially helpful. Because electrical muscle stimulation targets deep muscle fibres and activates around 90% of muscles, it enables a full-body workout that’s equivalent to 3 hours of conventional exercise in just 20 minutes. This means that older people do not have to stress their joints for an impactful exercise routine, instead, they can spend just 20 minutes strengthening their muscles.

Addresses muscle fibres that are hard to reach (and that may have deteriorated)

Older people suffer from muscle deterioration because muscle reduces with age. However, as mentioned in our previous point, conventional exercise can be quite taxing for the elderly, most notably because of its effects on their joints. EMS, however, offers a great solution in that it targets deep and hard-to-reach muscle fibres in a short amount of time (20 minutes). Because of the reduced pressure on one’s limbs and joints, training can be done more regularly and with confidence, gradually improving an elderly person’s muscular strength.

Builds balance, reducing the risk of injury

EMS can build overall muscle strength, but can also be used to target any areas of weakness or imbalance, reducing the risk of injury and helping you to perform at your peak. Because EMS allows you to confidently and comfortably build strength, especially in one’s core, the balance that was previously lost with age can be restored. This is especially helpful for the elderly because it reduces their risk of injury and falls, which are frequently caused by their loss of balance.

Improve bone density

In many elderly people, particularly women after age 50, bone breakdown (resorption) outpaces bone formation and bone loss often accelerates. However, it’s been found that an increase in both muscle strength and lean body mass in elderly people can lead to an improvement and maintenance of bone mineral density.

Gain overall independence

Overall, electrical muscle stimulation helps older people to restore and retain their independence by improving their physical strength, allowing them to do more for themselves and depend less on their loved ones. This is important for their mental confidence, happiness and overall mental health moving forward.

20PerFit Tips

Utilise our Personal Trainers!

20PerFit trainers are here to help! We understand that as an elderly person you may be unsure or uncertain about what EMS exercises are appropriate for your body. Our trainers will be more than happy to guide you through your workout and recommend appropriate, but effective techniques for you.

Additionally, if attending our studio is difficult for you, take advantage of our mobile training sessions! You can train from the comfort and safety of your home with one of our Personal Trainers.

Maintain a nutritious diet

According to Nutrition Australia, the elderly should be getting adequate amounts of calcium, fluoride and vitamin D, because of their age-related loss of calcium and their high risk for osteoporosis. The Australian Dietary Guidelines recommend the following dairy consumption guidelines:

• Women 51+ – 4 servings per day
• Men 50-70 – 2 ½ servings of per day
• Men 70+ – 3 ½ servings per day

For more information on maintaining a healthy diet, download our Nutrition E-book!

If you’re interested in joining 20PerFit but still have a few questions, then contact our team. They will also be more than happy to guide you through each step of the workout, explain its advantages and offer training advice.

Try it for yourself and reap the benefits.

Book in a session here or contact our friendly team on 1300 202 073.