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This article is a transcribed edited summary of a video Bob and Brad recorded in August of 2023. For the original video go to https://youtu.be/WsQGHKQS-78
Brad: So walking is a preferred exercise by many doctors and therapists to keep our bodies healthy and fit as we age.
Mike: However, there are many reasons that seniors are unable to walk whether it's arthritis, knee pain, diabetes, or neuropathy. There's a whole array of issues that can limit your walking ability.
Brad: So what we have done is we have a list of exercises we're going to show you how to do in a chair that are going to help you get fit and thrive. All right, so we have eight seated exercises and we're going to go through this. I'm going to talk a little bit about the exercises as you're doing them. The first thing is not an exercise, but a warmup. Brief and simple. Take a deep breath, and in through your nose, exhale out your mouth. Do that two or three times. You can bring your arms up like this just to stretch, wake you up, and get you ready to go.
Brad: All right, the first one's very simple. Make sure you're scooted back in the chair. Good posture. And we simply are going to do what we call kicks or long arc quads. 10 on each leg, or 20 if you count right, and left.
Brad: Now we want to think about sitting. Sitting has become the new smoking. Now if you haven't heard that before, the reason that is Mayo Clinic analyzed 13 studies on long-term sitting, that would be eight hours per day. And for those people who sit that long, their death rate or their life expectancy is decreased equal to the amount of people who smoke daily. So that's how that term came along. Are you at 20 yet, Mike?
Mike: I am.
Brad: Let's go to the next exercise. Seated, good posture, and marching up as high as you can go with each knee. Again, 20 total or 10 on each side. You could do more or less. This should take about three minutes plus or minus, depending on how many you do and your speed. So as you continue to do these exercises, you're moving the joints throughout your body. The motion in the joints is a very healthy aspect for the joint synovial fluid, moves, more nutrients get throughout the joint and will help your arthritis.
Mike: For the next exercise, we're going to simply sit down and reach laterally with each leg and tap out as far as you comfortably can. We're going to do 10 repetitions on both sides. This is going to work the outside of the hip muscles and the inside a little bit. Just get things moving and feel good.
Brad: That's right. Now a little tip as we do these exercises, think about when you get up in the morning, one of the first things you'll want to do is go drink at least two glasses of water. Make sure you do that before you get to your coffee. All right.
Mike: The next exercise we're going to do is W's. It's going to work your upper body. So if you look at the shape of my arms and head, it makes a nice "W" shape. We're going to do 10 repetitions. Make sure to have a nice, good posture when you do this.
Brad: Yeah, so make sure you breathe in as you go back, and exhale as you go forward. Don't do these too fast. It's important that we take our time, and get a stretch, and this helps the shoulders. It helps you breathe. Get that oxygen in, and carbon dioxide out. It's a very good posture help and shoulders, and just getting you more awake.
Mike: The next exercise is a seated trunk rotation. So I'm just simply twisting to the right and left. Go what pain-free range you have. If you have a chair with armrests like this, you can also place your hand on them and hold it for three to five seconds, and then rotate the other direction. Just get a nice stretch with the rotation.
Brad: So this is a nice exercise to do. Make sure to relax. But this is one of those things that is a functional exercise with you're looking, so you can look to the side. If you're still driving, look behind you. It really helps. That helps the mid-back and lower back with all kinds of activities. Relax and enjoy it.
Mike: You said still driving, I thought you were saying do this while you're driving. Don't do it while driving. In the next exercise, you're going to bring your arms and hands out in front of you and you're going to simply make a fist and open your hand. You're going to try to do 10 repetitions in total. Get those fingers moving and feeling good.
Brad: That's right. You have to remember there are 27 joints, and 34 muscles in each hand. There are a lot of areas that can get stiff and arthritic and painful. This will help them out and get you more functional and moving throughout the day.
Mke: And Brad knows the name of every joint and muscle in there.
Brad: Well, I had it memorized.
Mike: Now we're going to work the neck muscles. So we're going to rotate to the right and left. Just turn as far as you comfortably can. Brad's going to show if you want a little extra stretch, what you can do.
Brad: So we're going to keep our shoulders stationary and look to the right then to the left. To get a little extra stretch, gently take your fingertips and just add a little pressure. We do not need to get aggressive with the neck, but a little extra stretch can be helpful. Again, good judgment with this. Not too hard. Oh, it feels good.
Mike: And the last exercise is sit-to-stands. So simply sit down and stand up. Do five to 10 repetitions total. If you need to use your armrests, you certainly can. If you don't need to use them, you can simply cross your arms. A good thing to focus on when you are sitting down is to make sure you have nice good control. If you fall back into the chair, you still need to use your armrest. Also, if you have trouble getting up, try scooting your butt forward, sitting upright, leaning slightly forward, and then getting up for proper technique.
Brad: This is a very functional exercise. You use a lot of large muscles. Your heart rate's going to go up with this. You're going to get a little bit of cardio benefits from this. So work on it, be safe, and I'll work up to 10 repetitions, more if you would like to. Be comfortable with it and don't overdo it. All right, so that concludes it. But you must sit down, rest, take a couple deep breaths again just, as we started, and make sure you get a glass of water to rehydrate. It will take a little bit of extra out of you. So rehydrate and fuel that system.
Mike: How often should they do this routine?
Brad: Well that's a good question. Once a day. If you want to do it twice a day, that would be good. But if you're very sedentary, just once a day to start with, take a break the next day if you have sore muscles.
Mike: For more great seated exercises check out our videos: "10 Minute Seated Exercises for Seniors, Elderly, & Older People" and "Seated Exercises for Older Adults- 10 BEST By Bob and Brad."
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