Your walking partner says she swears by a new technique. Your gym buddy raves about a weightlifting routine that “really works.”
Known as “gym science” by fitness scientists, unchecked this word-of-mouth gospel can put you at risk for injury, says Cedric X. Bryant, PhD, president and chief science officer for the American Council on Exercise (ACE). With all the fitness fads that pop up year after year, it’s hard to know which are safe and effective.
Learn which of this year’s top fitness trends – as deemed by ACE’s annual survey of fitness and health professionals – are most likely to be wise choices and which are wise to avoid.
Trends to Try
• Collaboration among allied health professions: Just as a team of health-care professionals is clutch to managing care, the same also holds true when addressing fitness needs. Collaboration among personal trainer, physical therapist, primary-care physician and specialists can help you stick with your routine and ensure safety, especially for people with chronic conditions, such as arthritis, explains Bryant.
• Functional fitness: Focused on strengthening the core, functional fitness has become a staple, says Bryant. “As you improve the stability of the core and mobility, it will help with the performance of all functional movements.”
• Personal training: Due to the effects of the economy, group personal training is on the rise, says Bryant. These semi-private sessions, which include four to six people supervised by one trainer, can open the door to personal training to many who may not have been able to afford it in the past. The close supervision of a personal trainer can provide motivation and an introduction to fitness for beginners, as well as increase the effectiveness and safety of workouts.
• Sport-specific training: A trend driven primarily by parents looking to increase their children’s skill in their respective sports, Bryant says, baby boomers are also contributing by looking for a more tailored means to maintain their specific activities. “For those with arthritis, there’s a price they have to pay when they play their sports,” says Bryant. “Sports-specific training is designed to help maintain the muscular fitness, joint integrity, flexibility and balance so they’re able to safely and effectively engage in those activities.”
Trends to Avoid
• Kettlebell workouts: Using kettlebell weights that resemble old-fashioned dumbbells, these whole-body workouts rely heavily on the core and back muscles. While they can help increase functional fitness, Bryant says, “I would recommend extreme caution for these workouts because of the amount of control that’s required. If you don’t have good core stability and good joint integrity, the loads can be high on the muscoskeletal system.”
• Boot camp-style workouts: Fitness boot camps include a range of activities, both cardiovascular and high- and low-intensity strength training exercises, such as pushups, squats and lunges. These workouts can burn up to 600 calories, but Bryant cautions those with arthritis to avoid garden-variety boot camps. Instead, look for specialty camps that provide modified routines and talk to the instructor about any limitations you may have.
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Once a week. In the summer my routine is to
Do exercises in the jacuzzi, swim 1/2 mile, and
Do some more exercises in jacuzzi. Of course you
Need someone there. I wait for my husband to be
Home. I. Also do arm exercises with styrofom bar
Bells in the jacuzzi. This all takes over an hour but
Is the highlight of the day.
in the Fall I swim laps at our Health Club and
On alternate times work out in the gym for about an
Hour. Riding the bike is really good for my knees.
Ice after exercise helps as does putting my legs
Over a fitness ball when they are tired. Heat first
Thing in the morning is wonderful on the knees.
(I had knee replacement surgery about 3 years ago)
a very pleasant/relaxing way to exercise.
The Arthritis Foundation Exercise Program would be an excellent start for you, after checking with your physician to be sure which exercises are okay for you to do. Enter your zip code on the AF home page to find a program near you.
I teach the program and have seen major improvement in participants strength, flexibility, and over-all health.
If there is not a program near you, the AF sells a DVD of the exercise program.
I have fibromyalgia and osteoarthritis. I teach the class to make myself exercise! It has decreased my fibro pain exponentially and increased my over-all health the same.
And it's a fun class. The participants enjoy it as much as I do.
But, I can do water aerobics. I have discovered that just to be moving again I am willing to be up at 5am to get to an early class before work. I am sure it is saving my sanity (and my health).
~Sheryl
What I *can* do, though, is belly dance! I can't take group belly dance classes because of my limitations, but I've been able to teach myself how to do dance from DVDs. The two I most recommend are Jenna's Bellydance Basics and Beyond and Amira's Bellydance 101.
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