Most people over the age of 60 have difficulty with their joints – and this is often a common sign of aging. Yet, one of the main reasons for this health issue is due to the activity that took place in their younger years. While a bad back and stiff neck may be written off as a typical senior concern, there are many ways you can prevent your joints from strains, dislocation and arthritis by making sensible decisions throughout your life. To remain ache and injury-free, both now and in the years ahead, here are some useful tips to take on board to project your posture and joints:
Maintain a Healthy Weight
First thing’s first – a healthy weight is crucial for protecting your joints. Carrying around extra pounds puts additional stress on bones and joints that can severely increase the risk of developing osteoarthritis. With this in mind, you should find out your BMI and discover whether you are underweight, average or overweight. If you are assessed to be overweight, it would be worth making an appointment with your GP to determine a suitable weight-loss plan to meet your needs, both through diet and exercise.
Get Regular Exercise
If you are not one for getting daily exercise, you could be causing your joints more harm than good. As bones are living cells, they are constantly growing and repairing, which means movement is crucial to continue the process. Without some daily physical activity, your bones could start to weaken as you age, leaving you with crumbling and fragile joints.
Don’t lift or push Heavy Items
As a young adult, you may not be aware of the damage you are causing to your body when lifting and pushing heavy items. However, doing so is putting severe strain on bones and joints. If objects need to be transported from place to place, always ensure that you have assistance to share the weight evenly between you. For manual jobs such as clearing snow, shoveling can be a major cause of spine, neck and joint pain and can lead to long-term issues. Troy-Bilt snow blowers, on the other hand, can do the work for you with minimal effort. All that’s required is to hold the machine in place to clear the way.
Maintain Proper Posture
If you sit at a desk all day for work, you may find that you are suffering from neck and back pain, which are common symptoms of poor posture. With many employees now being expected to work from home in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, you may not have the suitable furniture to support your body, which could have a knock-on effect on your health and well being. Invest in an ergonomic chair to keep your spine correctly aligned and maintain a 90-degree angle for your joints. For every hour sitting down, get up and walk around for a couple of minutes to improve blood flow and prevent muscles and joints stiffening.
