Ken is an inspiring story of how age shouldn’t be seen as a limiting factor to increasing your functionality. Many elderly people lose their ability to perform certain tasks such as walking up and down steps or being able to get up and down from a chair and it is often blamed on a lack of strength associated with the aging process. The real issue is that as we get older we lose our range of movement, which leads to the muscles getting weaker which in turn adversely effects balance and proprioception.
This cycle continues on a downward spiral and often gets to the point where people don’t trust their physical capabilities. They begin to move less and le, which further diminishes their functional capacity. This often leads to depression and self-doubt, all of which could have been avoided if the initial range of movement issues that underpin all of the so-called “aging factors” had been addressed.
Ken was deeply uncomfortable about his inability to move and perform his daily tasks. However, once he had learned how to perform the relevant stretching and activation exercises he was able to once again walk to the shops, sit up and down from a seat and generally move with relative ease – all of which was achieved with a set of knees that are basically bone on bone.
By establishing an acceptable range of movement and teaching Ken how to activate all the relevant muscle groups in a logical sequence, rather than giving him support aids, he is now back playing golf at a youthful 91 years of age and performing strengthening exercises that many people half his age would be proud of being able to do.
I am now 90 and can walk to the local shops, play 9 holes of golf, sit up and down without assistance
"I fell down a flight of stairs at the age of 87 and was very sore and sorry for some months. I found it hard to sit up or down or walk with confidence and generally felt stiff and sore. Thankfully my son suggested I make an appointment at the Fit to Manage clinic.
It was here that I learnt the self-managed principles of the FTM's Lower Limber® Injury Treatment and Prevention System. I am now 90 and can walk to the local shops, play 9 holes of golf, sit up and down without assistance and have gone from struggling to reach my knees to being able to touch my toes.
