Let’s face it, age comes with a lot of wisdom, but it can also wreak havoc on our bodies. One way to combat this is by including safe, consistent exercise as part of our daily routines.
However, finding ways to exercise safely can feel a bit like navigating a minefield.
Seated exercise equipment allows for a safer, lower-impact workout while still providing a wide array of health benefits.
Before we can get to our selections for the best seated exercise equipment, let’s examine why it’s crucial for seniors to start their fitness journey.
Why is Exercise Important for Seniors?
As we age, we lose muscle mass, bone density, lose strength and mobility. After the age of 30, we can lose up to 8% of our muscle mass per decade, and the percentage only gets higher after the age of 60.
This isn’t a matter of being vain; the loss of function and muscle mass can result in injury, mobility issues, and disability.
Even worse, this decrease in muscle is usually accompanied by an increase in fat, which can then cause insulin resistance.
When all of this is combined, it decreases the quality of life, increases the chance of obesity, heart disease, and osteoporosis.
What are the Benefits of Seated Exercise for Seniors?
Exercising isn’t just about lessening the bad; it’s also about capitalizing on the good. Exercise can improve your coordination and balance, which can help you remain independent and functional.
Low-impact workouts remove much of the stress from your joints during exercise. Seated exercise equipment also provides a lower impact workout.
The nature of their design often makes it easier to get in and out of the machines, which helps prevent any accidents, slips, and falls.
While these machines are low-impact, they typically provide an option for low, moderate, and high-intensity exercise.
This means that you can still get the cardiovascular benefits from an effective workout, all while increasing your strength, balance, energy, mood, and cognitive function.
You can also delay many of the challenges we discussed earlier, like diabetes and osteoporosis.
One of the most significant benefits of seated exercise is that it’s accessible for seniors in all situations.
Whether you’re highly active or new to fitness, you can slowly increase your endurance, resistance, and speed as you improve your overall health.
What Types of Exercises are Good for Older Adults?
Older adults should focus on four main types of exercise – endurance, balance, strength, and flexibility.
Endurance workouts work on increasing your heart and inspiration rates for more extended periods.
Essentially you’re looking to breathe heavier and get that heart pumping for longer. Examples of endurance workouts may include biking, swimming, and dancing.
Working on your balance will help you prevent injury from falls, and examples of balance workouts could include cycling and yoga.
On the other hand, flexibility workouts focus on stretching your muscles, which helps prevent injury and increases your mobility.
Yoga is an excellent way to increase your flexibility, as are recumbent trainers and bikes, which we’ll dive deeper into in just a bit.
Lastly, strength helps to curtail muscle loss and helps you to build back muscle. You don’t have to lift weights to get a good strength workout in.
You can gain strength by increasing your resistance level, whether on a machine or by using resistance bands.
You’ll gain the most benefits if you can incorporate all endurance, balance, flexibility, and strength into your workouts, and many types of seated exercise equipment allow you to do just that.
How Much Exercise Should I Get?
Seniors should aim for 30 minutes of moderate aerobic activity five days a week, which comes out to about 150 minutes a week.
What counts as a moderate aerobic activity? The easiest way to determine this is by using a fitness tracker.
However, you can also use the “talk-test” to gauge the intensity of your workout. If you can talk normally, you’re on the low-intensity part of the scale.
If it’s a little difficult to speak, but you’re still able to chat, that’s on the moderate side, and if you’re barely able to get a word in between breaths, you’re on the high end of the intensity scale.
Another way to determine the intensity of your workout is to use a scale of one to ten, where one is doing light work around the house, and ten is the absolute hardest you can work.
You’d want to strike right in the middle of that range for moderate aerobic activity.
The one thing you should always keep at the top of your mind is that intensity is relative to each individual.
What may be intense to you will be completely different than what is intense to a teenage athlete, for example.
To reduce the risk of injury, it’s best to err on the side of caution and remember to only work within your physical capability.
In addition to aerobic activity, it’s a great idea to supplement your aerobic exercise with strength training two days a week.
Strength training usually strikes fear in the hearts of non-athletes because visions of “World’s Strongest Man” competitions seem to immediately come racing to our heads.
It doesn’t have to be that way. You can get an excellent strength workout in by using light dumbbells, resistance bands, or even just your body weight.
Bodyweight strength training can be modified for any fitness level.
You can get more out of your workout by including multi-component physical activity, a fancy term that essentially means combining two types of physical activity.
Many kinds of seated exercise equipment include this type of training.
For example, a recumbent trainer and a rower both allow the incorporation of upper body strength training, while an upright bike also incorporates balance.
Outside of seated equipment, dance classes and yoga are excellent forms of multi-component physical activity.
What to Consider Before Purchasing Seated Exercise Equipment
If you’re looking for the best seated exercise equipment, you should consider these factors.
Comfort
One of the tremendous benefits of seated exercise equipment is the ability to exercise while reducing the stress on your body.
If you’re stuck in an uncomfortable position, your body will tense, and in addition to opening up a real possibility that you’ll never use the machine again, that tension may lead to injury.
You’ll want to look for a machine that’s design makes it easy to reach the adjustment knobs and that the knobs are easy to push or pull.
Safety Features
Any piece of equipment that has added safety features is a plus. This includes ensuring that the weight capacity fits your needs.
Some equipment will have rotating seats that make it safer to get in and out or additional grip bars for the same purpose.
Think about not only how you get on and off but whether you’ll need any other safety features during the workout.
For example, if you have a herniated disc, a recumbent bike would be a safer option than an upright bike due to the backrest.
Warranty and Assembly
It will do you absolutely no good if you hurt yourself trying to fix or put together a piece of equipment.
These products can also get heavy, so it’s a good idea to see if there’s an option for assembly.
If not, think about having a neighborhood handyman assist, but make sure to factor that cost into your final decision.
Ease of Use
Each product varies significantly in its additional features.
Some include Bluetooth connectivity with corresponding phone apps, while others only provide a small digital screen with basic measurements.
You must consider how you’re going to be using the product. If you’re not a techie, it’s probably not worth it to opt for a high-tech piece of equipment.
If you cannot read small print well, you’d want to select something with a larger digital display.
Best Seated Exercise Equipment for Seniors
Looking for seated exercise equipment for your home? Here are a few we recommend.
Recumbent Bike
A recumbent bike is an exercise bike that sits slightly lower to the ground and has a built-in backrest.
This support reduces the strain on your back muscles, as well as your hips and knees.
As the recumbent is lower to the floor, it makes it easier to maintain your balance while getting in and out of the machine.
It’s an excellent option for low-impact training, and you’re able to easily progress by simply increasing the speed, resistance or by incorporating interval training.
One of our favorite recumbent bikes is the Schwinn 270, which boasts one of the most comfortable recumbent bike seats.
You can connect with the app via Bluetooth, and the app itself has plenty of senior-specific workouts that make it even easier to get started.
The Schwinn 270 also has a walk-through frame that facilitates getting on and off the machine.
Last but not least, when you purchase the bike, you get a 90-day warranty on labor, a one-year electronics warranty, a two-year parts warranty, and a ten-year frame warranty.
Recommended Recumbent Bikes For Seniors
| XTERRA Fitness SB250 Recumbent Bike | Schwinn 270 Recumbent Bike | Marcy ME-709 Recumbent Bike |
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| What we love about the XTERRA Fitness SB250 Recumbent Bike is the oversized foot pedals that keep our feet from slipping off when pedaling. | Our favorite thing about Schwinn 270 Recumbent Bike is the Explore the World app that makes the cardio workout less monotonous. | The Marcy ME-709 Recumbent Bike made our list because of the easy step-through design that allows you to get in and off this cardio machine easily. |
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Recumbent Cross Trainers
A recumbent cross trainer is one of the best seated exercise equipment as it combines features of the recumbent bike and elliptical.
Like the recumbent bike, the seat is much lower to the floor. However, instead of pedaling in a circular motion, the movement is more horizontal.
Like an elliptical, it has handlebars that you can push and pull to work out your upper body.
It’s a low-impact, full-body workout that offers the flexibility of growing with you as you progress.
Its design makes it ideal for seniors, and the movement allows you to really lengthen your muscles, resulting in a more efficient and effective workout.
While it’s been a mainstay in rehab facilities for quite some time due to its low-impact nature, the recumbent cross trainer has recently become more popular for home use.
One of our favorites for home use is the Teeter Freestep LT3. It has an ergonomic, adjustable seat which can help to relieve tension in your back and hips and boasts a very smooth and quiet ride.
It combines user-friendliness with a heart-pumping workout as simple to use dials make it easy to increase and decrease your resistance with ease.
Recommended Recumbent Cross Trainers For Seniors
| XTERRA Fitness RSX1500 | Teeter FreeStep LT3 | NuStep T5 Recumbent Cross Trainer |
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| We like the XTERRA Fitness RSX1500 because it’s easy to assemble and has 8 levels of magnetic resistance to add resistance training to your workouts. | The Teeter FreeStep LT3 is an affordable PT exercise machine that’s easy on the joints and allows you to do non load-bearing, low-impact exercise. | The NuStep T5 Recumbent Cross Trainer is as close to a physical therapy session you’ll get from the comforts of your own home. |
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Rower
A rowing machine is one of the most effective full-body machines in the fitness market. It’s so effective that many athletes and avid gym-goers will go as far as saying it’s the only piece of equipment you could ever need.
That said, while it can provide an excellent workout for all fitness levels and ages, it’s important to select one that is compatible with your abilities.
As you row, you pull against resistance, which uses your leg, core, and upper body muscles.
The seat is much lower to the ground than a recumbent bike or recumbent cross trainer, and to get the max benefits, it does take some practice to perfect your form.
Still, once you’ve got the hang of it, you can burn a significant amount of calories and get your heart rate into the necessary zones.
It’s important to note that a rower isn’t ideal for those who suffer from back problems.
Our top pick for rowers is the Concept2 Rowing Machine. The taller legs let the rower sit higher, making it easier for older adults to get on.
The PM5 monitor is easy to use and has a variety of workout options.
The Concept2 Rowing Machine also has adjustable footrests and an ergonomic handle which is essential for anyone who suffers from joint issues in the hands.
Recommended Rowers For Seniors
| Hydrow Rower | Concept2 Model D | Teeter Power10 Elliptical Rower |
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| The Hydrow Rower is a premium water rower that comes the closest to simulating an actual water rowing workout. | The Concept2 Model D made our list because it’s featured in many Crossfit gyms and has a proven track record of providing an excellent cardio and upper body workout. | The Teeter Power10 Elliptical Rower is a rower and elliptical in one machine, and was one of the more unique rowers that we just had to include on our list. |
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Under Desk Elliptical
One of the key benefits of an under-desk elliptical is that you’re able to multitask safely.
You can use an under-desk elliptical at work while you’re watching TV on your couch or anywhere you can take a seat.
It doesn’t provide an option for upper body strengthening but can be an excellent first step in your fitness journey or if you’re recovering from an upper-body injury or surgery.
The Stamina InMotion E1000 offers adjustable tension control, which allows you to increase your intensity level.
You also get access to an audio coaching app that helps take the guesswork out of your exercise routine.
The textured pedals and non-slip end caps prevent your feet from slipping, and you can work more muscles with the reverse-motion foot pedals.
Recommended Under Desk Ellipticals For Seniors
| LifePro Under Desk Elliptical Trainer | Stamina 55-1602 Inmotion Elliptical | Cubii JR1 Seated Under Desk Elliptical |
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| One of the things we like the most about the LifePro Under Desk Elliptical Trainer is the handle that allows you to transfer it wherever you go – your home, office, or when you travel. | The Stamina 55-1602 Inmotion Elliptical made our list because it’s one of the only under desk elliptical machines we could find that came with color options. | The Cubii JR1 Seated Under Desk Elliptical is a premium mini elliptical that’s whisper quiet and allows you to use it in the same room as others without disturbing them. |
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The Key to Using Seated Exercise Equipment Safely
Again, the most crucial factor in choosing the best seated exercise equipment is your capabilities.
If it’s hard for you to get up from a lower position, a rower may not be the best option for you, while a recumbent cross trainer may be a better fit.
For older adults, seated exercise equipment can allow you to reap the rewards of exercise without the stress on your body.
Still, it’s always a good idea to check with your doctor before purchasing any exercise equipment or starting a new fitness regimen.
