The Exercise Your Parents Need!

Get Your ENERGYbits Superfood Spirulina and Chlorella and use code ELEMENTAL at checkout for 20% off!

Organifi Superfood Drink Powders (ELEMENTALEVAN for 20% off)

Alitura Skin Care with truly all natural ingredients (ELEMENTAL15 for 15% off your first order)

Elemental Evan Instagram

Elemental Evan Youtube Page

When’s the last time you’ve checked on your parent’s physical health? Have you noticed that they’ve gotten a bit slower? Maybe they have difficulty getting up out of a chair? These can be early signs that your parent is starting to lose mobility and muscle mass. While many people play it off as just getting older, I believe that we have more control over this than we think. 

Instead of allowing time and inactivity to take its course, why not give your parents some easy exercises that require little time and effort, and can be done from the comfort of their homes. In today’s episode, Evan will provide you with 4 easy exercises that your parents can start doing today, and can have a huge impact on their mobility. These simple exercises can keep your parents doing the activities that they love and living a life that's not limited to being stuck in a chair.

DISCLAIMER:

This podcast is for educational purposes only, it is not a substitute for professional care by a doctor or other qualified medical professional. Evan Roberts is not a medical professional and this podcast is provided on the understanding that it does not constitute medical or other professional advice or services. Statements and views expressed on this show are not medical advice, this podcast, including Evan Roberts and any guests on the show, disclaims responsibility for any possible adverse effects from the use of information contained in this episode. If you think you have a medical problem please consult a medical professional.

everybody.

2

Welcome to the elemental.

3

Ivan podcast is your host seven Roberts.

4

And on this show, I break down complex

health topics from a holistic perspective.

5

And today's episode.

6

We're actually going to start it

off with a little bit of homework.

7

I know you thought you were done

with school, but who doesn't

8

love a little bit of homework.

9

Trust me though.

10

This is going to be something easy.

11

So first off, I want you to go find

a parent mom, dad, or whoever feels

12

the role of being a parent figure

in your life, or honestly, just

13

anyone that is older and you care.

14

About.

15

And go ahead and ask them to sit

down on the floor without using their

16

hands to grab anything for assistance.

17

And then to stand up doing

the same method, no hands,

18

just standing straight up.

19

You will be very surprised in my

opinion, to see how many people, uh,

20

especially your parents or people

who are 50, 60 years old or older,

21

how difficult it is for them to

actually do this very simple task.

22

If you're like myself, uh, I have

definitely, and I won't straight up

23

just call them out here on the episode.

24

But I have seen one of my parents have a

pretty hard time doing this, and therefore

25

I've given that parent a bit of an

exercise to do, uh, to get better at this.

26

But nonetheless, Go ahead and have

one of your parents try to do this

27

exercise and see what happens.

28

Now the reason I had

you do this is because.

29

One of the biggest.

30

Issues we're having right

now with aging, I would say.

31

Is falls.

32

And I know this sounds probably

pretty random, especially if you're

33

young and this is not something that

you deal with personally, or maybe

34

you don't have very old parents,

uh, maybe they're still in their

35

forties, something along those lines.

36

And they're very able and, you know,

moving around is not an issue for them.

37

But this is truly a very serious issue.

38

In fact, according to the who

the world health organization.

39

The second leading cause of

unintentional injury deaths worldwide.

40

Is falling, and this is only

second to traffic collisions.

41

So.

42

You got.

43

Accidents on the street.

44

And then he got falling right after that.

45

Uh, it's a pretty dramatic difference

there between the two, obviously.

46

Uh, but nonetheless falling

is very, very serious.

47

It's something that needs

to be taken seriously.

48

And it's truthfully something

that can, for the most part, be.

49

Avoided right.

50

We can do things.

51

Right now today to actually start

developing the skills needed to no

52

longer have issues with falling, right.

53

We can completely avoid falling

altogether, or at least minimize

54

the risks of these falls.

55

Uh, now on top of that, it's estimated

that 684,000 people die annually

56

around the world, just from falling.

57

On top of that, we also have

37.3 million falls each year

58

requiring medical attention.

59

So once again, just hammering home.

60

How important.

61

This, , falling and, uh, trying

to avoid falling really is.

62

And, uh, this for me personally,

is something that I've seen with,

63

uh, my grandma, for example,

uh, just about a month ago, she

64

actually fell and had to get.

65

I think it was like 10 or

15 stitches in her leg.

66

Uh, so this is a very serious issue.

67

Something that hits

home for me personally.

68

And you know, when it comes to my parents'

health, Uh, I always try to kind of

69

take on the role of educating them and,

you know, kind of being there for them

70

because obviously they helped raise us

and get us to the point that we are.

71

So, uh, this is my little give back to

my parents and also to your parents as

72

well, or whoever it is in your life.

73

That could be 50, 60 plus.

74

Um, and you know, It is a struggling

with, having mobility and being able

75

to just do the things that they enjoy

doing, or maybe they're afraid of doing

76

these things because of fear of falling.

77

So if you are interested in hearing

these four different exercises

78

that I have for trying to avoid

falling, and also just making sure

79

that we're able to minimize the.

80

Uh, injury or risk of a fall,

then go ahead and stay tuned.

81

I'm going to cover all four

of these different exercises.

82

And before we jump straight into

those exercises, though, I wanted

83

to mention there's multiple reasons

for why a person might fall.

84

Uh, of course you have poor vision.

85

You have, um, you know, people who

are maybe on a medication as well,

86

and that can make them drowsy.

87

You can have a slow reaction time.

88

Uh, you could have.

89

Loss of muscle mass.

90

There's so many different things

that could really affect a person

91

and affect their ability to catch

themselves from falling or to

92

stop from falling altogether.

93

But what we're really going to

focus on today is mainly two things.

94

And that is going to be

balance and the maintenance of

95

muscle mass and bone density.

96

And.

97

Those can all be accomplished

through physical workouts.

98

And I want to explain this very

clearly, so I don't scare anyone away.

99

This is not a super time demanding thing.

100

You can spend very little time on

this every single day, and it will

101

have a massive benefit for you.

102

And also you don't need to spend

any money to do any of the exercise.

103

Any of the exercises

I'm about to talk about.

104

So if you really wanted to go to a

gym and get a membership, because that

105

just works for you best then by all

means, go get yourself a membership.

106

I think that's a great way of staying

active and really getting around

107

a bunch of people that are, you

know, concerned about their health

108

and trying to stay active as well.

109

But you do not need to spend any money.

110

You can do all these exercises at home.

111

Very simply.

112

Uh, there's nothing super crazy here.

113

We're really going to be fuck, uh,

focusing on functional movement.

114

So movements that are very useful.

115

We use them in our day-to-day lives.

116

And the very first one is going to be.

117

Simply to like, I gave you with

homework, sit down and stand

118

up without using your hands.

119

So if your parent or elder is a.

120

Having difficulty sitting down on

the floor, let's say you ask them to

121

sit on the floor and stand back up.

122

And they had a lot of difficulty doing so.

123

Then definitely I would recommend

having them to start out very slow,

124

use a piece of furniture or even a

person to assist in these workouts.

125

This is for someone who really has

a difficult time just sitting down

126

and standing up off of the floor.

127

But if you are someone who is at least

somewhat capable of doing this, then

128

the way you would do it is you're going

to take one foot and step it back.

129

Like you're in a lunge pose.

130

So the front knee is kind of bent and

then you're going to simply bend that

131

back knee until it touches the floor.

132

Bring the other knee in the front.

133

Next to the knee, that's

already on the ground.

134

And then you're going to be sitting

on your knees, like on your legs.

135

And then if you want, you can

sweep out the legs at that point

136

and come seated onto your butt.

137

Uh, or you could stay on your knees,

whatever it works best for you.

138

And then from there, just

simply do that in reverse.

139

So once again, go ahead and pop

one leg up and then lift the other

140

one and come to a standing pose.

141

If you can do this with no hands,

but it's slightly difficult

142

for you then that's good.

143

Go ahead and keep practicing this.

144

Right?

145

This is something that you

really only need to do, like

146

10 to 20 reps of these a day.

147

Uh, that is what I have tried to tell

my parent to do is to simply do about 10

148

to 20 of these every single day, because

these are going to help fortify those

149

muscles and keep them in use, making

sure that you're still able to have that

150

mobility and also have the strength to

let's say, God forbid, you did fall down.

151

Uh, one of the big issues is people

have a really hard time getting

152

back up and they're not able to

get, uh, reach out and get help.

153

So, hence it can be a very

serious and fatal incident.

154

Uh, so making sure that we're able to get.

155

Down to the floor and up off

the floor is very, very crucial.

156

Now, if you have someone who's super

capable in your life, you're this parent

157

or guardian or whatever it may be, then

of course you could have them do things

158

like Turkish, get-ups, pistol squats.

159

Uh, there's so many different kinds of.

160

Ways of getting down to the ground

and standing back up, uh, that are

161

really beneficial for the body.

162

And I'm not going to go

into those right now.

163

Feel free to go on YouTube and look

up a Turkish get-up or a pistol squad.

164

And you'll see what I'm talking about.

165

Uh, but then we're going to move

into number two, which is going to

166

be to simply balance on one leg.

167

So I really don't care how you do this

or so many different ways of doing it.

168

Uh, you could literally just do a tree

pose, which if you're not familiar with

169

yoga, You literally stand on one leg and

you take your other leg, you bend your

170

knee and you place that foot either.

171

If you're able to above your knee

or below your knee, but don't

172

place your foot right on your knee.

173

And you're just going to

stand on one foot like that.

174

So kind of making a figure

for, with your legs and you can

175

bring your hands, heart center.

176

If you want, lift them up above your

head, whatever works best for you.

177

And really just trying to.

178

Get onto one leg and allow our foot

to really find that fine movement

179

with the little ligaments and muscles

and everything, trying to find its

180

balance and, uh, keeping your body

upright now for a young person.

181

This might not sound like a very

difficult task, but as you get older,

182

this is increasingly more difficult.

183

So if you are someone who is prone

to falling, please stand near a wall,

184

stand near a piece of furniture that you

can easily grab it to catch yourself.

185

If you're going to fall and go ahead.

186

And do this on both sides.

187

Do one minute on one leg and

one minute on the other leg.

188

Uh, you could also do a warrior three

pro uh, pose, which is also a yoga pose.

189

So to do a warrior three pose,

simply stand up straight.

190

Go ahead and forward fold until you're

at a 90 degree angle at the hips.

191

And then lift up one of your back legs,

whichever one you care to start with.

192

Uh, so that is shooting out

directly behind you so that your

193

body should essentially look

like a T a capital letter T.

194

And this is warrior three pose.

195

You can keep your hands out by your

sides, kind of parallel with your body.

196

And once again, try to hold this

for about a minute on each leg.

197

Uh, it can be a challenging pose.

198

Uh, so be careful with this one as well.

199

And.

200

You know, like I said, there's so many

different ways of balancing on one foot.

201

You can get very creative with this.

202

Uh, you can also like try walking on

not necessarily a balance beam, because

203

if someone has difficulty with falling,

I don't want someone up on a balance

204

beam, but nonetheless, you could find

something like even the curb outside.

205

Uh, right where it goes into the gutter.

206

There's usually a line on the other side.

207

So it kind of creates this

like six foot, uh, sorry, six

208

inch, like width of a walkway.

209

You could try to walk on that

and try to balance on that.

210

Um, that could be a great

way to practice your balance.

211

You can also there's these new

devices that look like a half

212

cylinder of cork, basically.

213

And you can go ahead and set

it down on the, on the floor.

214

Flat side down and then stand on it with

one foot and allow your toes to really

215

reach out and grip this cl uh, half

cylinder shaped, uh, Uh, tool, and this

216

is going to really help your feet to

expand and really spread out your toes.

217

And it's really also going to

make it work a lot harder because

218

it's on an uneven surface.

219

So another, just really great way to

get on one leg and balance personally,

220

I don't care which one you choose.

221

Just do it.

222

So one minute each leg, not a lot of time.

223

If you're looking at these two

exercises that I've just gone over,

224

sitting down and standing up, plus

this, uh, balancing on one leg.

225

You're.

226

Probably at not even

five minutes right now.

227

So still a very short amount of time.

228

And then moving into number three

is a very functional movement and

229

that is simply picking things up.

230

If you do work out, this

is basically a deadlift.

231

Uh, so if you're not familiar with

what a dead lift is, what I would like

232

you to do is for the person you want

to find a weight that is not going to

233

be super heavy, that, you know, it's

difficult for them to actually lift

234

this item, but you also don't want it

to be so light that it just like, you

235

know, picking nothing up, basically.

236

Uh, so finding a happy medium there,

uh, for the average person, this might

237

fall somewhere, you know, depending on

how old you are anywhere from about.

238

About 10 pounds up to about 30, 35 pounds.

239

Um, if you're much more capable than

that, then of course you can bump that

240

weight up and do some serious deadlifting.

241

Uh, but nonetheless, the goal

here is that we're going to set

242

the weight right in front of us.

243

Yeah, I have your feet about hip

width distance, and then you're going

244

to, uh, start to bend at the knees.

245

And as you're reaching down

for the weight, you're going

246

to hinge at the hips a bit.

247

You're going to keep your.

248

Uh, your entire torso straight and chest

kind of facing up as much as possible.

249

Are you going to grab onto the weight and

then you're going to try to keep your gaze

250

straight or up, and then stand up, lifting

through the legs to lift up this weight

251

and go ahead and rip out, you know, 10 to

15 of those, however much you would like.

252

And this is really just a great practice

for lifting things off the ground, which

253

is a very common thing for us, right.

254

Even if you go grocery shopping, you

have to lift the grocery bag up and carry

255

it up some stairs, whatever it may be.

256

So making sure that we are lifting

heavy things off of the ground

257

is a very, very great practice.

258

There's also a lot of mobility,

uh, that is required for that, even

259

though you might not think about it.

260

And what we really want

to focus on here is form.

261

You don't want to be doing this fast.

262

You don't want to have poor

form and, you know, just kind

263

of swinging the weight around.

264

You want to be very intentional with it.

265

Go slow and take your time with this

exercise to really go through the full

266

motion and develop the correct muscles,

uh, and the correct posture for this.

267

And another really great practice

for lifting things up is, you

268

know, taking a weight and having

it on one side of your body.

269

And so you're standing up, you can

reach down, grab that weight and

270

then lift it up and twist your torso.

271

Like you're placing

something up on a shelf.

272

It's almost like you grab something

on your, on your left side and you're

273

lifting it up and setting it up on

a shelf, a high above your head on

274

the right-hand side of your body.

275

And then you can take that weight and

set it back down on your right-hand side.

276

And then do it over to the left and

just kind of repeat this process.

277

So now you're getting a cross

body movement with the weight.

278

Uh, this is going to be

very beneficial as well.

279

And once again, it's lifting

something up and putting it.

280

Up in a high area, right?

281

This is a common movement

that we do all the time.

282

So now we're coming to number four,

which is the last workout that I'm

283

going to provide for you all today.

284

And this is something I talk about all

the time on this podcast, which is to

285

simply go walk, get outside, go for a walk

10, 15, 20 minutes, whatever you can do.

286

Is super, super beneficial for you.

287

Walking can literally, after a

meal help you to lower your blood

288

pressure, um, to lower your, sorry,

lower your blood glucose spike.

289

Sorry, not a blood pressure necessarily,

but blood glucose spikes after you

290

eat a meal, especially if it's very

carbohydrate or sugar heavy, it can help

291

even with, uh, some anxiety and stress.

292

Uh, Andrew Huberman speaks a lot

about this, where the movement of.

293

You know, houses and trees that go

past your eyes as you're walking has

294

a very calming effect on, I believe

the nervous system of your body.

295

So it's great for your

blood glucose levels.

296

It's great for stress.

297

And on top of that, it's also a

great way to get some exercise.

298

Your body literally expects you to walk.

299

It is the most basic

movement that we have.

300

If we weren't able to walk,

we would probably die because

301

that means we couldn't forward.

302

We can hunt.

303

We can.

304

Do some of the very basic things we are

living in a three-dimensional world and

305

it requires us to move around and the

most basic form of movement is walking.

306

So your body literally expects

you to walk, to not walk is to

307

deprive it, of what it's expecting.

308

And on top of that muscles

are very energy demanding.

309

So if you are not utilizing certain

muscles over an extended period of

310

time, your body is going to eventually

stop taking care of those muscles.

311

Right.

312

It's going to break them down

and you're no longer going to

313

have those muscles because.

314

Your body is very smart.

315

And it knows that if you're not

using something, why spend all of

316

this caloric energy in trying to

maintain these muscles, if you're

317

never even going to use them.

318

Right.

319

So the goal here is to be very consistent

with these practices, go for these

320

walks, go for, uh, you know, trying to

do the sit down and stand up, balancing

321

on one leg, all these different things.

322

Be as consistent as possible.

323

Try not to go too long of a period of

time without, uh, doing these exercises.

324

And they're very simple right

there, nothing super crazy.

325

They don't require a ton of time

and they're going to have a huge

326

return of return on investment

for every single one of these.

327

And of course, I know if you're young,

these are not going to be the most

328

sexy type of workouts here, obviously.

329

But what we're really focusing on

here is making sure that as we age

330

and get older, we're still able to do

the things that we really enjoy doing.

331

Right.

332

Whether that's.

333

Going in playing with your

kids or your grandkids, right.

334

Being able to lift them up,

being able to throw a ball, being

335

able to go for a walk, right.

336

A walk on the beach.

337

That's.

338

A very enjoyable thing.

339

And, and it's unfortunate that some

people are not able to do that.

340

You know, it's, um, we're really focusing

on also trying to make sure we're able

341

to, uh, do some of the really basic

things like navigate around our own house.

342

Um, unfortunately there's a lot of

people who are basically bedridden or

343

maybe they have to use a Walker and

they're very limited in where they

344

can go even within their own house.

345

So.

346

That is what these practices are for.

347

Right?

348

Of course, going to the gym, lifting

heavy weights, doing different kinds

349

of exercises that are super beneficial

for you and absolutely keep doing them.

350

But it's also very important for

us to remember that we need to do

351

some of these functional movements.

352

We might not think about it very

often, but you know, being able to.

353

Sit down on the floor and stand

back up without any hands.

354

Um, you might be surprised, but even some

people who are, uh, 30 years in younger,

355

uh, It can have trouble doing this, right.

356

And usually it's a flexibility or mobility

issue, not necessarily a muscle issue.

357

Uh, but nonetheless, these are things

that we still need to practice and,

358

uh, keep these skills developed.

359

Right.

360

These are things that we should

be practicing every single day.

361

And you can even incorporate

them into your day-to-day life.

362

Right.

363

You can sit down on the floor.

364

And get back up.

365

Uh, maybe if you sit down on the floor to

watch TV or whatever it may be, um, and

366

you're able to lift heavy things in your

house when you're cleaning your house.

367

Uh, you're able to balance on one leg.

368

Uh, well, nothing really requires that

so much, but nonetheless, you can do it.

369

And these are great skills to practice

and to really hone and make sure that you

370

can keep them for the rest of your life.

371

So, Go ahead and find your parent.

372

Give them these exercises tell them to

do them, make sure they do them so that

373

they can take care of not only themselves,

but also of you and your friend, kids

374

and everyone else to come after that.

375

Um, and that way they can

live a life that's hopefully.

376

As most pain-free as possible and

also so that they can do the things

377

that they enjoy even later on in life.

378

And I wanted to take also

a minute to talk about.

379

Bone density, which.

380

There's a lot of exercises that are

going to help bone density, right.

381

Just putting pressure on bones is

going to help with the density.

382

Uh, but really also focusing

on eating high quality foods is

383

going to be very important here.

384

So making sure that we're eating enough

protein for our muscle mass, and then

385

also making sure we're getting enough

minerals in our diet, whether that's

386

from, uh, you know, different plants,

uh, as well as, you know, some salts

387

have, uh, high levels of minerals.

388

And, uh, there's a lot of foods out

there that are really mineral dense, and

389

would be very beneficial to add into your

diet, to make sure that we're keeping our

390

bones, uh, dense and stable and capable

of carrying our bodies around right.

391

Carrying all of our muscles around.

392

So, uh, the bone density is a whole other

portion of this that won't really get into

393

today too deep, but just wanted to mention

really focusing on a healthy diet that is

394

going to be giving minerals as opposed to

stripping is going to be very important.

395

Best way to do this focus on

eating whole foods, right?

396

These are things that are close to

the earth, like an apple, an orange

397

lettuce, uh, if you eat meat then

beef and, uh, you know, salmon.

398

These are things that we

really want to focus on.

399

They're from the earth.

400

They're very recognizable.

401

You'd go find them out in the wild,

um, however, uh, ultra processed food.

402

That's the thing we

want to stay away from.

403

So that's things like Oreos and

cereals and whatnot, the things that

404

you would never find naturally out in

the wild, those are the things that.

405

You want to try to avoid.

406

And one of my favorite things to

eat that has a ton of minerals and

407

vitamins is spirulina and chlorella.

408

They have 40 plus vitamins

and minerals in them as well.

409

Spirulina does have all nine essential

amino acids making it a complete protein.

410

So it does have a lot of protein in it.

411

However, I don't take spirulina

specifically for the protein purpose

412

because, uh, you would have to take a

ton of spirulina to get that level of

413

protein, but nonetheless, it does have

a ton of vitamins and minerals in it.

414

And it also has a lot of

chlorophyll, which is really great

415

for great for cleansing the blood.

416

And honestly, Makes me feel great.

417

I love taking energy bits,

uh, spirulina and chlorella.

418

It's something I literally

take every single day.

419

It's a non-negotiable for me.

420

And I would highly recommend

finding a food that is mineral.

421

Uh, dense and going ahead

and sticking to that.

422

If you want to grab yourself some

spirulina and chlorella, then feel

423

free to head over to energy bits.

424

I'll have them linked in the show notes.

425

You'll get a 20% discount code.

426

Just for being a listener of the show.

427

That's my, thank you to all of you.

428

And, uh, yeah, like I said, go find

your parents, give them these workouts.

429

Um, get them eating some healthy

foods and, uh, they'll live

430

a long, happy, healthy life.

431

That's the goal here.

432

And, uh, yeah, I hope you guys

enjoyed this episode today.

433

To give the brief breakdown

and actionable steps.

434

We want to make sure that we are getting

our parents to sit down and stand up.

435

Hopefully without hands.

436

We're also going to want them to

balance on one leg and we're going

437

to want them to pick up things.

438

Nothing that's too heavy, but pick

things up and walk as much as possible.

439

Get out there, walk a little tip as well.

440

If there are Hills around, you walk

up, those backwards can be very good

441

for the muscles around the knee.

442

And some people even say that it can

be, uh, very helpful for knee pain.

443

So walking backwards up Hills can be

something to add in there as well.

444

And also focus on your diet.

445

Um, getting some mineral rich

foods can be really good for bone

446

density, as well as doing these

exercises can help with bone density.

447

So anyways, that's gonna

do it for today's episode.

448

Y'all thank you very

much for tuning in today.

449

I will see you on the next

episode next week, and if you

450

haven't already please subscribe.

451

To the show.

452

It's a very easy to do in

whatever podcast platform.

453

You're listening to this on.

454

Just go ahead and hit subscribe there, uh,

that we don't miss any of these episodes.

455

And please leave a review and a rating.

456

If you're on apple podcasts, you can

actually leave a written review, which

457

I love to see and to read all of those.

458

And yeah, feel free to reach out to me.

459

If you have any topics you want

me to speak more about, or if you

460

have any general questions, I'm

also happy to just answer those.

461

Uh so until then i'll see all on the

next episode thank you so much For

462

tuning into this episode really really

appreciate it and you already know the

463

motto of the show it's do everything

with good intentions and connect to your

464

elements Alright, y'all have a good one.

465

See on the next one piece