Keeping Mobile

Keeping mobile will enable you to maintain your independence and social contacts. Being able to get out and about will also improve your energy levels and boost your self confidence. By maintaining your mobility, you maintain your opportunities and quality of life.

Movement is essential for good health and all movement has value, including getting up from an armchair or tending the garden. Movement keeps your joints supple and your muscles toned. It also improves circulation and breathing, generates warmth, aids digestion and helps keep your weight down. Try to do a few simple exercises each day.

On rising

• Have a good stretch in bed on waking. Raise your arms above your head, then stretch your legs all the way down to your toes.
• Don’t stay in bed too long. Sit up slowly to avoid dizziness. Take a few deep breaths to expand the lungs, before getting up.

Mid-morning routine

• This routine will strengthen legs and keep joints supple. When sitting, straighten your right leg at the knee. Hold that position and circle the foot five times. Repeat with your left leg.
• Next, still sitting, bend your knees up in turn as high as you can and gently jog on the spot.

In the evening

• This exercise encourages good posture. First rest back in your chair, then push your chest forward, arching the small of your back. Hold for a few seconds and then relax. Repeat five times.
• For a trim waist and strong lower back, follow on with this exercise. Whilst still sitting down, try ‘walking’ your bottom forwards, along the seat of your chair and then back again.

Indoors

• Try and keep on the move throughout the day. Stagger your daily tasks, rather than doing everything at once.
• A firm chair with a high seat and straight back helps posture and makes getting up from a sitting to a standing position easier.
• Avoid sitting for long periods, as this causes stiffness and lethargy.

Out and about

• Walk outdoors as often as possible; walk tall with your head up and shoulders back.
• If you need to use a walking aid, check the rubber tip frequently and change as necessary. A smooth tip can be dangerous. To ensure that a walking aid is comfortable and safe to use, it’s important that you are individually assessed by a physiotherapist.

If you require further help and advice, contact your GP or Hackney Council’s Access Service – Tel: 020 8356 6262 – for referral to an Occupational Therapist.

Looking after your feet

Keeping our feet healthy is an important part of staying mobile in later life. It has been estimated that we walk the equivalent of five times round the world in an average lifetime and this wear and tear, over the years, can mean we develop foot problems.

Basic foot care

There are a few simple steps that you can take at home to improve comfort and relieve any pain in your feet. These should only be undertaken if you are comfortably able to touch your feet. If you have limited mobility due to arthritis, heart, chest or other problems, do not attempt these tasks yourself. Instead, perhaps a member of your family or a friend could assist you.

• Regularly wash your feet. Do not soak them for long periods or add salt or soda to the water, as this washes the natural moisture from the skin.
• Dry the skin carefully. If it is soggy between the toes, apply surgical spirit.
• Massage a moisturising lotion onto the heel and ball of each foot daily.
• Use a pumice stone or rough skin file to reduce the build up of hard skin.
• Don’t treat your own corns and calluses with a razor blade or corn plasters.

Toe nails

Toe nails should be cut when they are soft, so always soak them first. Follow the natural line of the nail and avoid cutting them too short, particularly at the sides. Never be tempted to poke down the sides as this may lead to a painful in-growing toe nail.

Cold feet

Over the years the flow of blood circulating to the toes may decrease. If your feet get very cold, warm them gradually to avoid chilblains. Do not sit too close to a fire or put your feet directly on to a hot water bottle. Keep your feet warm by wearing woollen socks and thermal insoles. Exercising your feet will help to keep the blood moving.

Good shoes

Suitable shoes are important for comfort. The shoes you wear each day should be wide fitting, and broad and deep across the toe. Get your feet measured at a good shoe shop, as they often change in size and shape as you get older. Wear shoes with a retaining lace or strap to prevent friction on the balls of the feet and the toes from clawing. Only wear high heels or dressy court shoes on special occasions.

Free chiropody is available for people of retirement age. Contact your local Health Centre for more information.

Links

• Healthy Ageing