What exercise is safe and good for bone health with osteoporosis?

Posted by leemiller @leemiller, Mar 17, 2016

I was diagnosed with borderline osteoporosis in my spine before breast cancer treatment, but now that I'm on an aromatase inhibitor, I'm really concerned about how to increase my bone mass - without wanting to take more drugs. I did LiveStrong at the Y after finishing cancer treatment and it was a great group, but nobody seemed to know which bends/stretches/exercises were safe for me to do. This is an area that seems ripe for the yoga instructors who work with older folks and cancer survivors.

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Osteoporosis & Bone Health Support Group.

@tsc

Hi @leemiller, Dr. Loren Fishman, Columbia University, School of Medicine has an ongoing study re Yoga and Osteoporosis "12 Poses vs. Osteoporosis" with modified poses, given one's level of ability. The selected poses build bone density and have not caused any injuries. He also has a website, http://www.sciataca.org. You can look at his work there. There are yoga instructors across the country certified in Dr. Fishman's method. If you Google 12 Poses... Dr. Fishman's Method, you can view the video.

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I love Dr. Fishman's 12 poses. There are a few variations out there. The official one moves through the poses too fast for me.
Thanks to a post by @barbakp, I found Kendra Fitzgerald's channel on YouTube. The variations of the 12 poses that she teaches aren't too difficult, she does them slowly, and explains them really well.

For anyone who's interested, here's a link to her channel: https://www.youtube.com/@KendraFitzgerald/search?query=fishman

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I saw an excellent physical therapist shortly after I was diagnosed with severe osteoporosis (-3.4 lumbar spine). She focused a lot on core strength and balance exercises to help keep me upright (as in not falling). No bending forward exercises, but cat cow type exercises are fine (opening the chest). Learn to do a good plank exercise (I have to hold my plank for a full minute, then do it again). She also taught me the crouching tiger, which I prefer (in fact, I prefer to do anything rather than a plank)! Dead bug is also an excellent core muscle exercise. I do three sets of 12, and I'm sweating!

Good luck!

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I am pleased with the Fishman poses; I made a Youtube playlist of certified gals doing them - and alternate to keep it interesting.

I appreciate the educated guidance - they are very detailed to help you do them correctly.

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@joyboudreau

I am pleased with the Fishman poses; I made a Youtube playlist of certified gals doing them - and alternate to keep it interesting.

I appreciate the educated guidance - they are very detailed to help you do them correctly.

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Hi @joyboudreau and @hopefullibrarian, I started doing Dr. Fishman's 12 poses with the modified videos posted by Algaecal, then moved on to his Method on YouTube. I also checked out stuff at Sciataca.org and registered for his emails. He has a second series of poses, which is available on DVD so I ordered it from his Manhattan office. The second series is slower paced because he did get complaints that the first series was too fast. It also breaks out the modifications for Classic, Osteoporosis and Osteopenia versions. I alternate between the two series to avoid boredom, sometimes mix poses. There is a third series, but I haven't tracked that down yet. I'm really grateful for him and his work.

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@tsc

Hi @joyboudreau and @hopefullibrarian, I started doing Dr. Fishman's 12 poses with the modified videos posted by Algaecal, then moved on to his Method on YouTube. I also checked out stuff at Sciataca.org and registered for his emails. He has a second series of poses, which is available on DVD so I ordered it from his Manhattan office. The second series is slower paced because he did get complaints that the first series was too fast. It also breaks out the modifications for Classic, Osteoporosis and Osteopenia versions. I alternate between the two series to avoid boredom, sometimes mix poses. There is a third series, but I haven't tracked that down yet. I'm really grateful for him and his work.

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Great! Thank you…

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@wilkenl

I saw an excellent physical therapist shortly after I was diagnosed with severe osteoporosis (-3.4 lumbar spine). She focused a lot on core strength and balance exercises to help keep me upright (as in not falling). No bending forward exercises, but cat cow type exercises are fine (opening the chest). Learn to do a good plank exercise (I have to hold my plank for a full minute, then do it again). She also taught me the crouching tiger, which I prefer (in fact, I prefer to do anything rather than a plank)! Dead bug is also an excellent core muscle exercise. I do three sets of 12, and I'm sweating!

Good luck!

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@wilkenl Yay for core exercises. One point though. I think the practice of doing longer and longer planks is not the best way to add challenge. Stuart McGill my favorite expert on low back and core matters suggests holding planks 5-10 seconds. No more is needed or to be advised. He suggests other ways to add progressions to core exercises than length of time holding. I think the logic is that anymore time than that and you are interfering with the bodies ability to clear waste products from the muscle tissue and not helping improve muscle strength further. Sorry I don't have time right now to find what he stated as the reason behind it. But I am sure his suggested timing is 5-10 secs.
I have been following his advice in this area for 8 years now and have greatly improved my low back - hip issues and core fitness. His book Back Mechanic is great for the "layman" and there are tons of free interviews with him on Youtube.
Also 5-10 sec holds are just way more fun.

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@awfultruth

@wilkenl Yay for core exercises. One point though. I think the practice of doing longer and longer planks is not the best way to add challenge. Stuart McGill my favorite expert on low back and core matters suggests holding planks 5-10 seconds. No more is needed or to be advised. He suggests other ways to add progressions to core exercises than length of time holding. I think the logic is that anymore time than that and you are interfering with the bodies ability to clear waste products from the muscle tissue and not helping improve muscle strength further. Sorry I don't have time right now to find what he stated as the reason behind it. But I am sure his suggested timing is 5-10 secs.
I have been following his advice in this area for 8 years now and have greatly improved my low back - hip issues and core fitness. His book Back Mechanic is great for the "layman" and there are tons of free interviews with him on Youtube.
Also 5-10 sec holds are just way more fun.

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Dr. Fishman teaches that more than 30 seconds is detrimental.

Did you ladies see that article about the woman that does four hour Plank Holds regularly? Now a record holder.

I cannot imagine.

I love her smile.

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