How to stay flexible as you age
As you age, a common health complaint is general aches and pains with a more specific focus on a reduction in joint function, mobility and flexibility.
These symptoms are frustrating when they prevent you from enjoying the things you love. Whether your passion is sport, enjoying quality time with your family or walking the dog, you want to be able to enjoy your active life with ease, free from pain and with confidence.
Here we look into ways to care for your joints so you can continue doing the things you love.
Why do we experience more aches and pains as we age?
Age related aches and pains occur because you lose muscle mass and the fibres in your muscles become less flexible so are prone to soreness and injury. As we age our bodies also start to produce less protein collagen and less protein elastin. Both of these are found in ligaments and help to keep us flexible so when our bodies produce less, it means our flexibility suffers and we are more likely to experience soreness or injury. Over a third of people over the age of 45 in the UK also live with Osteoarthritis. The main areas affected on the body are the feet, hands, knees and hip and the symptoms include swelling, stiffness and joint pain.
Can I help improve my mobility with exercise?
Staying active can help to keep your body strong but it’s also important to avoid weight bearing sports such as running and dancing if you have more serious joint pain associated with osteoarthritis. You can use specific exercises to improve mobility. Simple stretches, such as lifting your arms or rolling your shoulders, maintain a range of motion crucial to preventing stiffness, while strengthening the muscles and surrounding tissue will increase your endurance and help keep the stress off your joints. If you enjoy staying active as part of a group then exercise classes such as pilates and yoga also help to improve flexibility. It is recommended that you do 20 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity per day.
Is there a natural way to help my joints and mobility?
There are two natural ingredients well-known for their benefits on joints including Boswellia and Ginger. Boswellia has been shown in studies to reduce pain, help to maintain cartilage and prevent the formation of leukotrienes in the body, which trigger inflammation and joint pain. Ginger’s active ingredient – gingerol – has anti-inflammatory properties that have been shown in studies to be comparable to that of ibuprofen.
Can I take a supplement to help improve my joints and mobility?
FlexiQule™ is a new supplement which has just been made available in the UK. FlexiQule includes BoswelliaG301 and GingerG321 (Gingerol) which studies have shown can help manage the body’s inflammatory response and maintain joint health.
In a product-trial of 100 UK adults aged 40 to 65, 73% of respondents were taking between one and six plus painkillers per week prior to trial. After a month’s usage of FlexiQule, 61% of participants were taking no painkillers to tackle their pain, which ranged from light joint pain to osteoporosis.
