15 Best Posture Exercises For Seniors
As we age, our joints and muscles changes. It becomes harder to maintain muscle mass, while joints slowly become less mobile.
Over time, your posture changes in a negative context.
And the best way to counteract this is to become active and do posture exercises.
That’s why I wrote this article where I will show you posture exercises for seniors you can do daily and improve your body function.
Why Should You Improve Your Posture as Senior
One of the most important reasons to improve your posture as a senior is to activate your body.
Posture exercises for seniors are primarily exercises to increase range of motion (ROM) and to activate muscles.
In addition to the effect on muscles and joints, you will improve the health of the heart and lungs, as well as appetite and sleep quality.
Age does not have to be an obstacle for you to start or continue an active lifestyle.
Posture exercises are a great way to get started because they don’t require a lot of exercise or stretching equipment, and best of all, you can do them from home.
Most exercises are stationary, so you don’t have to worry about balance.
15 Best Posture Exercises for Seniors
I divided posture exercises into three sections:
- simple posture exercises for seniors
- seated posture exercises for seniors
- balance and posture exercises for seniors
Simple Posture Exercises for Seniors
Chin tuck
- Start from a standing position
- Place two fingers on your chin
- Tuck in your chin
- Don’t extend or flex your head and neck
- Fingers uses to follow head position
- Repeat 10 times or hold for 10s
Shoulder blade retraction
- Start from a standing position
- Pull your shoulders backward
- Squeeze between your shoulder blades
- Hold for 3s and repeat 10 times
Shoulder flexion
- Start from a standing position
- Lift one arm up
- Make sure your arm goes in front of your body
- Repeat 10 times
Upper body side flexion
- Start from a standing position
- Relax your shoulder and let your arms stay close to your body
- Try to reach the outer knee with one of your arm
- Your upper body will move to the side
- Repeat 10 times
Glute and ab squeeze
- Start from a standing position
- Squeeze your glutes first
- Then squeeze your abs
- Hold for 3s and repeat 10 times
Seated Posture Exercises for Seniors
Seated posture exercises are a great way to activate your body when you are not one hundred percent sure that you have good balance when standing.
Rowing
- Relax your shoulders
- Pull your elbows backward and squeeze between shoulder blades
- Extend your arms in front of your body (shoulder level)
- And pull back with your elbows again
- Repeat 10 times
Diagonal shoulder lift
- Relax your shoulders
- Place one hand on the opposite hip
- Lift arm diagonally from opposite hip to the opposite shoulder
Thorax rotation
- Relax your shoulders
- Cross your arms while keeping your elbows at shoulder level
- Gently rotate to one side
- Repeat 10 times per side
Upper body extension
- Relax your shoulders
- Place your hands on your hips
- Push your chest forward
- Try to extend your upper back as much as you can
- Don’t go into extension with your neck and head
- Repeat 10 times
Shoulder extension
- Relax your shoulders
- Extend your arms and push them backward
- Avoid lifting your shoulders up
- Repeat 10 times
Balance and Posture Exercises for Seniors
If you find balance and posture exercises hard for you to do, you can always use support when performing these exercises.
That way you improve your body balance.
Chair squat
- Sit down on a chair
- Move your body to the edge of the chair
- Cross your arms
- Stand up from a chair
- Repeat 5-10 times
One leg standing stance
- Start from a standing position
- Lift slowly one leg up by bending your knee
- Hold for 10s
- Repeat 3-5 times
Balance Reach Y
- Start from a standing position
- Lift one foot from the ground
- Try to reach forward or backward (imitating letter Y)
- Return to starting position
- Repeat 5-10 times
Standing hip abduction
- Start from a standing position
- Move one leg to the side
- Return to starting position
- Repeat 10 times per side
Standing hip extension
- Start from a standing position
- Move one leg to the back
- Return to starting position
- Repeat 10 times per side
Tips For Improving Posture for Seniors
Here are some helpful tips you can use to stay active and improve your posture as a senior.
Choose the exercises that are most interesting to you. That will ensure your continuity when exercising.
Divide the exercises into small series so that you will be active throughout the day.
If you notice that you are sitting for more than half an hour, take a break and stretch your legs briefly.
Understand that exercising is a process, not an end goal.
Posture can always be better, so there is no reason to set a goal and stop practicing when you meet your goals.
Get your loved ones or friends to join you. With socializing, it’s easier to stay active and on the go.
*Even though posture exercises for seniors are gentle, I would always suggest you consult your doctor before doing any physical activity.
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