Osteoporosis – how does exercise help this condition?
Longevity Exercise Physiology and Personal Training Edgecliff, Lindfield, Marrickville, Randwick, Drummoyne, Balmain and Bella Vista today look at osteoporosis and exercise.
Osteoporosis is a condition that affects the bones and is characterised by low bone mass and deterioration in bone quality. It is mostly found in the lower back, hips and wrist. It is caused by an imbalance in the amount of bone that is laid down and taken away, which the body regulates through special hormones and chemical reactions in the body to keep the health of bone tissue. Old or damaged bone is removed and replaced with new, healthy bone and during ageing this process becomes unbalanced in which a lower volume of new bone is laid down, eventually leading to osteoporosis.
If we break exercise down into either cardiovascular (aerobic) exercise such as walking, running, swimming or cycling, and resistance exercise such as doing bodyweight exercises, machine based or lifting free weights – it is most beneficial for your bones to do resistance exercise 2-3 times per week.
At about 30 years of age, your bones are the strongest and most dense they will be, essentially, they ‘peak’ at this age. Unfortunately the density of your bones begins to decline slowly after this age. There are many factors that influence the density of your bones apart from age. These include gender, physical activity, diet, smoking, excess alcohol consumption, family history and some medication use. A lot of these factors are not in your control – so I like to educate my clients on the ones they can control – diet and exercise.
If we break exercise down into either cardiovascular (aerobic) exercise such as walking, running, swimming or cycling, and resistance exercise such as doing bodyweight exercises, machine based or lifting free weights – it is most beneficial for your bones to do resistance exercise 2-3 times per week.
As mentioned before the most important type of exercise is resistance training. This doesn’t mean having to lift weights at a gym, it can include performing bodyweight resistance exercises or using a theraband. In my experience the best outcomes do involve using gym-based equipment, however there is no reason you can’t be performing a tailored weight bearing program at home. Resistance exercise will help to strengthen the muscles, which in turn will aid strengthening the bones. The other benefit of performing regular resistance exercise is improved balance which leads to a reduction in falls risk. As we get older, we can have the tendency to lose our balance more easily, thus increasing our risk of a fall and fracturing a bone.
Contact Longevity Personal Training and Exercise Physiology Edgecliff, Lindfield, Marrickville, Randwick, Drummoyne, Balmain, Bella Vista on 1300 964 002 to enquire today about the best type of program to maintain your bone health.
Written by Susannah Mah-Chut
