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Fitness expert Denise Austin, 67, knows it can be difficult to stick to a workout routine over the summer, so she's offering plenty of tips to help people 50 and older stay on track. Photo

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A new season is upon us, and it’s finally time to soak up all the sweetness of summer. But it’s hard to fully enjoy the months ahead if you feel like your fitness goals are slipping away.

Thankfully, legendary fitness instructor Denise Austin, 67, is more than willing to help. She knows it can be hard to stick to a fitness routine when you’re relishing the summertime, but she

has plenty of tips to help people 50 and older stay on track.

Austin is probably more active than most. Still, she keeps it simple with a goal of doing “a little something every day,” she says.

“It makes me feel good,” she says. “Circulation is the key, and that’s why I do something. Even if it’s a few minutes, I stretch, I do some fast walking — anything to keep your muscles

healthy and your circulation moving.”

Ideally, Austin tries to work out for 30 minutes each day. She recommends that others do the same or at least aim for the recommended amount of weekly exercise. According to the Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention and other credible organizations, adults should get at least 150 minutes of moderately intense physical activity each week, and a great way to do that is to

exercise for 30 minutes a day, five days a week.

Austin has consistently told us that walking is key for anyone 50 and older.

“Walking burns calories; it works your heart; it helps with energy levels; it improves your mood, your attitude,” she says. “I am such a big believer in if you just get out there and walk,

it makes you feel better.”

Walking’s benefits can extend far beyond mood and attitude. A study published in March 2020 by JAMA reveals that taking 8,000 steps or more daily can reduce the risk of death by 51 percent

compared to taking just 4,000 steps per day. Increasing that to 12,000 steps per day can cut death risk by 65 percent. And there’s no need to power walk either: Low-intensity walking was

just as beneficial as high-intensity movement.

Walking can also be a great form of exercise while on vacation, Austin says. Even if she puts her regular fitness routines aside during a trip, she always makes time to walk.​“I think

walking is the best form of fitness to get moving and to still see places and not feel like you’re losing your health and fitness ability,” she says.

Austin says exploring on foot means you get to “see so much more” of a new place. But she also encourages people to walk around their hometown — you might just get some good exercise and a

fresh perspective.