Targeted Exercises For Your Goals

COPD often is associated with muscle weakness , especially in the Upper Body and in the Legs. Targeted exercise can help preserve and improve muscle strength , which in turn , enables you to do more and to remain independent longer . Your occupational therapist will show you how to do certain exercises and explain how to help.

Upper Body Strength:

Your body uses more energy-and puts a higher demand on your lungs-when you use your arms, shoulders, chest , and neck. This is why some daily activities like bathing, dressing , and grooming yourself can be tiring when you have COPD . It's also why carrying things groceries and laundry baskets can be difficult, and why you may feel nervous about pulling heavy objects from upper shelves in the kitchen or closet.

Upper-body exercises typically are designed to improve flexibility, strength, and range of motion. Your therapist may have you place a long, wide band of resistant rubber under your feet and pull up with both hands , for instance to strengthen both your grip and the muscles in your arms and shoulders. 

The goal of any exercise program is to increase your tolerance for and ability to move around. Even if you have the strength to do your exercises for only a couple of minutes each day, investing those couple of minutes is important. A regular exercise routine will help you keep whatever strength you've got and eventually, make you stronger.

Lower Body Strength:

Weakness in the legs is common with COPD, and that's not surprising. After all, if you have trouble breathing, you’re not likely to increase your activity level , and the lack of activity leads to loss of muscle tone and mass. Then, when you try to increase your activity level , you find yourself fighting harder for breath at even lower levels of exertion , and you feel so weak that you can't do much anyway.

Research indicates that COPD patients benefit more from an exercise program that includes specific arm and leg exercises than from a generic program. Breathing capacity and quality of life both are higher in people with COPD who use a targeted exercise program.

Treadmill walking and stationary cycling are often recommended for COPD patients, but make sure you're ready and able to undergo this type of exercise. If your COPD symptoms don't seem to be well controlled, talk to your doctor before starting any exercise program.