Expert reveals exercises to fortify your legs for re-learning to walk after extended periods of inactivity.
In a bid to get back on your feet after a period of illness, injury, or immobility, physical therapist and exercise physiologist Milica McDowell, the Vice President of Operations for Gait Happens, has outlined six exercises designed to prepare the body for safe and effective walking.
Sit to Stand
The first exercise, sit to stand, involves moving from a seated position to standing, either from a chair or using a counter for mini squats. This exercise helps strengthen the muscles used during walking, providing a solid foundation for your walking journey.
Calf Raises
Holding onto a counter, raising your heels off the floor, and lowering them again is the calf raise exercise. This simple movement targets the calf muscles, which are crucial for propelling your legs during walking.
Single Leg Balance
Improving balance and confidence is key to safe and successful walking, and the single leg balance exercise does just that. By shifting weight from leg to leg while holding a counter, progressing to standing on one leg, you can enhance your balance and build confidence in your ability to maintain your balance during walking.
Arm Swings
Loosening stiffness and promoting a natural walking pattern is the focus of the arm swings exercise. Practicing natural arm and torso swinging while standing helps prepare your body for the rhythmic movement required during walking.
Step-Back Lunges
Step-back lunges are an excellent way to prepare the glutes, core, legs, and feet for walking. This exercise improves the strength and mobility needed for walking, ensuring you're ready to take on your daily activities with confidence.
Ankle Circles and Toe/Heel Walks
Enhancing ankle mobility and strength is the aim of the ankle circles and toe/heel walks exercise. Performing ankle circles in each direction, along with walking on toes and heels, helps prepare your feet for the demands of walking.
Single Leg Swing
The single leg swing exercise is another essential part of McDowell's recommendations. This exercise improves single leg balance, postural control, overall balance, and helps achieve the rhythm used during walking.
Starting with support and progressing as tolerated is advised to reduce fall risk. McDowell also suggests that once the big toe press is comfortable in a seated position, you can start trying it from a standing position.
These exercises target the critical muscle groups (legs, calves, core, arms) and balance necessary for walking safely and effectively, making them an invaluable resource for those looking to regain their mobility and independence.
Strength training is an essential component of the exercises outlined by Milica McDowell, as the sit to stand exercise strengthens the muscles used during walking, providing a solid foundation for one's walking journey. The single leg balance exercise, which enhances balance and confidence, is another example of strength training included in McDowell's recommendations. Additionally, step-back lunges, a key part of the regimen, improve the strength and mobility needed for walking, showcasing the science behind these workouts in the realm of fitness-and-exercise and health-and-wellness.
