Menopause & Osteoporosis
Today I'm sharing some super-important information about bone health and how this relates to resistance and weight-bearing training.
Often we think about our movement practice relating to building muscle strength and also to flexibility. But what about your bones?
Our bones follow a natural cycle of old bone being broken down and replaced with new bone throughout our lives.. However, we continue to build bone mass only until approximately the age of 30 - after this age, our bodies generally break down more bone than is created.
Resistance and weight-bearing exercises encourage bone growth by placing stress on the bones and encourage them to develop more mass, reducing the risk of developing Osteoporosis.
Osteoporosis is a health condition that weakens bones due to reduced bone mass, making them more susceptible to breaking when you fall over. It usually goes undetected until a fall happens and causes a fracture, often in the wrists, hips or spine.
The thing that really blew my mind when studying this condition is that people with a female reproductive system are twice as likely than men to develop Osteoporosis after menopause as reduced oestrogen levels can result in the bones breaking down at a higher rate.
This is why it is essential to practice weight bearing activities (brisk walking, running, dancing) and also resistance exercises (you don’t need to lift weights unless you want to - your own bodyweight can provide fantastic resistance!)
If you are nowhere near menopause, the sooner you can get started with a regular movement practice, the better prepared your body will be when the time comes. If you are peri-menopausal, or even past the menopause, remember that the deterioration process can be slowed down with a regular practice of weight-bearing and resistance activities - plus, it will help to maintain your balance and stability.
Other factors such as nutrition, smoking and some medications can have effects on bone density but movement is really a key to maintaining bone health. The more you can do to slow down the breaking down of bone the better!
For more information check out:
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/osteoporosis/
https://theros.org.uk/
Questions? Pop ‘em in the comments!