If your elderly has been complaining of back pain of late, they are not alone. Luckily, there are certain things you can do about that.
Exercises for the elderly can be one of the effective solutions.
Although there are several exercises for reducing your elderly’s back pain, only a few of them are actually effective. In this article, you’ll know about the 5 best exercises that can help your seniors with back pain. What’s more – you can make them do these exercises starting today!
Take a look.
1. The Seated Twist Exercises
The lower back is one of the prime areas where most seniors face severe back pain. Seated Twist Exercises are one of the best chair sit exercises.
Here is how it is done:
- Sit on a particular chair and keep the feet parallel and flat.
- Your knees should be above the ankle.
- Be seated firmly on the chair, try to keep your chin parallel to the ground, lengthen your spine as much as you can and inhale.
- While exhaling, hold on to your chair back and draw the bottom of your belly all into the spine. Then twist it to the right.
- When you have completed it, do the same with your other side.
2. Bridging
Bridging helps with lower back pain as well as strengthens the core. Perform this exercise three to five times a week to get the best results. The best part of this exercise is that the elderly can also do it in bed.
Here is how to do it right:
- To start with, lay down on a yoga mat or any other kind of padded surface (a bed would do just fine.)
- Keep your arms at the sides and bend the knees.
- Keep the hips in a neutral position with your feet flat on the ground/mat.
- Raise your bottom so that your spine isn’t touching the mat.
- Tighten the buttocks, hold them for a few seconds, and lower your bottom on the mat again.
You can expect your seniors to walk and stand properly following this exercise.
3. Sit-Back
Sit-backs fall in the intermediate-difficulty category, but they are still easy to do. As they help improve the back strength, you can expect your elderly to move and walk with ease.
Here is how to do it right:
- Sit on the floor, keeping your knees bent, your back straight, and your feet in front of you.
- Then take your arms over the chest and place your palms on the shoulders or the upper arms.
- Don’t bend your knee; look forward and slowly lean back.
- Lean back as much as possible, keeping the back straight, and then come back slowly to the initial position.
- Repeat the mentioned steps 10 more times.
4. The Forward Fold Exercise
This exercise can be a bit amusing to do. Imagine that you are tying a shoe and think of it less as an exercise. Here are the steps:
- Sit on an available chair, and fold over the legs.
- Try your best to touch the ground
- Inhale and rise to some extent.
- Then exhale with your nose in between the knees
- Repeat for five times
5. One-leg Balance
This is probably one of the simplest exercises on this list with minimal explanation.
Here are the steps:
- Place any chair in front of you to act as support.
- Keep the shoulders and feet apart, look forward and lift one of your legs.
- Hold it for 10 seconds, let it down onto the floor, and then do the same with the other leg.
- Repeat it 10 to 12 times.
Final Word
It is normal for seniors to complain of back pain. With age, our back loses its strength and makes people lean forward as they walk to maintain their posture. The exercises mentioned above will solve most of your elderly back issues if done right regularly. However, if the pain still persists, consider seeing your doctor.