For Seniors: Strength Training You Can Do While Lying Down
Here is an introduction to strength training that older adults can do while lying down.
I believe many care facilities incorporate exercise and physical activity.
Exercises done lying down are safe for older adults and make it easier to move their bodies.
We’ve gathered simple exercises that can be done on a mat or futon.
You can even train while lying down with exercises that build leg strength and stimulate the muscles around the lower back to help relieve back pain.
As we age, our physical strength declines and everyday movements become slower.
For example, if there’s something on the floor and you can’t avoid it, you might fall and suffer an injury or fracture, which could lead to being bedridden and hospitalized.
Why not try building strength at a comfortable pace for older adults with exercises you can do while lying down?
- [With Video] Lower-limb strength training for seniors that can be done in bed
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- For seniors: Leg-strengthening exercises you can do without overexertion.
- [For Seniors] Exercises to Walk Again. Fall Prevention
- [For Seniors] Strengthen Your Legs! Recommended Training Items
- [For Seniors] Recommended Easy Strength Training
- [For Seniors] Leg and lower-back training: Fall prevention
- [For Seniors] Core Training: Recommended Simple Rehabilitation
- [For Seniors] Simple Recreational Activities You Can Enjoy While Seated
- For Seniors: Back-Strengthening Exercises, Calisthenics, and Stretches—Workouts Women Can Do Without Strain
- [For Seniors] Recreational activities and games that let you have fun while strengthening your legs
- [For Seniors] DIY Hand Rehabilitation Tools to Strengthen Fingertips: A Collection of Handmade Ideas
- [For Seniors] Recommended Muscle Training Gear. Simple and Easy
[For Seniors] Do-It-While-Lying-Down! Strength Training (21–30)
Contracture prevention exercises
Contracture refers to a condition in which the movement of the skin, muscles, and joints becomes limited after a period of insufficient physical activity due to illness or injury.
Because it can interfere with daily life, it’s important to perform exercises that move the joints through a large range of motion within a pain-free range to loosen them up.
For example, while lying on your back, raise your clasped hands overhead and hold; spread your arms outward with your elbows bent at 90 degrees; or bend your elbows as far as you comfortably can.
These are very simple movements, so why not incorporate them into your pre-sleep or morning routine right away?
4 easy lazy lying-down muscle exercises
Here are four easy exercises you can do while lying down, each in just 20 seconds! 1) While lying on your back, raise and lower your legs alternately.
2) Open your legs to the sides alternately, left and right.
3) With your knees bent and feet planted, raise and lower your hips.
4) Lift both feet slightly off the floor and open and close them at the same time.
Do each exercise for 20 seconds with short intervals in between.
Of course, feel free to shorten the time or do just one exercise—what matters is adjusting it to a level that’s comfortable for you.
Give it a try on days when the weather keeps you indoors!
Fall prevention exercises
These are effective exercises you can do while lying down to prevent falls! Lying on your back, move your ankles up and down through a large range of motion to activate your shin muscles.
Next, alternately pull each knee toward your chest and hug it in, moving your hip joints through a large range as well.
With one knee bent, raise and lower the other straightened leg to strengthen the front thigh muscles.
If you bend both knees, plant your hands firmly on the bed or mat, and lift your hips, you can also work your glute muscles.
Take breaks as needed and gradually get your body used to the movements, starting with a small number of repetitions.
Easy! Leg Strength-Building Exercises
This is a leg-strengthening exercise you can do while lying down! Lie on your back with one knee bent and the other leg fully extended.
From there, slowly raise and lower the extended leg.
It’s important to be mindful of your breathing—exhale as you move, and make the motion as large as possible within a pain-free, comfortable range.
This exercise targets the quadriceps at the front of the thigh, which are crucial for standing up and walking.
Keep training steadily with this low-impact exercise so you can continue to walk strong for years to come.
Prone Pelvic Floor Muscle Yoga
Here’s a yoga routine you can do while lying face down that’s effective for the pelvic floor.
First, lie on your stomach, spread your hands and feet to shoulder width, and tuck your toes under.
Using your toes, abdomen, and back muscles, slowly lift your head.
You should feel those muscles engage.
Next, stack your hands and rest your forehead on them, then bring your legs together so they’re touching.
With the image of lifting diagonally backward, slowly raise one leg.
If it feels too hard, it’s fine to lift it only a little.
Since this is a movement you may not usually do, try to relax as you practice—occasionally sway your body gently from side to side.
Exercises to prevent swelling
As we go about our daily lives, it’s common to spend long periods in the same posture without realizing it.
Continuing to hold the same position can impair circulation and often lead to swelling in various parts of the body.
This routine offers gentle, full-body exercises to relieve such swelling.
Sit in a chair with proper posture and gradually loosen areas in sequence—around the shoulder blades, the lower back, the thighs, and the calves.
By aligning your breathing and taking your time to stretch thoroughly, you’ll steadily improve blood flow.
Prevention of economy class syndrome
Staying in the same posture, like when sitting in an airplane’s economy class seat, can impair blood flow in the legs.
This is a seated leg exercise that helps prevent economy-class syndrome and improve circulation.
With movements like lifting your toes and making big marching steps, focus on how you engage your leg muscles while strengthening them.
Move your feet rhythmically within a pain-free range, feeling the gentle impact of each step.
This can also help promote smoother walking and prevent falls.