Just jump to it and you’ll beat bone disease
JUST six minutes of exercise per week could help prevent osteoporosis, a British study has found.
Simple routines involving jumping are thought to reduce the risk of the bone disease, which affects three million Britons, most of them women.
Half of these over-50s will fracture a bone, due to low bone density.
Researchers at Manchester Metropolitan University and the University of Hull suggest three sessions each lasting two minutes.
They examined the impact of counter-movement jumps, box-drops and heel-drops. The first is performed from a standing position when the person swings arms before jumping from the ground.
For a box-drop, a step or box is set at knee-height to jump from to land on two feet while bending the knees.
Heel-drops involve standing as high as possible on the toes before instantly relaxing the leg muscles and dropping on to both heels – to create an impact with knees slightly flexed.
All the women in the latest study wore an accelerometer on their lower back to estimate the intensity and duration of movement. Electrodes were also placed at the front of the thigh, hamstrings and the lower leg.
Fourteen volunteers did one jump every four seconds and then swapped to have a longer rest time, performing one jump every 15 seconds.
The results, published in the Journal of Electromyography and Kinesiology, showed both regimes were beneficial for bone health.
Dr Gallin Montgomery, at Manchester, said counter-movement jumps were most beneficial “as these had the highest muscle activation along with the highest impacts, which are really important for bone health”.
He described the exercises as “really easy and can be completed in the comfort of your own home”.
He added: “Osteoporosis is most common in women post-menopause and exercise is one of the best ways to help or prevent it.”