No More Pain

Posted on December 4, 2013 Updated on January 20, 2014

These are the top exercises you should do to either get out of pain or stay out of pain. Click on the links to see a video on how to perform each exercise. 

Body Weight Squats

This is a great exercise to strengthen the legs and glutes. Having strength in these muscles is crucial when maintaining mobility and stability as we age. This could help prevent you from falling when you get older, which commonly results in broken hips. Preventing a broken hip at an elderly age could save your life.  Strengthening these muscles also takes pressure off of your knees (prevents knee pain) and keeps you mobile, which prevents joints from decaying and stiffening.

Bruggers

This exercise is meant to strengthen your mid and lower traps. Strengthening these muscles is beneficial in reversing the upper crossed syndrome. This syndrome is  a result of slumped shoulders, overactive traps, and tight shoulder/chest muscles. Neck, upper back, and shoulder pain are common side effects of the upper cross syndrome. By strengthening the mid and lower traps your shoulder blades are pulled back and down which takes pressure off of your neck and shoulders. So many things in our life pull us forward (ex. sitting at computer), this is an exercise that will help bring you back and improve your posture.

Bridges

This exercise strengthens your lower back, glutes, and hamstrings. Strengthening your posterior chain is important for the health of your low back. More often then not low back pain is due to a muscular imbalance between your anterior and posterior chain. When you have this imbalance you are prone for injury and something as simple as bending over to pick up your socks can “throw out your back.” By keeping these muscles strong you are stabilizing your lower back, lessening the incidence of injury.

Shoulder Internal/External Rotations

These shoulder exercises are key to keep your rotator cuff strong. It is not common for us to strengthen our shoulders in every day life. So if you do not choose to strengthen them as we age the muscles will atrophy. Once this happens we are prone for shoulder pain and injury. As you know once we are in pain we tend to stay away from what causes the pain. This is how your shoulder range of motion can become restricted, and all of a sudden you have the beginnings of a frozen shoulder. Doing these simple exercises will keep your shoulders strong and out of pain.

Terminal Knee Extensions

This is a simple exercise that may feel like you are doing nothing but it is important in strengthening your VMO (vastus medialis oblique). Strengthening this muscle takes a lot of pressure off of your knees. Preventing knee pain is key because once again it keeps you mobile and active. There is a laundry list of health problems that can set in once you become inactive and sedentary.

Wrist Flexion/Extension

Strengthening your forearms (flexors and extensors) is key in preventing elbow pain. Having strength in this area can prevent tennis elbow as well as golfers elbow. Even though it is not proven by research it could help with slowing down the incidence of carpal tunnel syndrome also.

These simple exercises are easy to do and most of them require little or no equipment so they can be done at home. If you add these six exercises into your routine now you will be thanking yourself in the future.