As we age things start to get harder and harder, things that used to feel so simple are not more challenging. When was the last time you tried to get up and down from the ground? Was it when you were gardening outside and had to get up to move some plants? Or was it when you were playing with your kid’s/grandkids and had to bounce up to go chase them? In either case, you may have been frustrated with how hard it was to get up and off the ground.
You may have thought back to your younger days and remember how you used to move around so easily and you wonder what happened. While it may be a little harder than it used to be the good news it is an easy thing to work on.
Today I want to share with you a few exercises that I think will help people get on and off the ground easier. These exercises are nothing special but I do think that they put you in similar positions that you must be comfortable and strong in to get on and off the ground.
Step Ups
The thing that makes getting on and off the ground harder than getting up and down from a chair is that you are obviously lower and have to move a further distance, but also when you get up of the ground you generally use one leg at a time instead of both. Steps ups are a great exercise to increase single leg strength in a good and safe position.
To execute a proper Step Up:
Bear Hold
Having a strong and stable core is extremely important for getting up and down of of the ground. A bear hold is a great exercise to help strengthen our core and it puts you in an all 4s position on the ground.
To execute a proper Bear Hold:
½ Kneeling Cable Row
Now a half kneeling cable row is a great exercise to build upper back strength but it also forces you to create some stability in a half kneeling position. The best way to get up from the ground is to first get into a half kneeling position.
To execute a proper ½ Kneeling Cable Row:
Getting up and down of the ground
Yes the best way to get more comfortable getting up and down of the ground is to actually get up and down of the ground. Simple right? Exercise does not always have to be super complex, sometimes simple is better. So pretty much any exercise where you have to get up and down off of the ground will help you practice.
With all of this being said I completely understand that if you struggle to get up and down off of the ground you may not want to do it at the gym and feel uncomfortable.
I want to ask you this question though? If you know that being able to get up and down off of the ground will improve your quality of life and you don’t feel comfortable working on that at the gym is your gym a good place for you?
The gym should be comfortable environments where you can try things you struggle with because you know it will benefit your everyday life.
This is the exact environment we create a Core Principles, a place where people 50 and better can come workout with other people like themselves, feel comfortable and not judged, and work on improving their quality of life outside of the gym.
If this sounds like a place you could see yourself out please send an email to info@coreprinciples-sc.com or give us a call/text @ 203-914-6396.
