Fitness at senior ages

Sustaining a good level of daily physical activity is important at any age, but it becomes increasingly important the older you get. Over the years, you body loses its dexterity and agility, bones become brittle and you find that your mind just isn’t what it used to be. It’s all part of the natural development of the human body. But with a little effort, you can slow down the process and feel better for longer.

There are, however, several important things to consider in senior fitness (in Finnish: senioriliikunta). First of all, it might be worth talking to a doctor first. If you’ve been active your entire life, keeping up daily exercise comes naturally.However, if you’re just starting out, it’s worth talking to a professional to know what level to set out on. Either way, you need to remember to stop at the first sign of pain.

Other things to keep in mind are similar to fitness at any age: don’t exercise if you’re sick, don’t over-strain yourself, warm up when starting, cool down afterwards and drink plenty of water throughout. It’s also important to use the correct equipment. In today’s world of fitness, there is specific equipment for all levels of fitness and ages. In the mid-2000s, Lappset, the Finnish developer of outdoor fitness (in Finnish: ulkoliikunta) equipment, studied the everyday lives of senior citizens and children in daycare. The project eventually generated ideas that grew into the Senior Sport concept. Inspired by the research and assisted by experts in the field, Lappset designed a series of fitness equipment specifically for the elderly.

Exercise is good for you!

One of the best remedies for boredom is exercise. Not only does it strengthen the body but it strengthens the mind also. Different types of outdoor fitness (in Finnish: ulkoliikunta) activities can bring diversity to your everyday life and bring also a change of scenery. Physical activities can help you balance your life, and you can always find the fight activity for your specific needs or mood.

Experts have for the longest time proclaimed the benefits of exercise which makes you feel better and betters your overall disposition with a mood boost that comes from being outside in the sunshine or even the rain. Many outdoor activities involve certain levels of weight lifting, which improves bone density by stimulating greater bone development. And many outdoor activities are also good ways to improve your sense of balance and spatial awareness.

Staying fit is a corner stone of a healthy life and can be a source of enjoyment also for adults. The exercise products developed by Lappset, a Finnish developer of outdoor gym (in Finnish: ulkoliikuntapaikka) environments, are designed with versatility in mind and can be used easily by both children and adults. By ensuring the possibility to use the equipment by all age groups, the products are used actively throughout the day.

Welcome to the world of play!

An increasingly popular form of activity is parkour, which is a method of moving over, round and under obstacles varying in the level of difficulty. It originates from France and the idea behind the development was for traceurs, practitioners of parkour, to learn to use their bodies gymnastically and as efficiently as possible with the environment, always looking for, finding and conquering more and more difficult paths.

Parkour is essentially made up of acrobatic movements such as vaults, rolling, climbing and jumping, and concentrates on two specific areas: efficiency and speed. Many benefits are claimed to result from doing parkour, such as enhance spatial awareness, self-confidence and bettered critical-thinking. It has a growing number of enthusiasts that appreciate a creatively challenging environment.

Lappset Group Oy, a Finnish developer of outdoor fitness (in Finnish: ulkoliikunta) and play environments (in Finnish: leikkialue), has developed in co-operation with the Finnish Parkour Academy a wide variety of parkour equipment. As a result of this co-operation, high quality products have been designed specifically with the true requirements of the activity in mind.

The driving force behind the company is the desire to constantly develop more versatile opportunities for outdoor fitness for everyone to get the most out of the experience. The new parkour product line that was designed with diversity in mind and was awarded in Finland as the Best Domestic Fitness Product of 2010.

Sporty products for all ages

Ready, steady, go! Swing around a pole, run over a swinging bridge, balance your way across a beam, move a hoop all the way to the other end of a pole, a speedy crunch towards the finishing line and goal! New records and new obstacle courses are born everyday while fitness levels develop along with agile competitions. A few adults show up at the outdoor gym (in Finnish: ulkoliikuntapaikka) at the end of the day to stretch some muscles and do a few pull-ups during their evening walks.

Staying fit is a corner stone of a healthy life and can be a source of enjoyment also for adults. The exercise products developed by Lappset, a Finnish developer of outdoor fitness (in Finnish: ulkoliikunta) environments, are designed with versatility in mind and can be used easily by both children and adults. By ensuring the possibility to use the equipment by all age groups, the products are used actively throughout the day. Additionally, by building an environment with products meant for different user groups, new acquaintances can be made with a common interest.

In the mid-2000s, Lappset studied the everyday lives of senior citizens and children in daycare. The project eventually generated ideas that grew into the Senior Sport concept. Inspired by the research and assisted by experts in the field, Lappset designed a series of fitness equipment specifically for the elderly.

The purpose of the Senior Sport outdoor fitness equipment is to enhance the daily lives of senior citizens through outdoor exercise. The playful exercises designed for the elderly improve their capacity to cope with everyday tasks. Senior fitness (in Finnish: senioriliikunta) is essential for good mobility ensuring that senior citizens hurt themselves less often, saving on medical costs.

The modern playground

Modern technology enables all kinds of combinations of exercise and play while also learning and developing through games. Digiplay connects children around the world – with the SmartUs application, youngsters can compete with each other in sporty puzzles and mind games even if the competitors aren’t physically in the same location.

The thinking behind Lappset Play Evolution is enhancing the growth and development of children through play. More and more children spend their time indoors playing computer games, and Lappset wants to encourage them to also play outdoors. The latest innovation from the company is extending the game world to playgrounds (in Finnish: leikkialue) and parks with the use of mobile technology.

The Digiplay product lines, Lappset Puzzle, SmartUs and MobilePlay, are suitable for children of 4 years old and up, and include different game fields and games designed specifically for them. The SmartUs fields suit for both the outdoors and indoors, only the Smartus InGrid hopscotch and Lappset Puzzle are meant especially for indoor play. An iCard is needed for playing the SmartUs fields in order to register results and sharing them on the Internet. The LinkIt and PlayCreator software allow players to create their own SmartUs games beyond the standard set of games.

MobilePlay broadens the basic playground into a game world with the use of mobile phone Internet connections and scanned codes. The idea is to perform tasks in the playground sent to the player’s mobile phone. More tasks can be unlocked when completing previous tasks. With MobilePlay, the familiar old playground is charged with a new energy.

Environmentally friendly outdoor fitness

Finland is known for its forests and woods, and commercial woods are carefully taken care of responsibly and with longevity in mind. Lappset, a Finnish developer of outdoor fitness (in Finnish: ulkoliikunta) and gym (in Finnish: ulkoliikuntapaikka) environments, also does its part in the welfare of the Finnish woods. The wood used in the Lappset products originates from forests that are maintained according to the sustainable environment principles of PECF, which is the world’s most comprehensive forest certification system administered and developed by the Finnish Forest Certification Council.

Already in 1998, Lappset took into use the international environmental standard, ISO 14001. According to the system, environmental issues are considered in all the different areas throughout the organization from the procuring of raw materials to the treatment of by-products and waste. For example, the paint used on the wooden parts of the products is water soluble fulfilling environmentally friendly requirements. Also, Lappset has dozens of subcontractors and it audits the main ones annually to ensure that environmental ethics are adhered to. During these audits, special attention is paid to the quality of used materials and deliveries, to the environmental friendliness of the production processes and to other critical business areas with the perspective of sustainability and environmental responsibility.

We invite everyone to join in!

Playing moves the body and brightens the spirit. Exercising helps you feel good, betters your quality of life and slows down the deterioration that inevitably comes with aging. Additionally, when you meet friends while out on a walk or participate in fun and games with your family, you keep your mind sharp.

Lappset Group Oy, a Finnish developer of outdoor fitness (in Finnish: ulkoliikunta) and play environments, would like to invite everyone to join in the fun of playing and enjoying the outdoors with like-minded people. The driving force behind the company is the desire to constantly develop more versatile opportunities for outdoor fitness for everyone to get the most out of the experience. A good example is the new parkour product line that was designed with diversity in mind and was awarded in Finland as the Best Domestic Fitness Product of 2010.

Parkour is an urban activity where the aim is as fluid method of movement as possible with different types of jumps, crossing obstacles and climbing spiced with acrobatic elements such as volts and twists. It also imbues a sense of challenging and outdoing oneself while being strongly community driven which attracts also children and youngsters that are not otherwise attracted to competition driven sports.

The Lappset Parkour Solutions products have been developed in co-operation with the Finnish Parkour Academy. With the valuable advice of professionals in this area, the true requirements of the activity have been considered when designing the equipment. And the integrity and uncompromising of the product development as a result of this co-operation has helped the products achieve instant accreditation.