[For Seniors] Easy and Fun Core Training
The torso, excluding the head and limbs, is called the core.
Recently, core training that strengthens the torso has become popular.
In fact, core training can also help older adults by improving their daily functioning.
So this time, we’ll introduce simple core training for seniors.
These are easy exercises that even seniors with reduced muscle mass who find movement difficult can try.
Strengthening the core can help correct rounded shoulders, stabilize posture, and contribute to fall prevention and improved internal organ function.
Please use the training introduced here as a reference and incorporate it at a comfortable pace without overexertion.
- For seniors: Enjoyable exercises done while seated, accessible for wheelchair users.
- [For Seniors] Core Training: Recommended Simple Rehabilitation
- For Seniors: Strength Training You Can Do While Lying Down
- [For Seniors] Fun Exercises You Can Do While Seated
- For Seniors: How to Strengthen Your Inner Muscles. Fall Prevention
- [For Seniors] Fun and Easy! Fall-Prevention Exercises for Older Adults
- For Seniors: Fun and Lively Exercise Recreation
- [For Seniors] Strengthen Your Legs! Recommended Training Items
- [For Seniors] Recommended Easy Strength Training
- [For Seniors] Recreational activities and games that let you have fun while strengthening your legs
- [For Seniors] Recommended Rhythm Play and Exercises
- [For Seniors] Fun and Engaging Brain-Training Recreation
- [Today's Recommendation] Gentle Health Exercises for Seniors
[For Seniors] Simple and Fun Core Training (21–30)
Exercises to strengthen your body’s core
For older adults, falls can easily lead to injuries and are very dangerous.
To prevent falling, it’s important to regularly train your balance.
The exercises introduced here strengthen your body’s central axis, helping stabilize balance when standing and walking, which can reduce the risk of falls.
If your body’s axis is weak, your back tends to round, which can cause a hunched posture and lower back pain.
By strengthening the core, your spine naturally straightens, helping you maintain proper posture and making your body less prone to fatigue.
These exercises can be done while seated, so they’re recommended for anyone.
Multifidus training
The multifidus refers to the small muscles attached around the spine.
When the multifidus weakens, your back can become rounded or overextended, which can lead to lower back pain.
That’s why training the multifidus is effective for preventing back pain.
Here’s how: get on all fours with your knees on the floor, extend your right hand forward and your left leg backward, then extend your left hand forward and your right leg backward.
Repeat this movement alternately.
If you’re not used to it, you might wobble and have trouble balancing, so having someone assist you can be reassuring.
It’s important not to arch your lower back while doing the exercise to make the training effective.
[For Seniors] Easy and Fun Core Training (31–40)
Balance training in a walking posture
Walking is very important for your health, isn’t it? For older adults to maintain their balance, it’s essential to strengthen the core.
The key is to train using the whole body so you’re not walking with just your legs.
Since this movement activates muscles you don’t usually use, make sure to hold on firmly with both hands to a chair or something stable for safety when you do it.
Even if you usually walk without thinking, simply paying attention to your hip movement and posture can help improve your balance.
Why not incorporate this movement into your daily walks?
Exercises using a balance ball
Exercises using a stability ball are highly recommended for older adults, too.
Twisting while sitting on the ball helps improve flexibility, and lifting the hips strengthens the lower body.
Movements like raising one leg also enhance your sense of balance.
By taking advantage of the ball’s instability, you can improve overall body stability as well.
The key is to start in a safe environment at first.
The charm of stability ball workouts is that they’re fun to keep up.
If you start slowly and increase the difficulty at your own pace, your strength and balance will steadily improve.
balance board
This is a gadget where you place your feet on a board that’s intentionally made unstable, encouraging you to focus on ankle movement and balance.
Since you use it while seated to find your balance, there’s no risk of falling, and you can move your feet efficiently.
The orientation of the board is also important: using it lengthwise trains front-to-back balance, while using it crosswise trains side-to-side balance.
Besides the pattern that emphasizes pressing downward to prioritize balance, it’s also recommended to tip it back and forth to train your ankles.
Pelvic training for people who shuffle their feet
Do any of you find yourselves accidentally scuffing your heels while walking, like during a stroll? It’s said this happens due to a decline in the muscles that lift the pelvis.
Weakness around the legs increases the risk of falls, so let’s do pelvic training to strengthen the muscles that lift the pelvis and help you walk energetically! If you don’t like strenuous exercise, don’t worry.
All you’ll do is “butt walking.” That’s it.
Start with about three round trips forward and backward.
Once you get used to it, you can increase the number.
It also engages your abdominal and back muscles, so it may help you maintain your figure as well.
Kyphosis prevention training using a resistance band
This is a training exercise where you use a resistance tube to add load to your movements, engaging your muscles while stretching your body.
It’s a simple motion—holding each end of the tube in your hands and stretching it—but depending on the position at which you pull, you can train different parts of the body.
A key point is to slowly stretch the tube and maintain that position, while staying mindful of your posture.
If you focus on opening your chest and engaging your shoulder blades, it can help improve your posture and lead to smoother movement.