Widely considered a fundamental component of mobility, sit-to-stand transitions are made by walkers on average 45 times per day. For those who are able to exercise, it is also an important factor in maintaining independence as they age. After all, the same movements are important for things like going to the bathroom and getting up in the morning.
With this in mind, it is suggested that older adults (which does not prevent people without disabilities from doing it) should regularly practice the exercise of sitting up, i.e. getting up from a chair without using their hands or arms for support. It is worth doing. of workout regimens for mobility.But regardless of age, it’s a good practice to start anytime You need to stand up from a sitting position, says internist Michael Roisen, M.D. great era rebootThat’s true even if doing this movement doesn’t feel like exercise or a challenge, or if you’re okay with standing hands-free on command.
“Rising from a chair without using your hands involves a complex series of nerve and muscle movements that require coordination and balance.” —Michael Roizen, MD, Physician
“Rising from a chair without using your hands involves a complex series of nerve and muscle movements that require strength in your legs, pelvis, abdomen and back muscles, requiring coordination and balance,” says Dr. Roizen. says. Importantly, it’s the last part that’s often overlooked when it comes to how well this simple exercise can support mobility and thus longevity. Even if you don’t exactly feel the burn in your leg or back, you’re activating the proprioceptive system needed for coordination.
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In fact, in a survey of about 700 elderly people living in the community, standing and sitting exercise performance depends not only on leg strength, but also on balance, reaction time, and psychological state. I understand. In short, getting out of a chair hands-free on a regular basis can have more benefits for your body and mobility than a short workout of your quadriceps.
How to level up the benefits of stand-up testing
Any arm-free method of getting up from a sitting position supports mobility, but you can also do it from the chair or couch you happen to be sitting on throughout the day. Exercises that are more challenging and energizing than others.
A literature review of studies on sit-stand tests found that, among other positioning factors, the height of the chair a person sits in plays an important role in how much momentum they need to generate to stand up. We found that lowering the chair height required it to generate more momentum (this is common if you’ve ever had trouble getting back up after sinking into a low couch). what you know).
Therefore, practicing sit-to-stand exercises from a low chair or on the floor (technically called the “sitting-rising test”) makes mobility even more cost-effective. (It’s no coincidence that many of the world’s longest-lived people regularly sit on the floor.)
That said, sitting on the floor and getting up from it is probably not practical. everytime-You don’t have to do that to reap the mobility-enhancing benefits of sit-and-stand exercises, says Dr. Roisen. Even just making a conscious switch from using your hands to going hands-free every time you get up from a chair or couch can be a worthwhile move for mobility and longevity, he says.
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