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TerraBlu's armchair exercises

Imagine you are in a deckchair at the beach !!  You can perform armchair exercises anywhere. They are ideal for anyone who finds it difficult to get up and move around. Great for your circulation, will help keep you warm and can improve mobility and fitness.

Just do each exercise for a minute or two and try to get a regular routine going. Maybe you could perform them every time a certain TV programme is on, or at a particular time of the day, whatever suits you best and whatever keeps you in a good routine.

Do these simple, exercises regularly. Once you’ve started to build your energy levels, you’ll want to keep them!

Feet and Toes

1. Lift your feet a few inches off the floor a couple of inches and wiggle your toes.
2. Now, slowly lower your legs to floor then slowly raise them back up until the knee joint is locked. Repeat a few times.
3. Keeping your feet off the floor, extend your legs and push your feet forward as if pointing at something in the distance with your toes, hold for a few seconds then pull your feet back, pointing the toes to towards the ceiling.
4. With your feet flat on the floor, lift one foot at a time and slowly rotate your ankles around in small circles (both directions) to loosen off any excess tension.

Legs

1. Sit up straight and tense the lower leg muscles, holding for a few seconds, feeling the various muscles contract before relaxing. Repeat three times.
2. Now tense the upper leg muscles and hold for a few seconds, Repeat three times.
3. Next, sit with your feet hip width apart, but with your knees together. Start squeezing your knees together and tense your upper leg muscles. Do this several times, gradually building with each one up to your maximum effort.
4. Stay in the same position, but this time put your hands on the outside of your knees. Push outwards, trying to open your knees apart, but resist with your hands so that they don’t open. Start slowly, building to your maximum effort.

Hands

1. Wiggle your fingers quickly for a few seconds on both hands.

2. Then open and close your hands quickly, extending your fingers to the maximum and making a fist each time you close your hand.

3. Relax your hands and wrists and give them a good shake – as if you’ve just washed them then realized there is nothing to dry them on.
4. Stop shaking and gently bend and rotate your wrists through their full range of movement. Add light pressure by gently pushing the hand forward and back from the wrist with the opposite hand.

Upper Body

1. Now we’re talking arms, shoulders, chest and back.
2. Raise both arms horizontally, out to your sides, shoulder height as if you were doing an impression of an aeroplane. Push out your arms in both directions, reaching as far out as physically possible, feeling the stretch across your back and chest.
3. Relax from this stretch but keep your arms out straight and start to move them very slowly in small circles as if running your finger around the outside rim of a coin. Do ten small circles forward, then ten small circles backwards. Relax the arms and shake them off.
4. Put both hands together as if you have just clapped, hold them out in front of you, elbows raised and push your hands together as hard as you can, tensing your arms, chest, shoulders and back for 10 seconds – when you do this properly your upper body will physically start to shake with the effort.
5. Put both hands together behind your back, palms together, and again push to your maximum effort, tensing your arms, chest, shoulders and back for 10 seconds.

Neck and head 

1. Now we going to focus on your head and neck. Your neck and spine are very delicate and should only ever be exercised slowly and gently, and without tension, particularly when rotating the head in a circular motion. Never force movements, and don’t do anything that hurts.
2. Slowly drop your head forward, taking your chin to your chest for a few of seconds.
3. Bring your head back to its normal position then take it slowly backwards. Again, hold for a few seconds.
4. With the head tilted back, drop your mouth open and slowly close again, pushing the chin forward. Perform several times.
5. Bring head back to normal centre position, looking forward. Look to the left side, hold for a few seconds, then change to the right side and hold for a few seconds.
6. Bring your head back to its normal position, drop your chin to the chest and slowly roll your head in a gentle, relaxed circular motion. Do this several times in both directions, slowly easing out any tensions and stiffness. Well done, you’ve finished!You can perform armchair exercises anywhere. They are ideal for anyone who finds it difficult to get up and move around. Great for your circulation, will help keep you warm and can improve mobility and fitness.