Senior fitness sword

Elderly fitness sword is currently one of the most adaptable mass sports for the elderly. As long as there are no serious bone and joint diseases or upper limb mobility disorders, more than 90% of people over 60 years old can participate. There is no need to mythize its efficacy, and there is no need to devalue it as worthless.

I pass by the central park of the community after get off work every day, and I always see a dozen old people practicing together with colorful swords. Sometimes the background music is the sonorous "Chinese Kung Fu", and sometimes it is the magical "Little Apple". The rhythm of the movements is also far different: some are waving slowly and leisurely, as if paddling, and while practicing, chatting with the people next to them about the price of the morning vegetables.； Some of their movements are neat and steady, and they look like veteran players who have been playing for several years.

Speaking of which, this thing is really controversial. A while ago, there was a quarrel among the owner group: the fitness blogger who just moved upstairs said that this is an "old man's happy show". He can't sweat for a long time, so what can he do? The retired old coach of the martial arts team downstairs retorted on the spot, saying that what these people are practicing now is not called fitness swords at all. Their movements are crooked and they don't even understand basic sword etiquette. They are just fooling around.

I specifically asked Uncle Li, who has led the fitness fencing team of the Municipal Elderly Sports Association for 11 years, about these two statements. He held a thermos cup in his mouth and waved his hands, saying that they were both too extreme.

Let me start with what I think is useless, because I didn’t practice the right way. The Sports Rehabilitation Department of Beijing University of Physical Education released data on elderly sports research last year: Moderate-intensity fitness sword exercises three times a week for 40 minutes each time can improve upper limb flexibility and core stability by 16.8% more than ordinary brisk walking, especially the mobility of the wrist and shoulder. The probability of frozen shoulder for elderly people who persist for a long time is 32% lower than that of those who do not practice. There used to be a 73-year-old Zhou in his team. After a slight cerebral infarction, he could not lift his left arm over his shoulder. He practiced basic cloud sword and sword-handling for more than a year, and now he can raise his arm above his head to wipe the balcony glass. He also won the encouragement award for the fitness sword group at the community senior sports meeting last year. He was so happy that he bought ice mineral water for the whole team for half a month.

But on the other hand, those who insist on using the old man's movements according to the standards of professional martial arts competition swords are just looking for trouble. Uncle Li said that an auntie was just added to the team last year. She had won a district award for square dancing before. She was very competitive and had to show her moves to professional videos. When practicing "Rhinoceros Watching the Moon", she twisted her waist and stretched her legs. She did the balancing act of standing on one leg for ten minutes without resting. When she came down, she sprained her foot and slipped her waist. She lay at home for more than three months before she dared to go out. “I came here just to exercise, and I'm not going to the National Games to win a medal, so why bother? ”

Last month, I accompanied my mother to a cultural and sports store to pick out a fitness sword. The boss was also knowledgeable and handed me an eighty-two-weight ABS plastic sword. The sword head was made of soft sponge, so it wouldn’t hurt even if it fell on my foot. This is the most suitable one. Don’t buy a metal one. If you swing it for a long time, it will hurt your wrist. Don’t buy a hollow plastic stick that is too light. It won’t hold any weight in your hand and your practice will be in vain. My mother finally chose a sky blue one, saying it matched her light gray Tai Chi suit. Now she practices with the team downstairs for forty minutes every morning. After practice, she brings a bag of vegetables back. Before, she had to take two breaks to carry half a bag of rice. Now she can carry ten kilograms of apples up the fourth floor without gasping for air.

Of course, not everyone is suitable to join in the fun. Old people with acute lumbar disc herniation, severe periarthritis of the shoulder who are so painful that they cannot lift their arms, and particularly poor balance skills who are prone to falling are best to ask a doctor for advice first. Even if you want to practice, start with the most basic stance of holding a sword and swinging your arms slowly. Don't follow the big team and make random gestures.

After all, the core of the fitness sword for the elderly lies in the word "fitness". If you want to paddle slowly to stretch your muscles and chat with old friends, that's fine. If you want to follow the coach to practice some regular movements and participate in a community competition, that's fine. Do it however you feel comfortable. If you can move freely and feel happy, any high-standard movements will work. Oh, by the way, there are also models with luminous strips, so you don’t have to worry about waving at the people next to you when you practice at night. The design is really considerate.