[Exercise] 3 major muscles that must be trained for healthier old age

- 30% of people over the age of 65 years experiences fall at least once a year.

- Training of gluteus maximus, quadriceps femoris muscle and calf muscles is most important to prevent falling.

- Ability to balance body and to walk deteriorates if the muscles of the lower limbs weaken.

- You must take precautions not to impart undue impact to joints to prevent damages to musculoskeletal system when exercising.

🌟 Risks of and importance of prevention of falling

- What is falling?

- It refers to being hurt as the result of falling or tripping down (or injuries thereof).

- Frequency of falling

- In fact, it is a very common accident with approximately more than 30% and 40% of people over the ages of 65 years and 80 years, respectively, experiencing a fall at least once a year, and it is necessary to pay attention to prevention of falls.

- Risks of falling

- Falling is the cause of traumatic brain damage, spinal damage and fracture of various parts of the body.

- Falling is fatal for elderlies (5th ranked cause of death of aged population).

- Possibility of preventing falling

- Specialists point out weakening of the lower limb muscle strength as the key cause of the occurrence of falling in elderly population.

- It is because the weakened lower limb muscle strength lowers the ability to balance body and to walk.

- Therefore, in order to prevent falling, exercises aimed at increasing the lower body muscle strength are necessary.

- Moreover, precautions need to be exercised at the time of exercising to ensure there is no undue impact to the joint to prevent damages to musculoskeletal system.

🌟 3 major muscles for prevention of falling

1) Gluteus maximus

- It is the most important muscle used in getting up and walking, and is closely related to the health of waist.

- Movements that are helpful in developing gluteus maximus

- Squat (exercise in which a person repeats sitting down as if pulling the hip backwards while ensuring that the knees do not protrude ahead of the feet and then getting up)

- Bridge (exercise in which a person assumes supine posture and raising the hip off the floor while maintaining the knees upward at about right angle)

2) Quadriceps femoris muscle

- It is a muscle situated at the front of thigh and used most extensively when sitting down and getting up.

- Since it plays the role of protecting and reducing the pain of knee joints, quadriceps femoris muscle must be trained if one has inflammation of knee joints.

- Movements that are helpful in developing quadriceps femoris muscle

- Squat

- Walking up stairs

- Extending knees while seated on a chair

3) Calf muscles

- It is referred to as the ‘2nd heart’ and plays the role of a pump in the lower limbs in order for blood that left the heart to return to the heart after having gone through arteries, capillary vessels and vein.

- Movements that are helpful in developing calf muscles

- Lifting up the heel while standing erect

- Light skipping rope

- PT exercise

Resolution to exercise is important for healthy old age. You must not allow your muscle strength and sense of balance to deteriorate by neglecting exercise. Fortify muscle strength and sense of balance by exercising continuously.