Older Pet Owners Need Senior Balance Exercises

Senior Balance Exercises For Pet Owners

By Suzanne Stoke, Physical Therapist @ Exercise For Balance via www.exerciseforbalance.com

   Loving pets can add tremendous joy and love to your life, but practicing senior balance exercises is essential for safe living with pets. Please see    http://www.exerciseforbalance.com/buy-now There is nothing like the companionship and love of a special dog or cat to warm your heart and add companionship to your life. Medical researchers have actually found physiological changes that occur in the presence of pets. Some of the many benefits of pet ownership includes:

•    Having a friend or companion. While isolation can make disorders like depression worse, having a pet to simply talk to can lift a person's mood. Many senior citizens feel less lonely and depressed after spending time alone with a dog and other pets. Some older individuals have even suggested that interacting with pets is more beneficial than spending time with other people.

•    Relaxation. Simply by petting and interacting with a dog, cat or other animal one can relieve stress and anxiety, as well as decrease blood pressure.

•    A reason to get up in the morning. Having a pet adds routine to an elder’s day. Pets require a regular feeding and exercise schedule. This may be just what a lonely and depressed elder needs to get out of bed each day. Living for another creates a sense of fulfillment in a person's life.
•    Contact with others. Taking a dog for a walk can provide opportunities to socialize with other dog owners, which helps to reduce emotional problems.

•    Dementia aid. Some studies have suggested that individuals with Alzheimer’s disease are less agitated and more socially interactive when around dogs.

•    Mental focus. Having a pet helps elders focus on something other than physical problems and negative thoughts about loss or aging.  

•    Physical activity. Older people that have their own dogs benefit from more frequent exercise (walking a dog several times a day), which in time improves one’s balance. As well, they gain good cardiovascular exercise that has a positive effect on blood pressure (high/low blood pressure is associated with dizziness and balance problems). In addition, people with pets have elevated levels of brain chemicals (serotonin and dopamine) that aid in relaxation and stress reduction.

   Pet owners, however, need to be careful not to trip and fall over their pets, resulting in a trip to the emergency room.

Senior Balance Exercises To Take Care Of Pets

      One of the best ways to safe at home while taking care of pets is to rehearse senior balance exercises on a regular basis. Equilibrium routines can include side stepping or lunges, which involve balancing on one foot while moving the other foot. These stability routines mimic stepping over a dog or cat, which is frequently the mechanism of falling for an older adult. You can learn a progressive senior balance exercise program in the Exercise For Balance DVD that you can perform at home, which was developed by an experienced Physical Therapist.

Senior Balance Exercises In The Exercise For Balance DVD

    For your ultimate safety at home, please begin the best balance exercises with the Exercise For Balance DVD. The easy to follow Exercise For Balance DVD is an exceptional educational DVD to use at home or in a group setting. The professionally filmed Exercise For Balance DVD comes complete  with the best balance and strength exercises needed to enhance senior fitness and to perform basic activities like walking, cleaning house, standing, stair climbing or to advance to high level activities like playing bocce ball, dog walking, dancing and hiking. In the comprehensive Exercise For Balance DVD, you will learn how to improve balance, balance techniques and balance routines from a balance trainer (licensed Physical Therapist) who has worked with balance and dizziness disorders for over 20 years. Get your copy of the Exercise For Balance DVD by clicking on the BUY NOW button

   Enjoy your pet to the fullest by starting balance exercises today with the Exercise For Balance DVD to improve balance and prevent falls.
For more information see http://www.mayoclinic.com/health-information/