LIVE LONGER & LIVE STRONGER
Exercises
Learn more about medical conditions and benefits related to exercise.
Health Problem
Arthritis
How it could affect you
This is an inflammatory condition of the joints that can cause pain and swelling throughout the body. If knees, hips, or feet are affected, mobility and postural control could become more difficult.
Exercise can help because
Activity improves the lubrication of the impacted joints. Exercise can also help you maintain your flexibility. Exercise helps strengthen tendons and ligaments, and it helps to maintain their elasticity. This helps stabilise the joints so they can work more efficiently.
Positive improvements
You will be able to keep doing daily tasks like washing your hair, putting on your shoes, and walking more easily. It will also help to reduce joint pain and stiffness. The goal is also to improve your overall quality of life
Health Problem
Lower Back Pain
How it could affect you
Back pain can be felt from the spine down to the hips. However, typically, the most common type of back pain is lower back pain.
Exercise can help because
Exercises that strengthen the muscles in your back help to support the spine and remove pressure from the spinal discs and facet joints. This can help to relieve some of that lower back pain that you may be feeling.
Positive improvements
Having good posture is one of many things that can help reduce your risks of trips and falls. By having good posture, you can also alleviate back pain, which can help you enjoy the things you love in life again rather than being in pain.
Health Problem
Depression, Anxiety and Stress
How it could affect you
This can range from lasting feelings of unhappiness and hopelessness to losing interest in the things you used to enjoy and feeling very tearful.
Exercise can help because
Exercise can release endorphins, which can naturally relieve pain, elevate your mood, and relieve depressive symptoms.
Positive improvements
Increased social support and reduced loneliness if exercise is done with other people. Improved sleep quality.
Health Problem
Constipation, Bloating and Feeling Uncomfortable
How it could affect you
Constipation can make it painful to pass stools and may make you bloated, sluggish or have stomach cramps.
Exercise can help because
Taking part in exercise can help increase blood flow to your organs, including your gastrointestinal tract. By bringing more blood to the gastrointestinal tract, you could get stronger intestinal contractions and more digestive enzymes, which can help ease this issue.
Positive improvements
Feel more energetic and comfortable with less wind to deal with! More regular bowel movements.
Health Problem
Feet, Ankles and Legs (Oedema)
How it could affect you
A build-up of fluid in the feet, ankles, or legs could cause these areas to swell, which can be extremely uncomfortable. This is typically called oedema.
Exercise can help because
Regular exercise can increase the flow of lymph fluid, which is the fluid that can cause this swelling. Therefore, exercise helps to move this fluid away from the swollen areas
Positive improvements
By taking part in some of these regular exercises, you could increase your chance of getting rid of this uncomfortable swelling.
Health Problem
Can’t Sleep at Night with Frequent Visits to the Loo
How it could affect you
Insomnia means you regularly have problems sleeping. It usually gets better by changing your sleeping habits. Frequent visits to the loo.
Exercise can help because
Exercising during the day will help muscles relax and rest at night. It also helps fluid circulate from legs to kidneys during the day rather than at night.
Positive improvements
By getting a better night’s sleep, you could feel more alert and energetic during the day. It also helps reduce the risk of developing dementia.
Health Problem
Loss of Muscle and Strength
How it could affect you
As much as 40% of muscle strength could be lost between the ages of 35 and 70. This muscle mass can continue to decrease by another 30% with each decade after that. This limits the ability to perform many daily activities.
Exercise can help because
Exercise is essential to keep this muscle mass from deteriorating. Exercise can also help to improve your muscle strength, endurance, immune function, and more.
Positive improvements
By doing these exercises, you could improve your likelihood of being able to take part in activities you enjoy, like gardening, as you get older.
Health Problem
Parkinson's Disease
How it could affect you
Parkinson’s is a progressive disease that impacts the brain and the rest of the nervous system. It can cause tremors, imprecise movement, and more.
Exercise can help because
People with Parkinson’s have a better chance of maintaining their balance and mobility when they take part in regular exercise. Exercise could also help slow the progression of the disease.
Positive improvements
By taking part in regular exercise, those with Parkinson’s could maintain flexibility to perform daily activities like reaching for objects from a shelf and getting dressed. Exercise also enhances the efficacy of levodopa therapy.
Health Problem
High Blood Pressure
How it could affect you
Unfortunately, high blood pressure, or hypertension, rarely has many noticeable symptoms, which makes it difficult to detect. However, if it goes untreated, you are much more likely to experience a heart attack or stroke.
Exercise can help because
Exercise will not only lower blood pressure, but it also has a role in primary prevention of hypertension. Exercising will also keep the heart muscle strong and aid in circulation throughout the body.
Positive improvements
By taking part in regular exercise, you’ll reduce your chance of needing to take regular medication later on in life. A stronger heart can pump more blood with less effort.
Health Problem
Osteopenia / Osteoporosis
How it could affect you
Osteopenia, or osteoporosis, is a condition that can weaken bones, which makes them more likely to break. Typically, it can only be diagnosed after a fall which resulted in a bone break.
Exercise can help because
Certain types of exercise, including weight-bearing exercises and resistance exercises, are crucial for improving bone density and helping to prevent osteoporosis from even developing. By having muscles pull on bone, you’ll stimulate bone growth, which makes bones stronger.
Positive improvements
Exercising can increase your independence for activities of daily living. By partaking in exercises, you’ll also improve your balance, decrease your fall risk, and increase your physical self-confidence. Exercise will also help you to improve and maintain bone density.
Health Problem
Urinary Incontinence
How it could affect you
Urinary incontinence is the unintentional passing of urine. Weak or damaged pelvic floor muscles can cause urinary incontinence, so exercising these muscles is often recommended.
Exercise can help because
Improving strength of deep abdominal muscles will also mean stronger pelvic floor muscles. Exercise stimulates muscle tone and thirst, which stimulates urine flow.
Positive improvements
Exercise could make it easier to control the urge to urinate. This could make you less fearful of accidents happening. It could also increase your water consumption during the day, which could allow you to be more hydrated.
Health Problem
Injury
How it could affect you
Sprains and strains are common injuries affecting the muscles and ligaments. They can happen when you overstretch or twist a muscle.
Exercise can help because
Exercise increases strength, flexibility, and balance. These different elements lessen your likelihood of experiencing a fall. Exercise also encourages better posture and body alignment.
Positive improvements
You could experience less pain if your muscles are stronger. Exercise can reduce the chance of falls and injury
Buy Our Strength & Balance DVD
The aim of our DVD is to increase physical activity, reduce the risk of falls and increase independence through exercise interventions. The exercises are specially recommended for people who are looking to improve functional fitness such as strength, balance, endurance and getting up and down from the floor safely.