Winter Exercise:
NOT YOUR AGE, BUT HOW FIT YOU ARE

MANHATTAN -- Exercising in the cold may appear risky for older adults. But a Kansas State University professor says that as long as you are already fit, no matter your age, cold weather shouldn't be harmful.

As people get older most of them decrease their physical activity, as well as their ability to do physical work or maintain their physical fitness, said David Dzewaltowski, associate professor of kinesiology.

"A lot of people confuse biological aging with a decrease in physical activity," Dzewaltowski said. "We stereotype the older adult as not being able to do a lot work, unable to tolerate different stresses, and as someone who has to be careful with physical exercise.

"There is some truth in that if you are out of shape you can't tolerate as much physical work and physical stress," Dzewaltowski added.

According to Dzewaltowski, during hot or cold weather the stress on the body is much greater.

If you add the stress of a very hot day, or the stress of a very cold day, you are adding a stress to the exercise and creating a demand that the older adult may not be able to deal with, said Dzewaltowski.

"But that's really not an aging issue; it's more an issue of how fit are you," he said. "If you are an 85-year-old person who is used to walking 30 to 60 minutes a day, the increased stress that the cold places on you, while it creates a risk, is less of a risk because you are already used to dealing with the physical stress of exercise. I would have the same concern for a younger adult who is unfit, too."

If you are an older adult who is not already in an active exercise program, you should see your physician prior to beginning such a program, Dzewaltowski added.

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January 1997