One important discovery is that simple weight-bearing exercises can build bones. This knowledge is particularly helpful to seniors. People with the bone-thinning disease osteoporosis continue to lose even more bone mass, putting them at a greatly increased risk for fractures. Physicians recommend that you take steps early in life to protect bone, especially by consuming adequate calcium and vitamin D in the bone-forming years. But it's important to keep paying attention to your bones later in life.
Exercise can help strengthen muscle and bone, improve posture, and prevent falls by aiding balance.
Exercises in which bones sustain repeated impact, such as feet striking the ground, have additional benefit. Walking and other weight-bearing exercises benefit the bones in the legs, hips, and lower spine, while strength training aids the upper spine and arms. Bone Builders Read all about calcium and its importance to strong bones. . . . Walking Clubs Get info on the club and healthy walking tips. A European study involving identical twins analyses the effects of impact exercises.