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This article is a transcribed edited summary of a video Bob and Brad recorded in March of 2023. For the original video go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4TKisomaco
Brad: Attention all you seniors, we don't know what qualifies as a senior, but if you're 60 or older these are for you. I fall under that, so that's good. We have a more notable chance of falling as we get older.
Mike: But there are some simple exercises you can do to reduce this risk and we're going to show you 10.
Brad: We've field-tested them all with many patients over the years. They're right on. All right, do these exercises with shoes on so we get a nice grip on the floor. We don't want to fall.
Mike: If you're going to go stocking foot, then you should do it on the carpet so you won't slip and slide anywhere.
Brad: That's right. Shoes are probably better. Okay. Again, we're going to show you 10 exercises. Only do the ones you feel comfortable with. The last four are more advanced so have good judgment with those. We don't want anyone to fall for this.
Mike: And remember to use good posture and form with all these exercises and keep breathing. You don't want to hold your breath, you might just pass out.
Brad: Oh, come on. Exercise number one, is simple, sit to stand. Use your armrest if you need to. Now the goal is to do 10 of them. By the time you get to the 10th one, you should feel a little bit tired. If pushing off isn't necessary, you can cross your hands over your chest and work that. If you want to be more advanced, hands above your head, it makes it more difficult. However, if you're not able to get up from a chair, get a taller chair, put a pillow on it, or like Mike has, a taller surface, like a bed.
Mike: Nice raised surface here. You can use your hands, same as Brad or not. Make sure to get a good base of support. Make it wide. You don't want to be super narrow, this makes it a lot more challenging. So just do 10 of them. Make sure to control on the way down. A lot of people can get up, but then they'll plop down. Don't do that.
Brad: Oh, no, no, no. Okay, we're going to go to number two.
Mike: The next exercise we're going to do is calf and toe raises. So Brad is doing it holding onto a chair. I'm just using the Booyak Stik or a cane for support. You're going to go up on your toes and then rock back up on your heels. How many reps should we do with these, Brad?
Brad: We're going for 10. Once again, if you feel unstable or you have a wiggly chair, you may want to go to a cupboard or a sink where you can wrap your hands around the sink in the kitchen, which works very nicely. Sometimes it's nice to have a chair behind you while you hold onto the sink if you are unstable, you can simply sit down and avoid any falls. So be safe and be careful. From that same position, you can go right into marching, bringing the knees up as high as you feel comfortable. Again, holding onto something if you need to, you may want to face and hold on with both hands so you are stable. Let's talk about repetitions.
Mike: You can do 10 on each leg. It's going to be a little more challenging to alternate. If this is problematic, you can do a single leg at a time and then switch, but you get a little more balanced weight shifting, doing it this way.
Brad: All right, nice work, Mike.
Mike: Okay, exercise four is going to be sidekicks, also known as hip abduction. So you're going to bring your leg out to the side. Try to keep your toe pointed forward the whole time. Don't exaggerate, rotate out, and twist your whole body, you're not a contortionist. So just simply go sideways, nice straight posture, do 10 reps per side, and hold on to support.
Brad: This exercise, just to let you know, if you find yourself waddling when you walk, that's a good time to emphasize this exercise that helps prevent that waddle.
Mike: And we should also add that it's going to work your stationary leg as well as your moving leg and make sure the weight-bearing knee is slightly bent, you don't want to have it locked out, little bend. Okay, the next exercise is known as hip extension. We're simply going to kick our legs straight backward. Leave the leg straight, don't bend the knee, and just go back and forth for 10 repetitions. Don't try to swing and control it. Once you do 10 on one leg, make sure to switch and do the other.
Brad: A very important thing with this exercise is to avoid leaning forward because then you're not working that hip extensor, up tall, shoulders back. You don't have to go high, it's more important to have good form and not go as high.
Mike: If you're curious if this is working, you can place your hand on your buttock, you're kicking back and you should feel your butt muscle firing.
Brad: That's right.
Mike: Okay, the next exercise we're going to do is more of a balancing procedure here. So we're going to slowly bring your feet closer together. If you feel comfortable, you don't have to hold on, you can hold onto a cane, cupboard, whatever, countertop, or chair, and slowly bring them closer and closer together and just try to stand like this. If this is too easy, you can put one foot in front of the other in a tandem stance and try to hold it like this. This is challenging, make sure to hold on, maybe have a chair behind you or someone holding onto you, but this is a good way to challenge your balance.
Brad: Good. And you'll hold that for 15 to 30 seconds. Again, make sure you're steady, and have something to hold onto. Don't try and be a hot shot and have a fall.
Mike: And if that's easy, we're going to progress and get harder with each exercise continuing.
Brad: These are the advanced ones coming up. Okay, we're going to go to the last four. They are advanced, so that means if you need a cane or a walker, you do not want to progress to these. They're going to be too advanced. So you need to be able to walk without anything and feel comfortable walking around without any losses of balance, then you can proceed to the next four. Good luck.
Mike: The next is single-leg balance. So you're going to stand on one leg. The higher your other leg goes, the more challenging it's going to be. Make sure to hold on to support so you feel safe. If it's easy, you can try and let go, just make sure you have something there. You're going to hold this for 10 seconds to start, build up to 25, 30 seconds on each leg.
Brad: A way to progress that makes it nice is two hands, if that's too easy, one hand, if that's too easy, fingertips with both hands. If that's still too easy, just one hand's fingertips. This will make a big difference, a nice little trick we use with patients a lot.
Mike: Exercise eight is going to be tandem walking, so you're going to go heel to toe. Make sure to have a countertop on one side for support or use a cane if you need it. And you're just going to put one foot in front of the other, go slow and controlled. What do you have to say about this, Brad?
Brad: Well, you can actually, if you want to feel more advanced, go backward and make sure your toe touches the heel. This works proprioception, in other words, your mind knows where your feet are without actually seeing them. That's a very important part of your balance that this incorporates.
Mike: When you're starting, if you feel uncomfortable, you can look down, but try not to look at your feet and just feel them through this.
Brad: This is advanced, do not try it unless you can easily walk without a cane or a walker, it's important to do that.
Mike: And you can also go backward. If you don't feel safe going backward in tandem, you can just walk backward, that is another option as well. Exercise 10 is another balance one, we're going to do side-stepping. So we're just going to go sideways. Bring your one foot out, bring the other foot and touch the heel again, and then just go back in the other direction.
Brad: A very good idea for this is using your cupboard, the kitchen countertop, and both hands on the countertop. Again, you can put your hands flat on it and as you feel safe, go to your fingertips and then actually go without touching it at all, but keep your hands above the countertop in case you need to grab it.
Mike: If you feel unsteady at first, you can take little steps and progress the width as you feel more comfortable.
Brad: This one is more important than it looks because oftentimes we sidestep getting throughout the bedroom and the kitchen without knowing about it, and so this helps you maintain balance.
Mike: Small bathrooms too.
Brad: Oh, that's a good point. All right, to finish it up, do all of these or pick two or three that you like and you feel are going to be helpful, and do those and do them daily. You can alternate from day to day, and when you get better, go to the more advanced ones, but be very safe, and take your time.
Mike: I think you meant to say be careful.
Brad: That too as well, yes.
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