We all know physical activity is important – it improves your mental health, lowers the risk of dementia and certain cancers, keeps your heart healthy and helps maintain your weight (among other health benefits).
It’s recommended to get 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity exercise weekly. A great way to hit that recommendation – and beyond? Pick up a sport. Research even shows that certain sports can add years onto your life.
“Your brain needs new stimuli, so It’s always good to learn something new, no matter your age,” says Shingo Matsubara, an athletic trainer at Henry Ford Health. “Picking up a new sport can improve your quality of life – physically, mentally and psychologically. Playing a sport that’s fun for you makes exercise seem less like ‘work.’”
7 Tips To Starting A New Sport
That said, starting a new sport in adulthood can be daunting (even if it’s one you used to play when you were young). Here, Matsubara shares how to get going.
1. Research your preferred sport.
Watch and read about your sport to see what it requires. “This will help you find a sport that interests you and that you feel comfortable playing,” says Matsubara. If you’re older and/or injury prone, you probably want to stay away from contact sports like football and hockey, which have a higher risk for injury.
2. Talk to your doctor.
Once you’ve found the sport you want to play, let your doctor know. “Starting a sport at age 40+ is different than starting it in your 20s,” says Matsubara. As you age, your reaction speed is slower, your muscles don’t move as well and you can get a little stiff. Your doctor can give you specific precautions to take.”
3. Find a sporting community.
Say you want to play tennis. How do you go about it, logistically speaking? Find a community league and sign up. (Anyone is welcome, regardless of skill level.) You can also find a friend who plays that sport and join their team – or get a group of friends together who want to play and learn together.
Go Where The Pros Go
4. Start slowly.
If you decided to play basketball, don’t start playing five pickup games a week. “Drill for 30 minutes one day and see how you feel the next day,” says Matsubara. “If you feel sore, it’s your body telling you to stay at a slow pace. Listen to your body so you know your limits.”
It’s also important to keep this in mind if you’re picking up a sport you used to play in your youth. “Your brain might tell you ‘I’ve done this before,’” says Matsubara. “Your brain might trick you into thinking it’s safe to go strong right from the start. But your body is not as mobile as it once was and if you do too much too soon, you could hurt yourself.”
And if you stopped that sport due to injury, get your doctor’s go-ahead to ensure you can go back to playing it – at a less intense level.
5. Do mobility exercises.
Mobility exercises ensure your joints move in the way your particular sport requires. You can look up mobility exercises for any sport online. “In golf, for example, there’s a lot of repetitive stress on your upper and lower body because you’re doing the same motion over and over,” says Matsubara. “So mobility exercises targeting the wrists, shoulders, spine and hips are recommended. They will help you gain the endurance to golf without injury. As you age, you should increase the time you spend on mobility exercises.”
6. Hone personal skills instead of competing with others.
“I think competition is what makes sports fun, but it’s important to know your limitations,” says Matsubara. “Beginners (and returners to sports) can shift their focus and work on their personal goals so they don’t overexert themselves.”
7. Don’t forget to warm up and cool down.
No matter your age, it’s so important to warm up and cool down before playing any sport, as it reduces your risk of injury and helps you perform at your best so you can continue playing for years to come.
Reviewed by Shingo Matsubara, MA, AT, ATC, an athletic trainer at the Henry Ford Center for Athletic Medicine.
