The Elderly Shuffle

Do you notice that sometimes as people get older, they shuffle their feet when they walk? Many times this is due to fear of tripping and falling so they don’t pick up their feet. In actuality, they increase their chance of tripping by NOT picking up their feet. Sometimes, they have had hip or knee surgery and have not fully recovered from their surgery. After a surgery like that, it is very important that they work with a health practitioner to regain full or as close to full as possible range of motion in their hips and knees.

For the people who have not had knee or hip injuries, it is of vital importance that you continue to use your hip and knee joints to their full capacity. Muscle strength declines by 15 percent per decade after age 50 and 30 percent per decade after age 70. Elderly who are out of condition and sedentary, should be encouraged to improve their functional ability with strength and balance training before beginning aerobic exercise.

Working out in a gym or at home doing exercises to strengthen the legs and increase flexibility is a great way to keep your legs in tip top shape.  Other simple ways to keep your legs strong are climbing stairs or repeatedly rising from a chair. You can purchase exercise bands from many department stores or pharmacies. They are a great way to get those muscles into shape and keep them there. Many community centers are now offering yoga classes for the elderly. This is yet another great way for someone to work on their balance, strength and flexibility. Make sure before starting any exercise routine to check with your physician.

Massage is also beneficial in keeping your legs healthy as you get older. There are therapist out there that specialize in massaging the elderly. This modality is known as geriatric massage. It helps with the circulation and flexibility that keeps those legs and the whole body happy.

The American Academy of Family Physicians has a great article on the elderly and exercises. http://www.aafp.org/afp/20020201/419.html

The old saying of use it or loose it is true. Keep moving so you can keep moving. Thanks for reading, PJ Harris, LMP. http://pjharris.com

Benefits of Yoga

Many of the clients coming to my Seattle treatment massage practice suffer from a lack of flexibility and/or a lack of strength in their muscles. I believe these issues are often the ultimate cause of their pain. One of the most effective ways to increase your strength and flexibility is with yoga.

Yoga is an ancient form of movement developed by yogis to support their bodies while they sit and meditate for hours on end. Do you sit for hours on end? At least you probably have a chair back.

Some of the benefits of yoga are as follows:

Strength
Yoga offers a gentle way to build strong healthy muscles with a lower risk of injury than most types of strengthening exercises. This gentle build offers a full body muscle balance that is, in my opinion, second to none. This can make you strong enough to withstand the stress of a modern body.

Flexibility
I don’t know of a more effective activity for flexibility than Yoga. Except for a circus performer, who is more flexible than a person that practices yoga. A flexible body has less chance of injury, increased efficiency and greater capacity for relaxation.

Body Awareness
Many people’s main focus in their lives is outward. This can increase their occurrence of injury because they are not fully aware of where there body is and what it is up to. They might injure themselves and have no idea how it happened. Body awareness is an important step to having a injury free life. Yoga increases body awareness and balance.

Breath
As stated in my previous post on the breath, the practice of deepening and focusing on your breath is a most powerful relaxation tool. Most of us breathe shallow and yoga teaches us to breathe deep, clear our nasal passages and calm our nervous system.

Mind Calming
When we are focusing on our bodies and our breath the mind naturally calms itself. We are more present to the now and less focused on our worries as we enjoy the movement of our bodies.

Circulation
Better breathing practices and increase in movement are key ways to improve your circulation. The different angles that yoga puts your body in work wonders with relieving and improving the strength of your blood and lymph vessels.

Yoga Journal has a pretty decent yoga studio search directory. Click this link and scroll down to the bottom of the page.

Thanks for reading. I would love to hear about anyone’s experience with yoga in the comments section. PJ Harris, LMP http://pjharris.com