Inline skating is a fun way to get in shape and stay fit especially on warm sunny days when it's a lot more enjoyable to exercise outdoors than on a treadmill or exercise bike indoors at gym. These days most cities have nicely paved paths through parkland, beach and waterfront areas to make your rollerblading experience more enjoyable. Unfortunately depending on where you live, you may not be able to or want to rollerblade all year round.

There are many benefits to be derived from inline skating. It's much easier and safer on knees and back than jogging since your legs aren't taking as much pounding against a hard surface. You don't have to travel as far as cycling to get maximum benefits. Along with a great cardiovascular workout, blading provides you with a fantastic lower body workout by strengthening and toning your thighs, gluteus, calves and hamstrings. It's like doing thousands of lunges using your own body weight without even realizing it or getting bored!

I also recommend that you combine blading with strength training exercises with weights such as leg extensions, leg presses and calf raises to name a few. This will ensure that your muscles and bones remain strong and it helps to prevent any possible injuries from occurring.

Before you begin inline skating for day, you may want to do a little bit of light stretching particularly focusing on your thighs and hamstrings. Right now there is debate over whether or not to stretch before exercising. I believe you should do what feels best for you. Also, first few minutes should be done at a slower pace as a warm up for your muscles.

I find that roller blading is extremely safe once you get proficient at it. Rarely will you fall by yourself. If you do, it's usually a result of your surroundings. No different than cycling or walking on a sidewalk. To prevent injuries and scrapes, you may wish to purchase elbow, wrist and knee pads plus a helmet.

Are you too old for weight lifting? Will weight lifting help you stay and look younger? The answer to first question is no and to second is a resounding yes. Weight lifting will help both men and women stay fit and supple and might even help you look younger. And, no matter what your age, you’re not too old to start.

Dr.Walter Bortz, in The Journal of American Medical Association, 1982, stated that a number of physical changes we undergo as we age, such as loss of muscle tone, organ deterioration, and osteoporosis are “indistinguishable whether caused by age or inactivity.” He believed that exercise could delay many of diseases associated with aging, adding “at least a portion of changes commonly attributed to aging are in reality caused by disuse and, as such, subject to correction”.

As we age, we lose bone density and muscle mass. We get stiff and our joints creak. Instead of using our body, we “rest” it even more, starting a very dangerous downward spiral. The synovial fluid dries up, tendons become brittle, sinews grow weak. It hurts to move, so we don’t.

More recently Dr Henry Lodge and Chris Cowley published a new book on this theme, "Younger Next Year: A Guide to Living Like 50 Until You're 80 and Beyond". The premise of this book is that weight lifting will help reverse loss of both bone density and muscle mass that begins to take place as we get older. And they’re not talking about light weights, but rather big heavy weights.

In July 1983, Terry Todd wrote in Sports Illustrated that “Anyone who has spent much time in what is sometimes called "Iron Game" has, of course, seen weight trainers over 40 whose physiques were… surprisingly youthful. Apparently there is something about act of regularly stressing your body with heavy exercise that gives it wherewithal to resist visual manifestations of advancing age…research in this area suggests that men and women of middle age will respond to systemic progressive resistance with weights by becoming more powerful and more flexible, with more endurance and less fat.”

In 2003, Centers for Disease Control reported that strength training "can be very powerful in reducing signs and symptoms of numerous diseases and chronic conditions, among them:arthritis, diabetes, osteoporosis, obesity, back pain and depression."

Strength training will also increase your flexibility and balance, which decreases likelihood and severity of falls. One study in New Zealand in women 80 years of age and older showed a 40% reduction in falls with simple strength and balance training.

I don’t agree that we need to undertake heavy weight training to see substantial benefits.