• Improves cardiovascular fitness and endurance.
• Helps develop and maintain joint flexibility, muscular strength, balance and social and psychological well-being.

For example, physical activity can help people with arthritis to decrease their pain and weakness from arthritis and improve their overall well-being.

Physical activity programs can also help to maintain or develop functional independence as we age.

Other health benefits of physical activity for people (with and without obesity) include the following:

• Reduces the risk of diabetes and some cancers.
• Helps control weight.
• Improves bone density.

Cardiovascular Activities
Cardiovascular activity can increase your overall energy level and improve the function of your heart, lungs, circulation and muscles.

Cardiovascular or endurance physical activity can be difficult for people with limited mobility. Below are some ways to improve your cardiovascular fitness level.

[new]
Participating in these activities for at least 10 minutes at a time is key. At first, you may not be able to be active for 10 minutes at a time.

If this is the case, do what you can comfortably and progress to 10 minutes of exercise in a row.

Once you can do 10 minutes, you can either exercise for up to 15 minutes or do two bouts of 10 minutes of exercise at different times of the day.

Try going to a fitness centre and using a stationary bike, rowing machine or arm ergometer (a machine that measures the work you do during exercise) for your cardiovascular activity.

Swimming pools are another great place for your activity. Swimming or participating in aquafit classes may help you to develop your cardiovascular fitness.

People with mobility issues may prefer swimming pools with a sloped entrance into the water. The slope allows you to wheel or walk into the pool with or without help.

If you like being active at home or in your neighbourhood and you can find a safe surface for walking or wheeling, follow an aerobic fitness video or dance around the house to your favourite tunes.

These activities are great ways to increase your heart rate and improve your cardiovascular system while having fun.

Strength Activities
Strength activities challenge your muscles by pulling, pushing or holding muscle contractions.

Strength training is a great way to keep muscles and bones strong and improve balance and posture.

If you have osteoporosis, do isometric strength training exercises. In this type of exercise, you contract the muscle but don’t move the joint.

This type of exercise helps develop strength when joint movement is too painful.

[new]
To make sure the exercise is safe for you, make an appointment with a personal trainer or your physical therapist for specific strength-training exercises. 

Here are some ideas for ways to improve your strength.

At a fitness centre:

• Do free weight exercises standing up or sitting down.
• Use resistance training machines that you can sit on.
• Do dynaband/tubing exercises with a fitness leader or personal trainer.

If you don’t know how to use the machines or free weights, make an appointment with a personal trainer to ensure that you are doing the exercises safely.

In a pool:

• Do movements using the water as resistance. You can ask an instructor to help you with this creative way of strength training.
• You might also want to develop a personalized program with a personal trainer.

At home:

• Follow exercise videos or programs from the Internet, VCR tapes, DVD or TV that lead you through a full-body strength program using a dynaband, soup cans or hand weights.
• Ask a personal trainer to develop a fitness program that you can do at home with tools that you already own. Using your muscles while doing daily activities will also help improve your overall strength.

Flexibility Activities
Flexibility activities include activities that help you move your joints and muscles more easily.

Improving your flexibility can help you bend down to tie your shoe, brush your hair, get up and down off the floor or tub and reach items from the top shelf in the cupboard.

Do stretching exercises slowly and smoothly, with no bouncing or jerking. Stretching should not be painful.

Tai Chi and chair yoga are activities that improve your flexibility. You can often do both of these activities standing up or sitting down.

[new]
Fitness centres often offer fitness classes that include stretching as one part of the class or a full class on stretching.

Personal trainers can help you to develop a personalized stretching program to do with some help or on your own.

At home, you can do other activities to maintain flexibility, such as gardening, mopping or sweeping.

Physical activity can be adapted to fit all abilities and disabilities.

Those of us with mobility issues can be active and make cardiovascular, strength and flexibility activities part of our life.

Physical activity can be done at a fitness centre or pool or in your home or neighbourhood.

To make sure that you are doing the exercises or activities correctly, talk with an exercise instructor, personal trainer or your physical therapist.

[endpage]
Learn More
Alberta Centre for Active Living: Yoga and Stretching @ Your Desk
You can follow these stretching and yoga videos while sitting down. Also available in French

Steadward Centre for Personal and Physical Achievement
A centre that caters specifically to disabled persons.

Active Living Alliance for Canadians with Disabilities
A national group that focuses on active living ideas and opportunities for people with disabilities.

Get Active Now Canada
This group encourages people of all abilities to Get Active Now by providing information and practical tools for healthy living. This group especially focuses on recreation, sports and physical fitness.

Health Canada, Physical Activity
General information about physical activity from Health Canada.

MS Society, MS and Fitness: Guide for People With Multiple Sclerosis
A guide specifically for people with MS.

National Center on Physical Activity and Disability, Videos of Seated Exercises for Strength Training
A series of videos on strength training.