Living Here | Strand experts agree: Exercising mind and body make aging more enjoyable

More and more people are saying there’s no place to grow old like the Grand Strand.

The weather’s not too hot or not too cold – most of the time – and the sun shines down on 100 golf courses, uncounted tennis courts, walking trails and of course 60 miles of beach that’s always ready for those who like a stroll.

There are plenty of places to volunteer doing just about anything you’d choose, clubs and senior centers to find friends and low-cost, early bird dinners for the days when you just need to tuck it in a little sooner than you used to.

About the only thing to worry about, then, is when the infirmities of age make the golden years less than sparkling.

It’s inevitable, we all know, but senior health care experts will tell you there are things you can do and people to help you do it right that will slow down the clock and make the minutes between the hours more enjoyable than if you decided to just veg while you declined.

Regular exercise of just about any kind is better than snacks and television, and an afternoon bridge game or a morning bocce ball competition is better than a nap on the couch.

Dr. Lisa Mount, director of the Grand Strand Medical Center’s Senior Health Center in Little River, said exercise and control of blood pressure and cholesterol can help change the course of lives for people even in their 70s and 80s.

“Your functional overall life will improve with exercise,” adds Jon Gibson, director of Conway Medical Center’s Wellness and Fitness Center, which counts 40 percent of its clients as those at least 60 years old.

Both Gibson and Mount also say it’s important for seniors to monitor their medications, which is one of the first things Mount does with her new patients.

“Medications need changes as an individual ages,” she said.

In addition, Mount said she does everything from coordinating her patients’ care with several or more providers, helping with living situations, coordinating with home health and hospice care and even corresponding with family members who live outside the area.

Mount said it’s important for seniors to stay mentally active, as well, and to keep a group of family or friends they can rely on for companionship and outings.

“The more isolated [people] are, the more rapidly their condition changes,” she said.

Like Mount, Gibson evaluates each new client and tailors a program that’s suited to their goals and capabilities.

He encourages people to try different things to help combat the boredom that can come from repeating the same exercise daily.

He finds that the fitness center is a place where his senior clients make friends and do things together outside of class. The fitness center, he said, has arthritis classes and water aerobics in the center’s pool as well as classes that don’t require a dunk.

But that dip likely is as good for them as almost anything.

Mount said she finds that the most fit seniors are the ones who swim, play tennis and/or walk. All give the kind of workout needed without stressing the joints like other exercises might.

But “it all depends on the individual,” Gibson said.

He knows seniors who run marathons, and has one regular client who is 95 years old.

Mount said she has patients in their late 80s who take no medication and others the same age who take as many a 12 a day.

One thing is sure, though. At any age, as one gets older, mental and physical exercise makes it better.

Follow Steve Jones on Twitter at @TSN_SteveJones.

This story was originally published September 27, 2014 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Living Here | Strand experts agree: Exercising mind and body make aging more enjoyable."