Osteoporosis is a Diffuse reduction in the bone density that leads to weakening of the bone. This weakening may lead to fractures, especially of the spine, hip and wrist.  

The Treatment of Osteoporosis consists of Pharmacological options for managing Osteoporosis and Exercises. Most people are not aware of the great benefits that exercises have to sustain healthy bones. Exercises are safest and effective way of building Bone Mineral Density (BMD). Here you will be reading about various form of exercises which would benefit you. Physical activity has been shown to have a positive effect on bone remodeling. The Exercises are said to stimulate osteoblastic activity and improve BMD (Bone mineral density).

Two types of exercises which are recommended for osteoporotic bones are Weight-bearing and Resistance exercises.

Weight-bearing means your legs and feet are bearing your weight, for e.g. Walking, Stair climbing. Patients should walk 15 to 20 minutes, three to four times a week. Overuse injuries can occur if the patient over trains or due to lack of appropriate rest intervals. Casual walking is usually not enough to improve the BMD. Brisk walking is always the exercise of choice for osteoporosis unless contraindicated. Other weight bearing exercises are jogging, climbing stairs.

Non weight-bearing exercises, such as with bicycle ergo meter can also be done. Patients should gradually increase their exercise session by 1 minute on every other session, until they reach their target length of workout. Don’t use inclines on the treadmill.

Resistance training should involve all major muscle groups. Hip extensions, squats, lumbar extensions, leg presses, arm rowing, bicep curls, wrist curls and chest presses are few exercises which can be included in the resistance training. Perform resistance exercises every third day. Consider direct supervision on a one to one basis from a trained Physical therapist.

Precautions have to be taken while doing exercises. Avoid running, rowing machines, high-impact and high velocity aerobic exercises. Also avoid combining flexion and rotation of trunk in case of osteoporosis of spine to reduce stress of vertebrae and its discs. Don’t do torsional movements of hip during weight bearing activities of lower extremities. Avoid resisted end range movements. Last but not the least all the exercises should be supervised by qualified Physical therapist at least initially.



Thanks to S.S.Chandana for contributing this article to our Osteoporosis blog:

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