According to a new survey many adults are running the risk of injury and osteoarthritis, among other things, in later life by not exercising correctly.
The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy and Arthritis Research UK conducted 'The Active Age 2012' survey quizzing over 2500 adults and over 1000 children about their physical activity levels over the previous week.
Only 20% said that they warm up and cool down correctly whenever doing exercise. The figures also highlighted that only 5% of all the adults and 8% of all the children surveyed were completing the basic amount of exercise guidelines.
Dr Helena Johnson, Chartered Society of Physiotherapy chairwoman, said:
"These survey findings are of great concern. Far too few of us are doing
enough daily exercise, and many people who are physically active are
not exercising safely. Failing to warm up first and cool down afterwards
may increase the chances of suffering an injury, which could
potentially lead to problems like osteoarthritis in later life."
She also commented on the frequency and benefits of regular exercise, saying"Doing some exercise every day helps keep joints supple and muscles
healthy. Simple warm-up exercises increase the blood flow to the muscles
and make them more mobile. Cooling down after exercise is also
important as it can help to prevent next day stiffness. Pain, during or
after exercise, is a signal that your body may be having problems, and
it shouldn't be ignored."
So the current advice seems to be that just putting on your sports kit and checking out how cool you look in the mirror might not be enough of a warm-up. A cool-down after exercise isn't just a swig of drink and dodging the water in the shower before getting back to the office. Copying the movement you will do for your exercise can be sufficient for a warm-up and stretching the muscles used a good cool-down. Contact me if you need more advice.
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