With age may come wisdom, but in the world of physical acivity, it often also brings some annoying aches and pains. "As you get older, ligaments and tendons tend to get tighter and more brittle, and muscles can decrease in both strength and volume," Vonda Wright, M.D., an assistant professor of orthopedic surgery at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, said. Shoulders, knees, and back are the areas that tend to cause the most trouble.
Retiring to the courch isn't the solution, though. "Exercise is generally very safe, and it has a positive impact on virtually every system in your body," Marcy Goolsby, M.D., a primary care sports-medicine physician at the Hospital for Special Surgery's Women's Sports Medicine Center in New York City, said. That's true even if you start working out later in life: A recent study found that seniors who took up exercise were three times more likely to stay healthy over the next eight years than their more sedentary peers. A few simple exercises can go a long way to helping you stay injury free.
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With their 360-degree range of motion, your shoulders allow you to do everything from swing a golf club to pick something off the top shelf of your closet. Over time, all of that use can cause small tears in the rotator cuff, Wright says. The blood supply to that area is poor, which means it’s more difficult for the body to naturally repair itself.
The fix: Focus on your posture. When you’re sitting in front of a computer, driving, or even just relaxing at home on the couch, once an hour or so roll your shoulders back as you sit up straight. Occasionally stand and stretch: Bring one arm across your body as you gently press it toward your chest with the opposite arm; repeat on the other side.
Try this move: Lie face up on the floor; extend arm straight out to the side. Bend elbow 90 degrees. Keeping elbow on the floor, bring back of hand toward floor (as far as you can without pain), return to center, then palm to floor. Do 10 reps on each side. Repeat with other arm.
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“When your gluteal and quadriceps muscles are too weak to handle the pounding of walking or running, the knees often take the brunt of the impact,” Wright said. Osteoarthritis is also often a problem, from wear and tear due to decades of movement.
The fix: Shore up your stabilizing muscles with exercises such as the wall sit and bridge pose (lie face-up on floor with knees bent and lift hips).
Try this move: Stand with back against a wall and bend knees 90 degrees (keep knees in line with heels). Hold for 10 to 30 seconds. Repeat several times throughout the day.
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About 80 percent of us will have lower-back pain at some point; the chances of succumbing go up with age. Spinal disks can dry out and flatten, Goolsby says. That brings the vertebrae closer together, which can pinch nerves.
The fix: Stretch your hamstrings. Tightness in the back of your thighs can tilt your pelvis and pull your lower back out of alignment. Planks can build core strength, which also protects the back. Start in a full pushup position, straight line from head to toes, and try to hold for 30 to 60 seconds.
Try this move: Sit on the floor with leg extended. Keep back straight and reach forward along that leg until you feel a gentle stretch. Hold 20 seconds. Repeat with other leg.
—Alyssa Shaffer
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This article also appeared in the June 2014 issue of Consumer Reports on Health.
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