Pulmonary rehabilitation: Strength training
- Matthew Galea
- Jul 18, 2022
- 2 min read
Updated: Oct 15, 2023
This post is only educational, kindly refer to your physician and physio for personalised advice.
Strength training in patients with respiratory conditions has been proven to improve quality of life and also decrease muscle dysfunction; keeping one strong and healthy. It is important to involve strength training at least 3 times a week; to help maintain a functioning strong body and adequate posture , you would be more confident help eliminate some fears and inabilities of exercise.
How to preform a strength training program
There are different exercises one may carry out to train a variety of muscle groups. If done correctly these are aimed to strengthen various muscle groups. Strength training can also be referred to as resistance training as it requires the activation of a muscle against a particular resistance , via for example home-made weights, dumbells, resistance bands, body weight ,weights attached to the body and even certain movement in water can help create enough resistance which will all lead to muscle growth.
Selecting the correct weight or resistance needs to be done with advise from a Physiotherapist who will assess your strength and advise appropriately. Using weights which are not adequate for your might lead to injuries.
Once you have received advise you can carry out exercise as the following ones. It is always important to consult with a physiotherapist to ensure these exercises are suitable for you.
Breathwork whilst Strength Training
Breathing is an important tool that accompanies throughout life and especially in exercise. When carrying out any exercise it is also important to breathe well. Take a deep inhalation into your belly(diaghpramatic breathing) when at rest and an slightly force, a strong exhalation shorter than inhalation period when using force. This form of breathing should be continued one after the other when training.
Different Exercises
Leg Workout: Squats; A squat is a leg focused strength-building exercise in which the person stands up straight, lowers their hips, and then stands back up. Squats help improve leg strength and helps with balance too. Also squats help prevent constipation too. Squats may also be done with the use of a chair behind to sit on when squatting down.
Backworkout : Bent over row: this exercise implies one bends down to a 45 degree angle , keeping his hamstring and abs tight to prevent injury . Whilst in this position pull weights backwards until they can't no more, keep your elbows tucked in and always do this exercise slowly.
Resistance bands training can also help one achieve a good row workout for the back muscles. A resistance band overs resistance to train various muscles too like the chest,shoulders and many others ,such as seen in the video below
Bicep and tricep curls; are great exercises that help strength arm strength.The bicep is activated by hinging your arm with a weight inwards. Whilst hinging your arm outwards with resistance will activate the tricep muscle .
Movement therapy
There are also movements without weights one can help follow to maintain the body's ability to move freely. As like an unused door tends to become harder to open ,the same do our joints need movement to maintain optimum function. The following are some exercises one can do to maintain such functioning .
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