When it comes to muscles, bones and movement, there has never been a more true statement than “Use it or Lose it”. That is because as we age, if we don’t continue functional exercises, we will lose our ability to move the way we are supposed to and eventually not be able to do the things that we used to. However, there are many ways to use your muscles in moving your body. I think we can all agree that we always want “the most bang for our buck”. In other words, exercise must be very similar to the activities that we do daily such as bending over, reaching and twisting.
Here are a few simple exercises to prevent you from “losing it”.
1.) Squats at a chair. Stand with a chair behind you. Squat as though you are going to sit and touch your hands behind you to the seat of the chair (but do not sit on the chair) then stand tall. Repeat 8-15 times
2.) Step Ups: Standing at the bottom of the stairs, place one foot on the bottom step and hold it there while the opposite foot goes up and down to that step. Repeat 10-20 times, each leg.
3.) Stand with your arms up in front of you, at shoulder height. Twist your arms, shoulders and hips all together left and right. Repeat 10-20 times.
~ Peter St.Germain, PT