Standing Bird Dog Crunches improve coordination, core stability, and leg strength, making prolonged standing easier. Side Leg Lifts activate hip stabilizers, reducing fatigue and discomfort when standing for long periods. Calf Raises strengthen lower legs and improve circulation, preventing swelling and muscle fatigue.
“Everyone gets weaker as we age because our muscles start to lose mass, especially the large muscles in our legs that we use to stand.” Getting up also requires balance, coordination, flexibility and aerobic capacity, which can decline over the years.
Erector spinae: These are the muscles that run along your spine and help you maintain an upright posture. Calves (gastrocnemius and soleus): These muscles help in lifting your heels and stabilizing your ankles when you push off the ground to stand.
Arthritis and Joint Degeneration
Arthritis, especially in the spine or hips, can lead to stiffness, pain, and limited mobility. Degeneration of spinal joints may restrict movement and cause you to adopt a forward-leaning posture for relief, making it hard to stand up fully.
Even if your posture has been a problem for years, it's possible to make improvements. Rounded shoulders and a hunched stance may seem like they're set in stone by the time we reach a certain age, and you may feel you've missed the boat for better posture. But there's a good chance you can still stand up taller.
Orthostatic hypotension — also called postural hypotension — is a form of low blood pressure that happens when standing after sitting or lying down. Orthostatic hypotension can cause dizziness or lightheadedness and possibly fainting. Orthostatic hypotension can be mild. Episodes might be brief.
With age, these discs harden and lose flexibility with the inevitable result of compressed total length of the spine and a forward tilt called kyphosis. These aging changes together are called senile kyphosis and are considered a normal part of aging. Muscle mass also changes with age with a process called sarcopenia.
Generalized weakness and difficulty standing can be related to a wide variety of medical conditions. Examples can include organ failure, severe infections, and chronic illnesses. These symptoms can also occur following trauma or injury. The sudden onset of weakness can be a sign of a stroke.
Balance Exercise
1. Feet apart: Stand with feet about shoulder-width apart, eyes open, and hold steady for 10 seconds, working your way up to 30 seconds. If you find yourself swaying or reaching for the wall or counter frequently, just keep working on this exercise until you can do it with minimal swaying or support.
There are lots of reasons why standing up gets harder as we age. It's thought that our tendons get tighter around joints and the cartilage between our joints deteriorates.
If you find it difficult standing up for yourself, you're probably out of touch with your own needs – and overly attuned to other people's. When this happens, you leave yourself wide open to being taken advantage of.
Ataxia usually results from damage to the part of the brain called the cerebellum or its connections. The cerebellum controls muscle coordination. Many conditions can cause ataxia, including genetic conditions, stroke, tumors, multiple sclerosis, degenerative diseases and alcohol misuse.
Be active most days of the week.
Research suggests that activities like walking and easy strength-training moves improve strength and reduce weakness – even in very old, frail adults.
The chief muscles used to sit and stand are your leg and hip muscles (especially quadriceps, hamstrings and glutes), your abdominals and other core muscles, and often, some muscles in your upper body too.
Many things can cause a fall. Your eyesight, hearing, and reflexes might not be as sharp as they were when you were younger. Certain conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease, or problems with your thyroid, nerves, feet, or blood vessels can affect your balance and lead to a fall.
Muscle weakness is commonly due to lack of exercise, ageing, muscle injury or pregnancy. It can also occur with long-term conditions such as diabetes or heart disease. There are many other possible causes, which include stroke, multiple sclerosis, and depression.
Who might get orthostatic hypotension? Anemia or vitamin B12 deficiency. Dehydration from diarrhea, vomiting or diuretics. Endocrine problems, including diabetes, thyroid disease and Addison disease.
It's never too early or late in life to work on improving your posture and how you move. “One way to improve your posture is to be aware of it in the first place,” Zampieri says. “It's important to take a look at your posture before it becomes a problem.
Alignment. Regardless of your sleeping position, try to keep your ears, shoulders, and hips aligned: If you sleep on your back, a small pillow under the back of your knees will reduce stress on your spine and support the natural curve in your lower back.