Getting up also requires balance, coordination, flexibility, and aerobic capacity, which can decline over time.
All of this can make many daily activities difficult, such as getting out of bed or getting off the couch. If you experience problems, consider the following steps.
These strategies will help you stand, and some will help you improve your performance. strengthening exercises.
- Choose a firm seat. Easier to remove than cushioned ones. An easy solution to securing soft seats is to place something like plywood under the cushion.
- Please pull up a chair. The seat is high, so you don't have to stand up as much to stand. If you don't have a height-adjustable or supportive bar stool-style chair, you can purchase furniture risers. These hard plastic items attach and lift to the legs of chairs, sofas, and beds. You may also need a raised toilet seat.
- Put yourself in the right position. Slide to the edge of your seat before standing up. Place your feet flat on the floor, slightly behind your knees and shoulder-width apart. Next, encourage them to stand up by leaning their upper body forward. Lying down? Lie on your side and use your arms to push yourself up to a sitting position.
- Use assistive devices as necessary. Standing with a regular cane or walker can cause you to lean or slip. Devices called couch canes or bed canes should not do this. A similar tool, often called a safety rail, can help you get up from the toilet. Chair Assist is a cushion-like item placed on top of a chair that uses hydraulic pressure and springs to push up your lower back.
- Know when to consult your doctor. Difficulty standing interferes with daily tasks or activities you enjoy; or Falling while trying to stand or sit, tell your doctor. If you do not see any improvement after regularly performing the sitting and standing exercises described below for a few weeks, do the same. Your doctor can determine whether you have any of the following diseases: arthritis or neurological disorders. In some cases, your doctor may prescribe physical therapy to improve your ability to stand up.
When you stand, you use your back and abdominal muscles, as well as the muscles in your calves and thighs to your glutes.
To strengthen them, “there's nothing better than getting out of your chair,” says Neil Alexander, a professor of geriatrics and palliative medicine at the University of Michigan. Therefore, at least 2-2 times a day, he should practice sitting and standing up on a chair 6-8 times. You should see improvement within a few weeks.
The following will help you further.
- Stand up without using the arm of the chair. If you feel unsteady, lightly touch the armrest with your fingertips.
- Pause on the way up. When you're ready to stand up, pause briefly in the middle. This uses your muscles, not your momentum, to stand up.
- Lower your body slowly. “Sit gently like a chicken on a nest full of eggs,” says Prusinski. This will also strengthen your muscles.
- exchange seats. It takes more strength to get up from low, soft surfaces.
Copyright 2024, Consumer Reports Inc.
Consumer Reports is an independent, nonprofit organization that works with consumers to create a fairer, safer, and healthier world. CR does not endorse products or services or accept advertising.read more ConsumerReports.org.
