One Exercise To Walk Better After 60

And no, it’s not “walking”; it’s what you can do in advance of the walking to make the walking easier and less likely to cause pain & fatigue:

It’s in your hips

Slowing down and/or find it more difficult walking after 60 is often caused less by weak legs, and more by reduced hip extension. This is because when your leg no longer moves effectively whenever it’s behind your body, your glutes stop generating strong push-off, leading to shorter strides, shuffling, slower speed, higher risk of tripping, and less confidence.

The key idea here: it’s important to build/restore glute strength through hip extension, rather than relying mainly on stretching. This can be done by training one key movement: the controlled backward drive of your leg.

This can be achieved through what’s basically one exercise, that can be done in various ways ranging from more easy to more difficult:

1. Active hip extension: hold a chair or counter or such for balance, shift your weight onto one leg, move your free leg directly backwards about 10 degrees, squeeze your glute, and return slowly without leaning forwards or swinging, but with a pause at each end.
2. Banded hip extension: add a resistance band around your ankles, and repeat the same motion while maintaining tension, pushing into resistance at the end range, and controlling the return all the way.
3. Plank hip extension: do the same glute-driven leg lift from a forearm plank, to combine hip extension with core strength, keeping your body straight and avoiding twisting.

As with most such things, start as easy as necessary and work up to the more difficult levels, prioritize good form throughout, and also prioritize consistency over intensity.

For more on all of this plus visual demonstrations, enjoy:

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Walking… Better.

Take care!