Osteoporosis - How to move safely?

By Mary Thornton MCSP HCPC

Most people are completely unaware that they have osteoporosis until they fracture a bone, as often there is no pain with loss of bone density, but it does predispose us to increased risk of fracture. If a fracture is result of a fall or accident it often instills a sense of fear in the individual making them reluctant to move or exercise after the fracture has healed. But like muscles, bones become stronger if they are exercised rather than being sedentary.

Although exercise can help build or maintain bone strength it is important to do the right kind of  movement to prevent future fractures.

To determine what exercise is best we must first determine the areas of bone that are more susceptible to fracture.

These are:

• Wrists

• Hips

• Spine

• Ribs

To strengthen a bone we need to load it, but the load needs to be evenly spread throughout the bone and not too excessive.

When educating a patient about the best ways to start exercising for osteoporosis prevention I always start with teaching them correct postural alignment. If we are slouching as we walk, stand, move we are weakening the muscles in the centre of our body (abdominals, back muscles, buttocks) as they are disengaged and not activating to help hold our spines up against gravity.

If we can firstly learn how to hold a good posture during the day then we are exercising those muscles every time we stand up. If we have a good strong posture during the day we are strengthening the muscles that support the spine but also the ribs giving us a good baseline in which to start doing other more specific exercises to help our overall bone health.

Good posture tips:

• Stand up tall

• Engage your lower tummy & buttock muscles

• Lift your chest up

• Think of your head floating up to the sky!

Just doing these postural tips you will notice you are standing up straighter. At first it will probably feel like hard work to maintain, but if you do this little and often during the day it will start to become easier.

To learn more about how to move safely with Osteoporosis join Mary for her educational webinar on

Sunday 5th December at 4pm.