Prevent sarcopenia!
Chair yoga for more strength
Most people know that exercise is good for the body and mind, but did you know that it is also a super medicine? This has been scientifically established. Since 2017, a new exercise guideline has been in force. Whereas previously the movement standard was 30 minutes per day, the advice is now to move for 15 minutes every half day. This will keep your blood sugar levels in balance and prevent cardiovascular diseases, high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes. If you do this faithfully, you are assured of less disease and a higher quality of life.
Sarcopenia
Have you ever heard of sarcopenia? This means loss of muscle mass and loss of strength with age. Unfortunately, no one can escape this. From the age of 30 onwards, you slowly lose muscle mass and strength. From the age of 50 this is even 1% per year. This happens very gradually so that you do not notice it at first. Sarcopenia is seen as one of the main causes of vulnerability and motor dependence in the elderly. Examples include difficulty with climbing stairs, balancing, and getting up from a chair. Or even needing help getting out of bed, showering and dressing? For me this is a nightmare. Fortunately, you can prevent this by starting strength training in time. Because sarcopenia and loss of strength appears to be well inhibited and, with the right training, even reversible, even if you are getting on in years. So it’s never too late to start.
Dumbles in the chair yoga class
Various studies have shown that strength training on its own or in combination with other training components results in an increase in muscle mass and an increase in muscle strength in frail elderly people. This knowledge made me decide to use dumbbells of half a kilo and one kilo in the yoga classes with seniors, depending on the strength people still have. Meanwhile, I have seen several people increase their strength. It is not necessary to train the whole body with joints in every lesson. One week we do a series that trains the upper body, the next week only the lower body.
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The researcher Fiatarone concluded in 1990 in a meta-analysis that an exercise load at the level of an 8 to 10 Repeated Maximum is most effective. This exercise load still appears to be the most commonly used and is also considered effective in Dutch research, both for the quadriceps and the abductors of the hip. According to Fiatarone’s treatment criteria, training should be performed three times a week, with a 48-hour interval, and three series of 8-10 contractions are performed per exercise session, leading to muscle fatigue. After the strength training follows a reward in the form of a self-massage. We pat, knead and massage the parts of the body that we have trained. With the weekly chair yoga lesson, people already have one training moment in their hands 😉
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Up to what age can you do strength training?
Strength training is allowed from the age of 16 and there is no upper age limit. There are even studies in which test subjects well over 90 years of age showed impressive progress. Their muscle strength increased by no less than 175% in a short time. For them, this meant that they could walk more smoothly and get up from a chair without support. If you are going to do strength training with older people, it is good to build it up slowly and to take into account injuries or age-related complaints such as arthritis or rheumatism.
What are the most important muscle groups to train for the elderly?
Strength training for the elderly is about functional strength. Strength that you need for movements such as climbing stairs, getting up from a chair or picking something up. Strong legs and knees ensure that you can get out of your chair and up the stairs on your own into old age. Strong abdominal and lower back muscles ensure good posture and prevent you from walking with a bent back. And don’t forget your hands and arms, which enable you to open all the pots and lift the shopping yourself.
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Use it or lose it
It is fantastic to see how quickly your strength and muscle mass increase when you do 15 minutes of strength training three times a week. If you stop training, after nine weeks of rest the sarcopenia increases again and the positive effects are largely gone. So continuity is the key. You will find that, like most people, strength training will make you feel healthier and stronger. As icing on the cake, you’ll be less likely to suffer from complaints and symptoms such as arthritis, osteoporosis, diabetes, depression and back pain, and because your balance improves, the risk of falling is also lower. So, fill up two small water bottles or treat yourself to two 1-kilo weights. You can buy them at Action for € 2.95.Â
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Would you like to practice yoga with someone, whereby one person can sit on the yoga mat and the other on the chair? Check out our Online Chair Yoga, with 10 yoga classes.Â
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Paula Jap Tjong is the founder of the Chair Yoga knowledge platform www.stoelyoga-nederland.nl and www.chairyogaworld.com. She invites people to keep moving and relaxing regularly, a must for wellbeing and vitality. Paula Jap Tjong facilitates exercise and relaxation programmes for individuals, companies, and healthcare services. She has written two chair yoga books and trained more than 2000 people as chair yoga teachers.
Paula Jap Tjong is the founder of the Chair Yoga knowledge platform www.stoelyoga-nederland.nl and www.chairyogaworld.com. She invites people to keep moving and relaxing regularly, a must for wellbeing and vitality. Paula Jap Tjong facilitates exercise and relaxation programmes for individuals, companies, and healthcare services. She has written two chair yoga books and trained more than 2000 people as chair yoga teachers.
