Our country is quite often referred to as having an ageing population, because people are living longer thanks to developments in medicine, healthcare and our understanding of what happens as we age.
Regular exercise has always been regarded as the best way to remain healthy and, as time goes on, that often means we gain a little extra longevity.
No matter what your favoured activities are, once we reach middle age, say 50 or so, we should think about adapting our exercise regimes. You may think pilates is your perfect exercise, but would never run a few miles – or vice versa. The reality though, is it’s best if to do some of both plus a variety of others. Every physical activity produces a different result in our bodies. It’s a bit like eating… a little bit of everything will do you good!
Deciding what is best for you isn’t always easy. If you have a specific issue, like damaged joints, you may need to get advice from a physiotherapist, doctor or even ourselves. If you find that every day tasks, make you breathless, then building up to some more active exercises like running, swimming, a rowing machine, will help.
There are also some suggested benchmarks that you could try. These will assess your own fitness levels in the 4 main areas of physical health – strength, cardio, balance and joints.
We have a list of these simple DIY tests available at reception. Read through them and, starting gently, check your results and think about where your health aims should be heading. We are also happy to chat to you about it.
We feel it’s about time for a treat! From super-baker, Jane Ware… enjoy!
Images: Pixabay.com
Ingredients
125 g plain flour / 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon / 1/2 teaspoon baking powder /1/4 teaspoon salt / 150 g rolled oats / 150g raisins
115 g softened butter / 50g soft brown sugar / 50g granulated sugar
1 large egg / 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
Method
Mix all dry ingredients together in a bowl and stir. In another bowl beat the butter and both sugars together until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla, mix well then gently stir in the dry ingredients. Cover the bowl and pop it in the fridge for
30 minutes.
Meanwhile, cover 2 baking sheets with baking parchment. Heat the oven to 180ºC or 350ºF then take small pieces of the mixture, roll into balls the size of a £2 coin, flatten a little so you have a thick disc shape and place on prepared tray spacing them a little apart as they will spread a little. Now cook for 10 to 12 mins until they go a little brown on the edges.
Cool for 5 minutes then transfer to a rack. Store in an airtight tin for up to a week (if they last that long).
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