Exercise Videos
Supine Absolute Basics – "The Bare Minimum"
Categories: Start Here, Supine, Exercise
Some of the absolute basic exercises that should be performed if you are bed-bound include ankle pumps, heel slides and rolling from side to side to change position. Doing these exercises regularly several times a day will help from developing blood clots, pressure ulcers or bedsores, and contractures (shortened, tight muscles).
Supine Belly Breathing
Categories: Start Here, Breathing, Supine, Exercise
Stress and illness can affect how we breathe, impacting our digestion, cardiac and pulmonary function, nervous system and overall health. Luckily, we can control how and where we breathe in our bodies to change this.
Getting Out of Bed (Supine Log Roll)
Categories: Start Here, Supine, How To, Exercise
The 'log roll' is a simple technique to make it easier to get in and out of bed, and is useful for those who have back pain or decreased balance and strength.
Sit-to-Stand
Categories: Start Here, Seated, Standing, How To, Exercise
This highly practical and functional exercise strengthens the muscles we need to be able to safely get in and out of chairs, stand up from bed and get on and off the toilet.
Seated Stacked Breathing
Categories: Start Here, Breathing, Seated, Exercise
Stacked breathing is a technique to increase the size of the breath you are able take in. It can also improve the strength of your voice and your cough, so you can better clear out the lungs, as well as your lung flexibility.
Seated Pursed Lip Breathing
Categories: Start Here, Breathing, Seated, Exercise
Pursed lip breathing is a technique that makes breathing easier and more effective and can resolve shortness of breath caused by exercise or increased activity.
Prone Hip Extension
Use this exercise to strengthen your back and your bottom so movements like standing up, climbing stairs and walking feel easier.
Seated Back Stretch
This back stretch helps mobilize along the whole length of the spine. It is a seated version of the 'cat/cow' yoga pose.
Seated Calf Raises & Marching
These exercises improve knee and hip flexibility as well as the circulation in your lower legs and can help prevent blood clots.
Seated "Figure Four" Hip Stretch
This stretch can help loosen up muscles in the hip that get tight from sitting for a long time.
Seated Mid & Upper Back Stretch (with a ball)
This stretch can improve the mobility all along the upper and midback, helping with breathing, posture and resolving mid and upper back pain or stiffness.
Seated Neck Mobility & Stretches
Learn movements and stretches to keep the muscles the neck and upper back flexible, which can help resolve headaches, muscle pain, stiffness, and improve your posture.
Seated Posture
Improving posture can make breathing easier, help with back and neck pain, enhance our digestion, reduce heartburn and decrease seated stress incontinence.
Seated Torso Twist
Rotation makes our midback more flexible and can decrease stiffness and discomfort in these areas, especially when paired with breathing exercises that further stretch the muscles between the ribcage.
Seated Tripod Position for Shortness of Breath
The tripod position helps get more air in the lungs when you are short of breath and may make it easier to breathe, especially when other breath control techniques are used.
Seated Upper Body Mobility
Increasing chest and shoulder mobility improves posture, breathing ability, and can help resolve neck, upper back and shoulder pain.
Side-Lying Abductor Strengthening
Categories: Sidelying, Exercise
Strengthening the muscles on the outside of the hips, also known as our hip abductor muscles, keeps us steadier on our feet, and more stable when walking or standing on one leg, like when using stairs.
Standing Basic Balancing Exercises
Categories: Start Here, Standing, Exercise
Improving our balance makes us more stable while walking and using stairs and decreases our risk of falls and injury. It is an important component of recovery after extended illness and hospitalization.
Standing Calf Raises & Marching
Categories: Start Here, Standing, Exercise
These exercises improves blood flow, strength and stability in the lower legs and make activities like climbing stairs and stepping over objects easier.
Standing Hip Abduction & Extension
Categories: Standing, Exercise
Strengthening the muscles of the side and back of our hip and leg is very important for low back support, hip alignment, posture and stability, as well as keeping us stable when walking or standing on one leg, like when using stairs.
Standing Posture
Categories: Standing, Exercise
Improving posture can make breathing easier, help with back and neck pain, enhance our digestion and improve pelvic floor function.
Standing Supported Lunges
Categories: Standing, Exercise
Lunges work on your balance, strength and stability at the lower legs and hips, and can make it easier to get up from the floor or lift heavier objects off the floor, like a grocery bag.
Standing Supported Squats
Categories: Standing, Exercise
Squats are a very useful exercise to make it easier to get up from a chair, off the toilet and out of bed. If this is difficult, try the sit-to-stand variation first or the wall squat variation.
Standing Wall Push Up
Categories: Standing, Exercise
This easier alternative to floor push-ups still strengthens the chest, abdominal, arm and shoulder muscles, making it easier to complete everyday tasks. Increase the angle when you are ready to make it more challenging.
Standing Wall Squats
Categories: Standing, Exercise
Squats are a very useful exercise to make it easier to get up from a chair, off the toilet and out of bed. If this is difficult, try the sit-to-stand variation first or if too easy, do the supported squat variation instead. It can also be helpful if you have one-sided weakness, like after a stroke.
Supine Bridges
Strengthening the muscles of the buttocks makes it easier to get out of bed, a chair or off the toilet. It can also make it easier to go up stairs and can help decrease low back pain.
Supine Lower Trunk Twist
This twisting exercise stretches any areas of tension at the mid and lower back and even the sidebody and muscles between the ribcage. When done more quickly from side-to-side, it can act as an abdominal strengthening exercise.
Supine Marching
This exercise strengthens abdominal and hip muscles as well as helping to stabilize your lower back.
Supine Neck Mobility & Stretches
Learn movements and stretches to keep the muscles the neck and upper back flexible, which can help resolve headaches, muscle pain, stiffness, and improve your posture.
Supine Shoulder Flexion
This upper body exercise can improve shoulder flexibility and mobility, and can be easily turned into a strengthening exercise with the addition of weights or weighted objects.
Supine Upper Torso Twist
This twisting stretch improves mobility at your midback, ribcage and upper body, making it easier to breath and decreasing tightness or stiffness from prolonged bedrest or illness.
Supine Wall Angels
Improving chest and shoulder mobility relieves muscle tightness and stiffness, and can make it easier to breathe and maintain a better posture when sitting or standing.
Seated Belly Breaths
Categories: Breathing, Seated, Exercise
Stress and illness can affect how we breathe, impacting our digestion, cardiac and pulmonary function, nervous system and overall health. Luckily, we can control how and where we breathe in our bodies to change this.