Common Medical Conditions & Their Exercise Prescriptions

As a fitness professional, I’m always trying to take advantage of opportunities to learn new skills that can help my clients.  As my practice grows I’ve found that many of my clients are dealing with common medical conditions such as arthritis, osteoporosis, joint injuries and chronic back conditions, to name a just a few.  To better serve their fitness needs, the weekend of March 5th, I participated in an interesting workshop at the Can-Fit-Pro Academy called “Common Medical Conditions and Their Exercise Prescriptions”.   The workshop focussed on the following medical conditions:

1. Arthritis
2. Osteoporosis
3. Diabetes
4. Cardiovascular Conditions
5. Joint Injuries/Replacements
6. Spinal Conditions 
7. Stroke
8. Fibromyalgia
9. Dementia
10. Fall Prevention

Here are some of the interesting information and techniques I’ve learned and can apply to clients who require tailored workout plans. 

Arthritis patients should use exercise plans formatted towards low impact and low intensity movements. They will require more time to warm up and stretch, and respond better to exercise when joints are warm.  Rotational exercises are quite beneficial to maintain joint mobility. Strengthening the muscle groups around the affected joints is also beneficial as these tend to weaken over time.  It’s also a good idea to test for balance and core stability as arthritis patients tend to favour one side (the one opposite the sore joint).  

Osteoporosis patients require high impact and high intensity exercises to maintain bone density.  Strength training is crucial for bone health and Calcium retention, thus weight lifting and plyometric activities are strongly encouraged.  Osteoporosis patients are cautioned against lateral flexion of the spine however, so abdominal crunches are to be avoided. Planks are encouraged to build core strength in this case. 

Joint Injuries/Replacements require an assessment and medical clearance from doctors. Once cleared for exercise, patients should have their joints assessed by a trainer for their current pain free range of motion (ROM).  Stabilization and strengthening exercises can thereafter be applied - starting slowly, with light weights until strength increases.  Stretching the affected area will be especially important.  For shoulder injuries - rotator cuff exercises, clams, bird-dogs, superman type exercises - are recommended once inflammation has subsided. 

Spinal Conditions - The workshop touched on exercises appropriate for several conditions of the back and spine, including: Degenerative Disc Disease, Spinal Stenosis, Spondylolisthesis and Sciatica. 

Those dealing with Degenerative Disc Disease should avoid high impact activities as the discs in their spine can not absorb the impact safely.  Slow, steady, low impact activities are appropriate in this case;  Spinal Stenosis is caused by a narrowing of the spinal column which can lead to pain, pressure and numbness in limbs. It is one of the few back conditions that actually respond well to spinal flexion (e.g. abdominal crunch motions) as it facilitates opening of the spinal column which can relieve symptoms;  Spondylolisthesis occurs where there is a defect in the connection between vertebrae which can lead to slipped vertebrae and fractures. In this case low impact activities are encouraged and back extension exercises are to be avoided; Sciatica is diagnosed as pain that runs along the sciatic nerve just under the periformis muscle in the buttock area. Suffers often find relief with stretching techniques that target that area (e.g. knee tucking stretches and the figure four leg stretch, see image below).   

This is just a fraction of what I learned at the workshop.  If you have any existing injuries or medical conditions that you are concerned about and would like to discuss with me please feel free to contact me. I can design a workout plan that takes into consideration any special needs that you may have.  Remember you’re never too old to exercise, and it’s actually one of the best things you can do to manage many health conditions and prevent them from worsening over time. 

Yours in health & fitness, 

Kelly the trainer