{"id":59,"date":"2020-06-04T11:48:08","date_gmt":"2020-06-04T10:48:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/react\/?p=59"},"modified":"2020-06-04T11:48:08","modified_gmt":"2020-06-04T10:48:08","slug":"week-5-is-it-getting-to-easier-then-youre-getting-fitter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/react\/2020\/06\/04\/week-5-is-it-getting-to-easier-then-youre-getting-fitter\/","title":{"rendered":"Week 5 Is it getting to easier? Then you\u2019re getting fitter!"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Hello and welcome back to the REACT blog.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>If you have been following the exercise routine described in the first few weeks of the blog you should be starting to see some improvements in your fitness and strength by now. So do think about increasing the intensity of the exercises you are doing and the number of repetitions, as described in our last blog. That way you will keep on improving.<\/p>\n<p>In order to avoid getting bored with your exercise programme, and as you have access to a computer or a tablet, you could consider trying out one of the free exercise routines available online. When you are choosing an online exercise programme make sure that it is appropriate to your physical abilities. There are quite a few programmes available specifically for older adults which would be a good starting point. But before starting please go back and review the safety guidance in the first week of this blog. Staying safe is always the most important thing.<\/p>\n<p>One tried and tested and very quick routine was developed by an organisation called <strong>Move It or Lose It. It\u2019s called the Cuppa Routine<\/strong> \u2013 because it is designed to be done while you boil the kettle for a cup of tea or coffee. Ideally do it every time you boil the kettle!<\/p>\n<p>Not only are the exercises easy to do, the act of switching on the kettle acts as a trigger to remind you to do this simple routine. It\u2019s little things like this that can really add up to make a big difference.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The Cuppa Routine video guides you through four exercises:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Side leg raises to strengthen the hips and bottom muscles which are vital for balance<\/li>\n<li>Chair raises to strengthen the thigh muscles to help with stair climbing and walking<\/li>\n<li>Arm raises strengthen the arms and shoulders to help with everyday tasks such as housework and gardening<\/li>\n<li>Heel raises strengthen the ankles and calf muscles to improve balance and walking<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If you make four cuppas a day, you will have done 40 chair raises by the end of the day!<\/p>\n<p>Just click on this link to give it a try:<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/J6HGXUS7IYI?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-GB&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Another organisation called Later Life Training have created a series of videos called <strong>Make Movement your Mission<\/strong> where they encourage people to take \u2018activity snacks\u2019 throughout the day. Well worth looking at as there are options to suit everyone.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-GB&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent&#038;listType=playlist&#038;list=PLeePVUq4FvWu9uSwUK8YMwZlVjx1CKp8q\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n<p>The NHS also have a series of exercise videos available including pilates and yoga sessions specifically for people with Rheumatoid Arthritis, knee problems, back pain and Osteoarthritis. So, if you have any of these issues these videos would be well worth trying.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhs.uk\/conditions\/nhs-fitness-studio\/?tabname=pilates-and-yoga\">https:\/\/www.nhs.uk\/conditions\/nhs-fitness-studio\/?tabname=pilates-and-yoga<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Whichever online programme you choose remember to also keep up your daily REACT sessions too and you will go from strength to strength. Next week we\u2019ll be talking about our bones and what we can do to keep them strong and healthy.<\/p>\n<p>Stay safe and keep moving!<\/p>\n<p>Janet, Afroditi, Jolanthe and Pete<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Dr Janet Withall, REACT Trial Manager, University of Bath<\/p>\n<p>Dr Afroditi Stathi, REACT Chief Investigator, University of Birmingham<\/p>\n<p>Dr Jolanthe de Koning, REACT Research Associate, University of Bath<\/p>\n<p>Dr Pete Ladlow, UK Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hello and welcome back to the REACT blog. If you have been following the exercise routine described in the first few weeks of the blog you should be starting to see some improvements in your fitness and strength by now....<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1435,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-59","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorised"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pd4PBS-X","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/react\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/react\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/react\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/react\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1435"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/react\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=59"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/react\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/react\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/react\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=59"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/react\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=59"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}