Transcript
Hi, I am Dr. Liz Plowman.
Today I’m going to show you some of the seated exercises that I teach to people with myasthenia gravis in my practice.
Please remember that these are only movement examples. Before starting any exercise or movement program, please talk to your health care provider.
When someone comes in to see me, seated exercises are a good place for us to start if they have problems with standing for long periods of time, or if we’re just getting started. We want to introduce activity, but without excessive energy expenditure.
Shoulder rolls are a place I like to start with in terms of seated exercises. If one spends a lot of time sitting, it’s very, very easy to get into this kind of hunched-over position with the shoulders forward. So doing some basic backward shoulder rolls are a good way to open that up to generally feel good, and then it also starts working on the upper back muscles that don’t tend to be as affected by MG.
When performing the backward shoulder roll, you start by sitting up nice and tall with feet nice and square on the floor. You basically lift the shoulders up in a shrug, roll them back, push them down, squeezing the shoulder blades together, and then back to the starting position.
Marching and sitting, or simply raising up the legs just like this, is an exercise that I like to use with people who come to see me—and sitting, because if you’re already in the sitting position, it doesn’t require quite as much muscle use to lift the leg. Versus in standing, you have to lift the leg all the way from the floor. So, you can still work the muscle, but in a way that’s easier on it.
Start in a seated position with your feet firmly on the floor. Feet and knees and hips should all be in line. Gently engage the core, so draw your belly button towards your spine just a little bit, just enough to turn on the muscles of the stomach. Lift one leg up with the foot off the floor, and back down. Lift the other leg and put the foot back down.
The same marching exercise that you do in a chair can also be done on a ball. Simply engage the core, lift one leg, and then lift the other leg.
Sidestepping on the ball, you’re going to pick one leg up, step out to the side, bring it back. Pick the other leg up, step out to the side, and bring it back.
Everyone experiences MG differently. Please talk to your health care team before making any changes to your health and wellness plan.
