When we were kids, just a few years ago, our aches, pains and sprains responded nicely to rest, ice, compression and elevation. All designed to decrease swelling and hasten the healing process. In a few days we would be fine and ready to move on. It’s a bit different now; as a senior you know that a sprained ankle, a sore back, or a tender knee can still bother you a year later.
It’s bad enough dealing with pain after an injury, but when you stiffen up from sitting in one position too long or wake up hurting all over, it gets old in a hurry.
We still feel young and we are as active as we have ever been, but something has happened. We learn that muscles, tendons, ligaments, and connective tissue lose flexibility as we get older; if we want to be comfortable and we want to keep moving we have to figure a few things out.
Talk to a member of your health care team about ways to improve strength and flexibility. It is very likely that they will recommend yoga, or give you a series of exercises based on yoga poses. There is a reason why people have been doing these very same stretching exercises for over 3,000 years; they work.
It is unfortunate that many of the people who need flexibility exercises the most (the injured, elderly, overweight and less fit individuals) feel intimidated by the idea.
They may think that yoga is for young, agile athletes who can bend themselves into pretzels; not something older people could possibly do, but don’t give up so readily. There are many styles of yoga, or exercise groups like Stretch and Pray, that can help you achieve your goals. Yoga is still yoga even if you use a chair, a pillow, a blanket, or a variety of yoga props to ease you into nice therapeutic stretches.
Look for videos or classes that use the words gentle, senior, chair, or therapeutic in the title. No matter what you call it, gentle stretching is the perfect way to start your day.
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