Benefits of Exercise and Posture Correction to Reduce Back Pain for Senior Citizens

Has your doctor ever told you that you have pain “because, after all, you are 60 years old.”  Or 50, 49, 72, or 84 years old.

Doctors often neglect–simply because they don’t know–the roles of your muscles and posture as causes of pain.

However, poor posture typically means that your back muscles have become weak and they’re allowing you to collapse forward.

At the same time, the muscles in the front of your body shorten, just because they are used more.  Those short, tight muscles pull you forward.

The goal is to strengthen the muscles in your back from your knees to your skull and to lengthen the muscles on the whole front side of your body and arms (except shin muscles).

Here are some of the benefits of senior citizens exercising and doing movements to get a straighter, stronger back:

• You will have less back pain. You won’t strain your back muscles.
• It will be easier to breathe.  You won’t be squashing your lungs.
• There will be less pressure on your internal organs so they can function better (heart, etc.) because you’re not squashing them.
• You will feel better about yourself because you will be straighter and taller.
• You will have less pain in your neck, arms and hands.  Maybe even your feet!
• You’ll have less constipation. (Increased movement helps your bowels move.  Straighter posture takes compression off your intestines so they have more space to move.)  If your intestines are squashed from collapsed posture, it’s hard for the contents to move and empty.
• Your blood and lymph circulation will improve. There will be more space for movement.
• Your strength will improve as your whole body gets more into balance–the muscular balance and strengthen that you used to have.
• And, your balance will be better and that’s really important!  Good balance keeps us from getting old and literally falling over.

If you go to SimpleStrengthening.com you will find lots of articles  which explain both why people have pain and how simple strengthening movements, that you can even do in bed, are done.

You can see there are many benefits for you, as a senior citizen, to exercise, move, stretch and get a straighter, stronger back.

And that’s a good thing.

Remember, posture and muscles are often overlooked or ignored in the medical community but now you know that you really can get rid of back pain (and other pain) by correcting your posture.

Correcting your posture includes strengthening your back side and lengthening and stretching your front side.

The good news is that becoming stronger and straighter and getting rid of back pain naturally is doable at virtually any age.

Does it take effort and some time?  Yes.

Is it hard?  Doesn’t have to be.

Another way to help your back relax is to breathe.  Breathing uses all of the muscles around your rib cage and spine.

When I lead a retreat for women or private coaching, I share simple, easy movements including things like stretching, strengthening and breathing to create the benefits of less pain, more strength and better posture for natural back pain relief.