Lets face it, exercise can be overwhelming especially if you haven't done it since high school. Add in an aging body, sore joints, a few more injuries on your medical record, and stepping foot in a gym may seem like jumping out of an airplane.
Over the years I have worked with people with an array of different challenges such as:
Joint replacements
Obesity
Fibromyalgia
Parkinsons
Mental trauma
Long time inactive individuals
Most of these individuals have been well over 40 and a handful in their 70’s.
All of them were able to decrease their daily aches and pains, increase their energy levels, and improve their strength.
After nearly 15 years of working in the field, I can say with confidence that there are exercises for every entry point in fitness.
No matter your injury history or current physical condition, there is a way to both start and progress your way forward.
The exercises below are variations of other popular movements commonly seen in the gym or on social media. These are some of the first stepping stones to rebuilding your body to get your life back.
Most Accessible Squat Variations
From picking up your children/grandchildren to standing up off the toilet, we squat everyday.
If you have issues such as a lack of mobility, injuries to your lower body or back, and insufficient strength this can lead to the inability to do a safe, effective squat.
If you’re unable to squat low it will place great limitations on your daily function. Maintaining this level of independence is essential for a better quality of life.
Below are some simple, but valuable starting points for anyone who has difficulty squatting their bodyweight.
1. Sit To Stand
One of the most difficult parts of the squat for many beginners is getting low and/or maintaining balance. The sit to stand is like your favorite rest stop on the interstate. A break at the midpoint of your trip.
Midway through the squat (AKA the bottom) you may find it demanding on the body to not collapse to the floor. The sit to stand breaks up the movement so that the lifter may regroup.
Use a bench, chair, or best of all an aerobic stepper.
The beauty of the aerobic stepper is that it can be adjusted to a higher or lower setting. This will progressively get you to lower depths until you’re able to get your hips past your knees.
The aerobic stepper is your cheerleader, encouraging you to try new challenges as you go!
2. Band Assisted Squats
Resistance bands can provide resistance in place of a dumbbell or barbell. They can also provide assistance with exercises like squats.
The band effectively makes the lifter lighter. If strength is an issue, the assistance from the band will enable the lifter to squat lower. Strength is then built in a deeper range of motion.
Super bands or Grey Cook Tubes are ideal choices for this exercise. The super bands (essentially giant rubber bands) can be tied to a support beam in your house or a chin-up bar. The thicker the band, the more assistance it provides.
Be sure to purchase multiple (2-3) bands at varying tensions. This will give you room to progress to a bodyweight squat in the future.
Recommended measurements of the bands: roughly 40 inches in length X 2 inches (heavy assistance), 1.5 inches (medium assistance), and 1 inch (light assistance) in width.
3. Leg press
If you’re not able to squat at all for some reason, the leg press can strengthen the legs in a similar fashion.
The leg press will enable the knees and hips to work together in a way that will have more carryover to squatting than a leg extension machine.
Make it your goal to progress to a standing squat after six to eight weeks. Once you reach the point where you can push around 75% or more of your bodyweight for multiple reps, try progressing to one of the squat exercises above.
Most Accessible Pushing Exercises
Pressing movements can be difficult if you lack the equipment, shoulder stability, or mobility.
In the case of shoulder restrictions, overhead pressing exercises can be especially challenging.
Push-ups can also be hard as many people lack the upper body strength to perform them.
Here are some alternatives to these movements that can build strength to progress towards more advanced options.
1. Landmine press
This is a great variation if someone lacks the shoulder or upper back mobility to straighten their elbow and reach their arm completely overhead.
If trying to get your arms to straighten over your head seems like trying to force a locked door open, take the time to work on your mobility while strengthening your upper body with this substitute.
Shoulder restrictions are very common if you’re over 40.
The landmine press is similar to an overhead press in that it focuses more on building the shoulders and triceps.
This press variant also allows you to be standing, which more closely simulates the overhead press. Standing will teach you to brace the rest of your body to create a stable foundation for a more efficient press.
2. Assisted push-ups
I have had a lot of success using band assistance to get many people their first push-up. Superbands are great for this. There are also other devices specifically designed for assisted push-ups that you can find on the internet.
Similarly to the assisted squats, purchase two or three different levels of band tension in order to have options to slowly progress over time.
Recommended bands dimensions:
Approximately 40 inches in length X 1.5 inches heavy assistance, 1 inch medium assistance, 0.5 light assistance.
3. Incline push-up
Push-ups provide more stability for the shoulders because they require you to push against something that's not going to move. That is why there is more than one version I recommend in this article.
This is another variation of the push-up that can be done anywhere! If you don't have bands or anything to tie them to for assistance, this one's for you! .
The higher the incline, the easier the push-ups. Some of the best options for places to do these are a kitchen counter, a table, or some kind of chair or bench.
Be sure that the surface you choose to perform these is sturdy.
4. Dumbbell Bench Press
With some individuals, the barbell bench press can be hard on the shoulders. This could be a technique issue, weakness/pain of the rotator cuff, or lack of mobility.
One of the best alternatives is the use of dumbbells. With dumbbells your shoulders are allowed to find a more comfortable position. Since each hand is holding a separate weight, the shoulders can easily be rotated to a 45 degree angle or even to a neutral position (weights parallel to the torso).
Another benefit of the dumbbells is they work each arm independently, building the weaker side up if there is a large difference between the two.
5. Bonus! Arm work
When push-up or bench press variations are not possible, direct arm work for the triceps and biceps are usually still an option.
Tricep pushdowns, tricep kickbacks, lying tricep extensions, and any type of bicep curl will build strength while taking stress off the shoulders.
Try out all of these options to figure out where you should start. All of them work at the right time and can be used as a starting point to progress your strength and overall health. In the beginning, stick to lower rep ranges to build strength and technique while limiting fatigue.
Avoid getting overly tired as this will force you to do bad reps. Save the higher intensity work for when you’re able to do bodyweight squats or push-ups. Keep the reps low and the quality high!
Try out this simple progression:
Weeks 1-2: 3 sets of 3-5 reps
Weeks 3-4: 3 sets of 5 reps
Weeks 5-6: 4-5 sets of 5 reps
***Then repeat from the beginning with less assistance or more weight.
Be on the lookout for part two where we will cover more accessible options for other common exercises like deadlifts and rows!
