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Yoga is the perfect exercise.?? Our Senior Center yoga instructor is determined to keep her students from developing a dowager?s hump.? Her other passion is making sure that we can swivel out necks around to look behind us, which is not as easy as it sounds. ??I think about her and appreciate her efforts every time I look over my shoulder to change lanes or back up my car.
Last week the entire session focused on exercises and stretches that involve the spine.?? A proud erect posture may require some effort on your part.?? I am sure you will agree that there are days when your head feels really heavy.? Your neck and shoulders may ache, and it takes a conscious effort to roll your shoulders back and look straight ahead.? It is at times like this that a good yoga session is worth its weight in gold.? If you haven?t tried yoga you might be missing out on something really important in your life.
When we were kids our mother?s were always reminding us to stand up straight and not to slouch.? I am not sure when that piece of advice stopped being in vogue, but Elizabeth Welch reminds us (Chiropractic Journal: January 2012) that the bent over posture seen in older people starts at an early age. ??A youth slumped in front of a television or computer for hours on end may very well be inviting problems further on down the road.? The head is heavy and letting it slouch forward habitually may lead to tiny breakdowns throughout the spine.
?Age related changes in the body increase the odds of getting osteoporosis, dowager?s hump, and fractures. ??Many undesirable changes (waning strength, flabby physique, failing health, faulty memory and dowager?s hump) were once thought to be inevitable signs of old age, but that isn?t necessarily written in stone. ??Today we know that bone disease can be prevented and walking around looking down at your feet is not inevitable.
What does that dowager?s hump mean to you and to your bid for independent living? ?If you lose the ability to walk, stand up straight, or dress yourself without pain it is difficult to take of yourself.?? Bone health is important but it isn?t all about taking the right drugs.? Get moving now and you can slow, stop or even reverse some of these changes.? You?ve heard all of the recommendations: calcium, vitamin D, maintaining a health weight, being physically active and minimizing the risk of falls.
Good posture is still important. Osteoporosis doesn?t happen overnight.? The slow erosion of bone happens slowly and quietly, without your knowing it.? Tiny fractures can steel inches from your height and collapse your posture and ultimately the dowager?s hump.? Learn all that you can about bone disease and stride into the future confidently.
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