Staying Active Archives

Spring Cleaning Tips for Seniors

Spring cleaning can seem like a daunting task for anyone, but if you have limited mobility or if you just don’t have as much spring in your step as you used to, it can seem overwhelming. Everyone could use a little help with their spring cleaning, so don’t be afraid to ask for it. Below is a list of easy spring cleaning tips that anyone can use!

Make a List

Take a look at your house and yard and make a list of all the things that you want to get done. Putting everything on a list helps to place things in perspective. Here’s a quick list of some things that you may want to do to get your list started.

April 13, 2016August 27, 2020 Scott Ridl

The Health and Societal Benefits of Seniors Volunteering

Retirement doesn’t need to mean becoming idle. There are many advantages of seniors volunteering, other than the overall benefit that society gets from good deeds and activism. If you’re retiring, this is the perfect opportunity to devote your time or other available resources for a cause that you care about. You’re not being compensated with money, but you’ll be getting something far more valuable.

Maggie Kuhn proudly refers to herself as a “little old woman”, because she knows there is power and value behind this title. Mrs. Kuhn was forced into retirement at the age of 70, but, of course, she wasn’t about to let that slow her down. Kuhn founded an organization called The Gray Panthers, which fights age discrimination and advocates for social and economic justice.

March 28, 2016August 27, 2020 Scott Ridl

Skiing and Hitting the Slopes with a Portable Oxygen Concentrator

You shouldn’t have to pass on going skiing with your friends if you need to use oxygen therapy. In fact, portable oxygen for skiers happens to be a great idea, even for those who don’t have a chronic lung disease. Being at high altitudes can make it harder to breathe, and can cause what is known as “acute mountain sickness”.

If you have a chronic lung condition, you should consult your doctor before taking part in this physical activity, whether or not you use oxygen therapy. If your doctor gives you the okay, he or she might advise that you use a portable oxygen concentrator while doing so, even if you don’t usually need one.

February 3, 2016August 22, 2020 Scott Ridl

Living with COPD: Advice for Staying Active

If you have a chronic lung disease like COPD, exercise might be the last thing on your mind, but not being active will make you feel worse, and cause your overall condition to worsen.

Why is Exercise So Important?

Randolph Lipchik, MD, a pulmonologist at Froedtert Hospital and the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, says, “Being able to manage everyday activities tends to improve a patient’s outlook. It improves a person’s mood, to have that shortness of breath a little more under control. Having a better sense of well-being makes staying active help COPD.”

July 9, 2015August 30, 2020 Scott Ridl

10 Popular Summer Hobbies For Those with COPD

People with COPD can do everything people with healthy lungs can do, and the worst thing you can do with your summer is let it pass you by. As long as your doctor gives you the okay you should partake in fun summer activities.

If you’re looking for something fun to do during the dog days of summer, here are some safe and fun hobbies for people with chronic respiratory diseases.

July 7, 2015August 30, 2020 Scott Ridl

Study Finds that Physical Activity Decreases in COPD Patients

When you think of someone with COPD not being able to move as well as they used to, you might think that it has to do with how severe their condition was when they were diagnosed. You might think your activity level will drop when you are severely chronically ill, but if your COPD is mild and caught earlier on, your physical activity won’t decline.

A recent study from the Pulmonary Research Institute at LungenClinic Grosshansdorf in Germany found that this is not the case. However, as long as you keep up with physical activity and exercise under the guidance of your doctor, you can slow this decline down.

COPD patients physical activity declined over time because of the worsening of airflow obstruction. COPD is a disease that gets worse over time. With the increased airflow, obstruction comes fatigue and a decrease in energy, because the cells of the body aren’t getting enough oxygen over the long term.

June 12, 2015September 11, 2018 Scott Ridl

The Best Portable Oxygen Concentrators for Walkers

Walking doesn’t get enough credit for being one of the best exercises for almost anyone. You only need your own two feet, no bicycle and no car or money for a bus ticket, to get to where you’re going, as long as it’s within walking distance.

If you’re like many people who love to walk as much as possible to get to where they’re going, you’ll need a good portable oxygen concentrator that will meet your oxygen needs. A good portable oxygen concentrator for those who like to walk to where they’re also going needs to be lightweight and have long-lasting batteries.

If you are shopping for a portable oxygen concentrator, and you’re not sure which one to choose, here is a list of the best portable oxygen concentrators for walkers.

June 9, 2015August 29, 2020 Scott Ridl

Take Control of Your Health by Following These Simple Tips

Taking care of yourself is making an investment in your future. All it takes is a few lifestyle changes, and none of them have to be drastic or unpleasant. You’ll thank yourself later, when you can feel the difference in how you feel each day. Here are a few basic things you can do to take control of your health and well-being.

Don’t smoke tobacco. If you’ve been smoking for years, it’s never too late to quit. If you don’t smoke, don’t even start. By quitting or never starting, you can dramatically decrease your risk of dying from cancer or heart disease.

April 10, 2015December 10, 2015 Scott Ridl

Learn About Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption

The ache you feel in your muscles, and the fatigue you feel after a good work out, is due to an event called “excess post-exercise oxygen consumption”, EPOC for short, or more commonly referred to as “afterburn”. The feeling you get after a hard workout, or even a mild one, might not be very comfortable, but it’s an important process when it comes to getting in shape.

This fatigue and slight ache are caused by the rapid burn and decline of oxygen in your body, which happens during and a while after your workout. EPOC refers to the body’s process of restoring the body’s oxygen and stored fuel, as well as the oxygen deficit. This deficit was known as the body’s “oxygen debt” in past decades, and it’s still often called that today.

April 6, 2015August 29, 2020 Scott Ridl

What is EPOC?

Did you know that even after you’re done exercising, your body continues to require more oxygen than it did before your workout? This is referred to as excess post-exercise oxygen consumption, or EPOC. You may have wondered why your body continues to feel weak or why you feel a little light-headed or out of sorts for a while after your workout. You’re still requiring the same amount of oxygen that you did while you were exercising!

This isn’t a new concept. In 1922, two men named A. V. Hill and H. Lutpon hypothesized that people continue to need more oxygen a while after exerting themselves. They first referred to it as an “oxygen debt”. They hypothesized that the body can’t bounce right back to just needing the same amount of oxygen as before and that it takes a while for it to go back to its resting state. Much more recently, researchers can break EPOC down into a few different events, or the stages the body undergoes on its way back to homeostasis.

April 6, 2015April 6, 2021 Scott Ridl

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