Excercise
Laid low by bed rest? Sports physician Dr Herman Kotzé shares the one, simple exercise move that could save your life.
Lying in bed all day long sounds like a great idea (especially when your alarm goes off at 06h00 on a Monday) but – as anybody whose doctor has confined them to bed rest will tell you – the fun wears off pretty quickly. Trouble is, if your doctor prescribes bed rest, you can’t ignore his instructions, especially not if your rest period is enforced by hypertension, severe illness, pregnancy or a physical injury.
Being at rest for long periods comes with its own health risks, though. A study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine in 2012 found that adults who spend an average of six hours a day in front of a TV will cut their life expectancy by nearly five years, compared to someone who doesn’t while away those hours watching CSI reruns.
Dr Herman Kotzé, a sport physician and general practitioner at the Stellenbosch Academy of Sport, recommends a basic stretching move to keep your blood flowing and to prevent your muscles from atrophying during your bed-bound recovery period. Stretching will get your blood flowing, which will help to prevent complications like blood clots, leg swelling and backache.
‘One thing you can do is to try to contract your muscles,’ he says. Think of it like you’re using one of those small stress balls, where you make a fist, then release. ‘So you contract your muscles, then hold that position for a few seconds, then let go again. Then contract, hold, let go again. This will help to activate that “muscle pump”, getting the blood to flow in the way you need to activate the muscle fibres.’
It couldn’t be easier, says Dr Kotzé: ‘Just contract and relax, contract and relax. That should make a big difference.’
Although this isn’t as effective as a full range-of-motion (or ROM) stretch, like the stretches you’d do when you’re warming up for exercise, the whole point here is that you’re stuck in bed or in a chair. During bed rest, your movements will naturally be limited… and that’s what makes those simple contractions so powerful.
‘Your goal, especially during bed rest, is to activate the muscle fibres themselves,’ says Dr Kotzé, ‘and then to lengthen those muscle fibres as well. Otherwise they will constrict, and if the muscles are activated by stretching, they move easier and they’re more supple. It helps blood flow and it helps lymphatic drainage, so it’s also good for your overall well-being.’
Speak to your doctor about upper-body exercises. Even if you’re bed-bound, you may still be able to stay in a seated position and do light arm exercises (like gentle biceps and triceps curls), just to keep your upper body active. Check with your doctor first, though. Remember: bed rest is about the rest!