The 5 Tips to Maintain Your Strength to Keep Up with Your Little One
- Brainz Magazine
- Oct 28
- 5 min read
Krystal Walden is the Founder/CEO of KRYSTAL SPA®. She is a former World-Class and University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Track Athlete with a Master of Science in Gerontology from the University of Southern California (USC).
In modern times, there has been an increase in multi-generational family dwellings due to the economic downturn, rising college tuition, and unsustainable salaries. Within this type of family dwelling, you may find yourself becoming a little one’s parent, grandparent, aunt, or uncle. You must stay healthy and fit to keep up with your precious little one.
As a little one’s caretaker, you may be ignoring the limitations of your physical abilities. It is easy to dive right into the joyous and playful moments with your little one. However, when doing so, you may be disregarding the signs of aches and pains in your neck, shoulders, arms, back, hips, legs, knees, ankles, or feet. Basically, your entire body.
Ask yourself these questions:
How old is my little one?
How energetic is my little one?
Do I pick up my little one often?
Is my little one crawling, walking, or running?
What are the most common injuries for caretakers?
The most common injuries while caring for your little one are joint pains and repetitive muscle strains. These types of injuries can stem from consistently picking up and holding your little one for long periods of time. Sometimes it is the playtime on the floor or chasing your little one around the house, to name a few. Let’s dive deeper into the scope of these injuries to help create a plan to increase the possibilities of preventive care.
Anxiety and stress
Although anxiety and stress are not considered injuries, they are essential components to discuss. Furthermore, anxiety and stress can cause different types of pain and can present themselves in many different forms. Most can identify physical discomfort, such as headaches that alter how the brain manages pain signals throughout the body. When the brain mismanages pain signals, the skeletal and muscular systems become more vulnerable and sensitive to even minimal stimuli.
Skeletal pain
The pain that persists in your skeletal system can be pressure-related, stiff, dull, achy, or sharp. The skeletal pain tends to increase with movement. This type of pain typically resides in your joints. The causes of joint pain include direct impact, trauma, fractures, and dislocation of the bones and joints.
Muscular pain
The pain that persists in your muscles can manifest as tenderness, soreness, or spasms. The muscular pain tends to increase when the damaged muscles are not adequately and consistently stretched. This type of pain persists in the muscle groups that support, hold, and move your skeletal system. The causes of muscular pain include weak muscles, strain on the body, poor posture, repetitive movements, and fatigue.
5 simple home exercises to maintain strength
Great news, there are simple home exercises that will help you strengthen the muscle groups that support the skeleton and joints. These exercises will increase your range of motion and help you prevent, manage, and heal your joints.
Deep breathing
Let’s start with breathing. This practice will strengthen your lungs, allowing oxygen to flow through your body and supporting blood to your muscles that support your joints.
Sit in a comfortable position that keeps your spine straight. Relax your shoulders and arms, letting them drop towards the floor. Bring your legs and feet forward, in front of your knees. Take a deep inhale slowly through your nose and hold your breath for 2 seconds. Then exhale slowly out of your mouth. When breathing, imagine you are on a private island, enjoying the sounds of birds and the ocean waves. Keep breathing. Repeat 8 times.
Shoulder flexion
This exercise will strengthen the neck, chest, shoulder, and upper back muscles that support your shoulder joint.
Stand with your feet hip distance apart. Keep your weight even from heels to toes. Bring your arms to your sides. Inhale, then slowly raise your arms until they are parallel to the floor. Keep your shoulder blades down and away from your ears. Hold for 10 seconds. Keep breathing. Exhale, slowly lower your arms back by your sides. To increase the resistance, hold a water bottle in each hand. Repeat 8 times.
Spine extensions
This exercise will strengthen the muscle groups of your lower back and glutes that support your hip joints.
Lie down on your stomach. Bring your hands flat on the floor, aligned underneath your shoulders. Squeeze your glutes, legs, ankles, and feet together. Inhale, gently raise your chest to arch your upper body back. Exhale, relax your shoulders, letting them drop and move away from your ears. Look straight ahead to keep your neck in a neutral position. Keep breathing. Hold for 20 seconds. Exhale, slowly lower your chest back down to the floor. Repeat 8 times.
Bridges
This exercise strengthens the glutes, hamstrings, inner thighs, and quadriceps that support your hip and knee joints.
Lie down on your back. Bend your knees and bring your feet flat on the ground. Keep your knees hip distance apart and point your toes forward. Bring your arms to your sides, palms facing up. Relax your shoulders, arms, and hands. Press your feet down and against the floor. Inhale, gently lift your hips towards the ceiling until your hips are parallel to the floor. Hold for 20 seconds. Exhale, lower your hips back down to the floor. Repeat 10 times.
Hip extensions
This exercise strengthens your glutes and hamstrings.
Start on your hands and knees. Keep your palms flat on the ground. Bring your hands and wrists aligned with your shoulders. Straighten your left leg with your toes touching the floor. Inhale, then slowly raise your left leg towards the ceiling until it is parallel to the floor. Keep your leg and back straight. Hold for 20 seconds. Keep breathing. Exhale, lower your leg back down, and tap your toes on the floor. Repeat 8 times.
Planks
This exercise strengthens your shoulder, arm, back, and abdominal muscles.
Start on your hands and knees. Keep your palms flat on the ground and your hands and wrists aligned with your shoulders. Inhale, then slowly walk your knees back as far as you feel comfortable. Keep breathing. Exhale, gently lower your hips to align parallel to the floor. Hold for 10 seconds. To increase the intensity, keep your hands on the floor and keep your back straight. Straighten your legs and keep your spine and hips parallel to the floor. Repeat 8 times.
Action now
Little ones give you a run for your money. As a caregiver to a little one, you are bathing, dressing, feeding, playing, and rocking them to sleep multiple times a day. These essential activities can cause exhaustion and fatigue.
Our experts at KRYSTAL SPA® will help you build and maintain flexibility and strength for a wonderful bonding time with your little one. Contact us today here to schedule your in-home or virtual assessment.
Krystal Walden, Master of Science in Gerontology
Krystal Walden brings to the health and fitness spa 25+ years of experience as a competitive athlete, offering her unique fusion of athletic gifts and accreditations. Krystal specializes in helping individuals (from beginners to athletes) get back in touch consciously with their minds, body, and soul. She strongly emphasizes body awareness and alignment for maximum injury prevention and recovery. With the kind of strength, flexibility, balance, and compassion that Krystal possesses, there is no doubt that she will meet her goals to enhance the global image of how to live a stronger, healthier, and balanced lifestyle.
