Which Osteoporosis Exercises do the Most Good?
Everyone loses bone density with advancing age, but exercise will slow this down. The specific exercise to prevent or treat Osteoporosis needs to be weight bearing. This means standing or walking. Weight bearing exercises are good for your bone health because they put more stress on your bones than more sedentary activities do. Your body responds to this stress by producing more bone tissue, which makes your bones stronger. If you have osteoporosis, you might be afraid that exercise could cause a fracture to one of your weakened bones. The truth is that lack of exercise contributes to developing osteoporosis, and a regular exercise program will strengthen your weakened bones. Weight bearing exercise does not have to be high impact exercise like running or jogging. You can start with something simple such as walking. Osteoporosis most commonly starts in women after menopause. So even if you didn’t exercise much your whole life, it is very important to get regular exercise after menopause. Osteoporosis Exercises will help you in many ways• Give you Pain Relief• Increase your bone strength • Increase your muscle strength • Increase your balance • Increase your endurance • Improve your posture • Reduce the chance of falls • Reduce the chance of fractures The key to exercising with osteoporosis is to find the exercises or activities that you enjoy the most. Exercise needs to become a regular part of your life so you need to find ones you enjoy doing or you won’t stay with it. Choosing the right Osteoporosis ExerciseConsult your doctor before starting any osteoporosis exercises. You may need a bone density test and a fitness assessment to determine what exercises are best for you.The easiest weight bearing exercise to do is walking. Walking should be done for 30 to 45 minutes a day, five to six days a week. You don’t have to walk fast. Just walk at a comfortable pace. If you can’t walk for 30 minutes, three walking sessions of 10 minutes is just as good for your bones. My wife and I walk an hour a day, seven days a week. We just love walking! When we were younger we used to walk fast, but now we want to really enjoy ourselves and walking at a comfortable pace is more enjoyable. Running and jogging are excellent weight bearing exercises for some people. But if running or jogging haven’t been part of your regular routine, these exercises may be too much for your bones and leave you at risk for a compression fracture. Start out with walking and ask your doctor before trying running. Other great weight bearing exercises are tennis, dancing, low-impact aerobics, stair climbing, elliptical training machines, bowling, golf, and gardening. My wife taught low impact aerobics at our town’s senior center. She had people who were in their 60’s, 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s enjoying aerobics. Even if your balance isn’t that good, exercises can be modified so that you get the benefit to your bones while remaining safe.
Strength Training for OsteoporosisStrength training (sometimes called resistance training) includes the use of free weights, weight machines, resistance bands or water exercises to strengthen your muscles and bones.You may not have considered weight lifting because you’re not interested in getting big muscles. Lifting weights won’t give you big muscles unless that is what you’re striving for. What it will give you are stronger bones and muscles. Not only will weight lifting give you greater strength, but it will allow you to continue doing all the activities you enjoy doing for many more years. For best results, strength training requires a frequency of three days a week. The weight you use should be enough to lift 10 to 12 times. If you can’t lift it 10 times the weight is too heavy. If you can lift it much more than 12 times it is too light. You should do two or three sets of 10 to 12 repetitions for each of the exercises you perform. As you get stronger you will gradually be able to add weight. Rest a minute between sets of 12 repetitions. If you have osteoporosis you may want to do 12 to 15 repetitions of a lighter weight. Also be careful of exercises that have you bend over and twist at the waist. Bending at the waist could put you at risk for fracture. Make sure you do exercises for your arms, legs, chest, shoulders, and back. When you first start a strength training program you may have sore muscles for a few days following a new exercise.
You can find a free book with instructions for safe exercises at the National Institute on Aging by clicking here Doing Osteoporosis exercises as you age, such as weight bearing exercise and strength training, keeps your bones healthy and reduces your likelihood of falls and fractures. To Your Best Health, Dr. Cliff
Best Treatments for Back Pain Return from Osteoporosis Exercises to Osteoporosis Risk Factors Return from Osteoporosis Exercises to back-pain-treatment-and-relief.com
|
