Complications (1)
- Bone health: Tips to keep your bones healthy
Prevention (3)
- Exercising with osteoporosis: Stay active the safe way
- Calcium and calcium supplements: Achieving the right balance
- Fall prevention: 6 tips to prevent falls
Risk factors (1)
- Hyperparathyroidism
Symptoms (1)
- Symptom Checker
Tests and diagnosis (1)
- Bone density test
Treatments and drugs (2)
- Osteoporosis treatment: Medications can help
- Options for osteoporosis therapy
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Exercising with osteoporosis: Stay active the safe way
If you have osteoporosis, you might mistakenly think exercise will lead to fracture. In fact, though, using your muscles helps protect your bones..
By Mayo Clinic staffOsteoporosis is a major cause of disability in older women. A bone-weakening disorder, osteoporosis often results in fractures in the hip and spine — which can severely impair your mobility and independence.
How can you reduce your risk of these life-altering injuries? Exercise can help.
Certain types of exercise may strengthen muscles and bones, while other types of exercises are designed to improve your balance — which can help prevent falls.
Benefits of exercise
Women who have been physically active throughout their lives generally have stronger bones than do women who have led more sedentary lives. But it's never too late to start exercising. For postmenopausal women, regular physical activity can:
- Increase your muscle strength
- Improve your balance
- Make you better able to carry out daily tasks and activities
- Maintain or improve your posture
- Relieve or decrease pain
- Improve your sense of well-being
Exercising if you have osteoporosis means finding the safest, most enjoyable activities for you given your overall health and amount of bone loss. There's no one-size-fits-all prescription.
Before you start
Consult your doctor before starting any exercise program for osteoporosis. You may need some tests first, including:
- Bone density measurement
- Fitness assessment
In the meantime, think about what kind of activities you enjoy most. If you choose an exercise you enjoy, you're more likely to stick with it over time.
Next page(1 of 2)
- The North American Menopause Society. Management of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women: 2010 position statement of The North American Menopause Society. Menopause. 2010;17:25.
- DeLee JC, et al. DeLee & Drez's Orthopaedic Sports Medicine: Principles and Practice. 3rd ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2010. http://www.mdconsult.com/books/about.do?about=true&eid=4-u1.0-B978-1-4160-3143-7..X0001-2--TOP&isbn=978-1-4160-3143-7&uniqId=230100505-57. Accessed March 8, 2013.
- AskMayoExpert. Osteoporosis rehabilitation. Rochester, Minn.: Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research; 2012.
- Exercise for your bone health. National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases. http://www.niams.nih.gov/Health_Info/Bone/Bone_Health/Exercise/default.asp. Accessed March 8, 2013.
- Morey MC. Physical activity and exercise in older adults. http://www.uptodate.com/home. Accessed March 8, 2013.
- Exercise for strong bones. National Osteoporosis Foundation. http://www.nof.org/articles/238. Accessed March 8, 2013.
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