Strength Training Exercises For Prevention Of Osteoporosis
So you’re wondering what the best way to prevent osteoporosis is? According to some experts who specialize in bone health management, it’s exercising. To be more specific, muscle mass strength training exercises offer a lot of benefits for men and women who are at the risk of bone damage or loss from osteoporosis.
Strength training, also known as resistance training, uses resistance from free weights, water exercises, resistance bands or weight machines to help in building and strengthen mass in muscles. Lifting weights can also help the bones in preventing mineral loss that can weaken the bones. In fact, according to several sports doctors, strength training will indeed increase your bone strength, reducing the risk of osteoporosis, which improves the strength of connective tissues, increasing joint stability and the functional strength of muscles.
If you already happen to have osteoporosis, these strength training exercises can still be of benefit to you in many ways. You should always consult with your doctor or your physical therapist to design a workout program that will benefit and strengthen your bones, without increasing the risk of compression fractures or stress.
If your main intention is to prevent osteoporosis altogether, you should then work with heavier weights and use more resistance. A study conducted by a well known Sport Medicine University, which has published in Medicine and Science in Sports, gives some further answers to that. In a study, the scientists recruited a test group of 150 post menopausal women who led sedentary lifestyles for at least a year. These women had a regimen of workouts at least three time’s a week or less. The women were instructed to perform eight exercises which were specifically chosen to workout particular muscle groups. The scientists took bone scans before and after the controlled study. The results showed that the exercises that were performed had a positive measurable effect on the hip bones, which is the most common fracture areas in post menopausal women. The study also found that the greater the total weight lifted, the greater the benefit was to the bones.
If you are just starting a resistance or strength training program yourself, sports doctors as well as physical therapists offer the following tips:
Tips To Prevent Osteoporosis
- First, always consult your doctor or health professional or follow a specific program designed by your physical therapist, which takes your body type, as well as your strengths and needs into account.
- Work out at a health club or your local gym under the strict supervision of health professionals, who can help you monitor and adjust your workout program.
- Make sure you start out slow and build up gradually. Strength and resistance training is a slow steady process.
- Never increase the weights while resistance training more than 10 to 15% at one time. Increasing more will just risk injury.
- Always lift and lower free weights slowly. Avoid ‘jerking’ them up or down to avoid injuries.
- Perform the resistance workouts every third day.
- Avoid those exercises that will put too much strain on your joints and bones, also avoid using the rowing machine. The bending that is required puts your spine at a risk of compression fractures.
If any area of your joints or muscles are particularly tender or stiff immediately after your workout, apply some ice to it for 10 to 15 minutes to reduce inflammation.
Proper exercise, along with weight control and a healthy diet all contribute to keeping your bones strong, as well as preventing the loss of bone mass density due to osteoporosis. So go ahead and do your bones a favor, and give them a good workout a few of times a week.
