Author Archives: Editor

Before you start this, or any exercise programme, please check with your doctor if you suffer from heart disease, have high blood pressure, joint problems, back problems, if you are very overweight, have a serious illness, or are convalescing. Check out location and surfaces before performing any exercises in your home or out in the garden. Make sure you are warm enough but wear layered loose clothing, which can be discarded as you hot up! It is essential to make sure that the supports and equipment you use are strong enough to take your weight, and that surfaces are not wet or slippery. Don’t exercise until at least an hour after meals, and keep drinking water near at hand to avoid becoming dehydrated.

The baby boomers, those people born immediately after the war have finally grown up and have joined the rapidly swelling ranks of the UK’s over 50’s. Generally speaking, mature adults in the UK today are healthier, have experience, knowledge, and more disposable income than previous generations and I find that being both over 50, and female at this particular moment in history is exciting and challenging. Speaking personally I feel comfortable with my maturity, and more importantly, I’ve finally come around to accepting who and what I am. At the age of 70 I love this time of my life and regard it as primetime and a bonus.

I have spent over 40 years working in the media, much of that time concentrating on health and fitness, and have a particular interest in issues and illnesses which affect women who are past their first flush of youth. I soon realised how importance it is for women to maintain strong bones, particularly at the time of menopause and in later life. Osteoporosis is a bone-thinning condition that will affect one in three women after the menopause. It is a very serious disease, which in the UK alone, results in 310,000 fractures a year causing severe pain and disability. Over the last two decades there has been significant scientific research into the cause and treatment of the disease. The published results have found that a healthy active lifestyle can help guard against osteoporosis and reduce the risk of falls and resulting fractures.