Staten Island physical therapist says older adults should do these 4 things to stay active

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic kept older Staten Islanders hunkered in their homes. Their mobility waned and their physical conditions deteriorated.

Those impacts continue to affect the most vulnerable Staten Islanders, said Michael DiStefano, a physical therapist for VNS Health, a visiting nurse service that works with patients within their homes.

The dearth of activity can be compounded by winter weather that makes borough residents less likely to leave their homes, affecting health ranging from physical fitness to mental acuity.

“When the weather is colder, we tend to not go out as much,” said DiStefano. “People of advanced age, they stay inside more and tend to move less and are obviously not as active mentally and physically.”

Those with underlying conditions like diabetes and obesity can go through an extended sedentary period, exacerbating issues that have cascading implications.

Becoming active — and staying active — poses significant, but conquerable, challenges that provide notable benefits, said DiStefano.

“I walk into a lot of cases where it’s just me trying to get them going again,” said DiStefano. “I always tell them, as long as you see you’re getting progress, you don’t get frustrated and that’s how you’re going to benefit.”

Here are four tips for Staten Islanders looking to get, or stay, active during the winter months.

‘GET UP’

Daily tasks are good for logging some activity during the day. Cleaning a room, doing laundry and walking to the mailbox all help encourage movement, but a healthier life involves getting up, even when it’s not necessary.

“Don’t get up just out of necessity,” said DiStefano. “Get up even when you don’t have anything major to do.”

Having a brief exercise program that can be completed once to twice a day will foster positive health benefits long term. Those programs can be facilitated by physical therapists like DiStefano that work with patients on an individual level to set manageable goals.

“I tell people, ‘look, I’m not a boss. You got enough bosses around the house. Everybody’s got their opinion’,” said DiStefano of his approach to working with new patients. “We’re going to work together. I’m a teacher. It’s going to be a process.”

STRENGTHEN YOUR LEGS

Balance is a key to maintaining health and avoiding dangerous injuries.

The ability of older Americans to stand on one leg for 10 seconds significantly reduces the risk of fatal falls, a study found, with those unable to complete the balance task nearly twice as likely to die within the next decade.

“The legs are meant to walk, and once they start to get weak, you know what happens — people then start to use their arms too much and they start grabbing for things too much,” said DiStefano. “So, you really need to use your body the way it was designed.”

Leg exercises like sitting leg extensions and calf raises are among the activities that older Staten Islanders can do to improve mobility and strength.

Fancy equipment isn’t needed, either, explained DiStefano. Low-level hand or ankle weights — one to two pounds — are all that’s needed to help an effective exercise.

“And if you don’t want to invest in that, get a can of vegetables,” said DiStefano. “Anything to just give a little bit of resistance.”

RANGE OF MOTION

Strength training isn’t the only type of exercise Staten Islanders should be focused on.

Ensuring activities involve the full range of motions of joints is essential to overall physical health.

“We don’t take our joints through full range of motion” during everyday tasks, said DiStefano. Targeted exercise, then, is needed to ensure muscles and joints are being used at their greatest extents.

“When you do stuff like exercise in combination with walking, eating good and sleeping good — that’s a big step to keeping yourself healthy and active as you get older,” said DiStefano.

STAY CONSISTENT

Keeping exercise consistent is a challenge for anyone, regardless of age; however, it becomes vital for older people to maintain regular activity.

“You need consistency,” said DiStefano.

Walking, for example, is a skill that requires repetitive effort. Other everyday actions, like reaching into cabinets and climbing the stairs, are no different.

Avoiding those tasks that utilize distinctive motions can lead to the degradation of muscles supporting the process.

“If you don’t practice reaching into cabinets, getting in and out of your tub, going down the stairs, you will lose it,” said DiStefano. “New Year’s comes, the resolutions come, you’re gung-ho, and then the minute you start peeling off you’ve done yourself an injustice again because you’re not doing what you should be doing on a daily basis.”

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