6 Sep 2019

HOW TO GET MOVING IN THE MORNING WITH ARTHRITIS (PART 2 of 3 - ARMS, SHOULDERS & NECK EXERCISE)

HOW TO GET MOVING IN THE MORNING WITH ARTHRITIS (PART 2 of 3 - ARMS, SHOULDERS & NECK EXERCISE)

It only takes a few minutes as the sun rises to warm up and stretch out your joints, most exercises can even be done before getting out of bed. If you have osteoarthritis, as little as 5-10 minutes of exercises can help improve joint movement...a hot shower before or after will also aid with relaxing your muscles.

Below are some arms, shoulders and neck exercises that you can try in the morning.

Arms, shoulders and neck - Exercise 1:

Laying flat on your back with a pillow under your head, raise both arms towards the ceiling with your palms facing each other. (Bend knees if this is more comfortable).

Keeping your head on the pillow, begin to raise your shoulder blades as if trying to touch the ceiling. Once feeling the stretch, hold for 20-30 seconds before slowly releasing.

Repeat 2-3 times.

Arms, shoulders and neck - Exercise 2:

Standing a few feet away from either a corner or doorway

Place your hands at shoulder height on either side of the wall/doorway.

Proceed to lean your body weight into the corner/doorway whilst bending your elbows. Once you feel a stretch across the front of your shoulders and chest, hold for 30 seconds before releasing. Repeat 2-3 times.

Arms, shoulders and neck - Exercise 3:

Stand with arms by your side.

Slowly bring your right arm across your chest, keeping it straight.

Take hold of your right elbow with your left hand to help further stretch your right arm across your body. When you feel a nice stretch in the upper arm and shoulder, hold this position for 30 seconds.

Release and repeat with left arm. Do this stretch 2-3 times for each arm.

(PLEASE NOTE: as with all forms of stretching and exercise only do what your body allows if any of the following causes pain stop immediately. If you are not sure, consult a medical practitioner.

Flexiseq

Of course, on top of the recommended exercises, applying our drug-free gel onto areas affected by arthritis will further help to improve pain and mobility.

Fleixseq is available at Guardian, Watsons, Unity & National Healthcare Group pharmacies.