Bone Health: 8 Workouts That Strengthen Your Bones (PHOTOS)

Strong bones take work. Aside from adequate vitamin D and calcium, bones require challenging, weight-bearing exercise to remain sturdy. Easy, light workouts won't do the trick.

"The exercise must place a load on the bone that's heavy enough and different enough to stimulate a bone response," says Robyn Stuhr, American Council on Exercise spokesperson and clinical exercise physiologist.

If you're not worried about bone loss because you're a male or young, keep in mind that weak bones can strike at any age and occur in both men and women, according to the National Osteoporosis Foundation. In fact, 20 percent of those affected by osteoporosis are men.

Bones most at risk for osteoporosis include the spine, hip and wrist. Fortunately, working out with resistance (for example, your own body weight, tubing, dumbbells, medicine balls) and regular impact-based cardiovascular exercise can help. However, a bone-strengthening routine requires some specifics.

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Strength Training

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To be effective, strength training should be performed two to three days a week, and weight-bearing endurance (cardio) exercise should be performed three to five days a week," says Stuhr. The amount of weight you should use varies, depending on overall health and the bone fitness of the individual, so be sure to start slow and check with your doctor if you've been diagnosed with osteoporosis or osteopenia before starting an exercise program. Also, be aware that exercises strengthen only the bones involved in the exercise. For example, performing squats will strengthen leg bones but won't help wrist or shoulder bones. Ask your doctor or fitness professional for exercises that will help you target areas that need strengthening. More From Aol Health: Belly Fat Puts Women At Risk For Osteoporosis Osteoporosis Drug Tied To Throat Cancer Risk Breaking Down Bone Myths

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To be effective, strength training should be performed two to three days a week, and weight-bearing endurance (cardio) exercise should be performed three to five days a week," says Stuhr.

The amount of weight you should use varies, depending on overall health and the bone fitness of the individual, so be sure to start slow and check with your doctor if you've been diagnosed with osteoporosis or osteopenia before starting an exercise program.

Also, be aware that exercises strengthen only the bones involved in the exercise. For example, performing squats will strengthen leg bones but won't help wrist or shoulder bones. Ask your doctor or fitness professional for exercises that will help you target areas that need strengthening.


More From Aol Health:
Belly Fat Puts Women At Risk For Osteoporosis
Osteoporosis Drug Tied To Throat Cancer Risk
Breaking Down Bone Myths

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Troff said on 30 Thursday 2010 pm31 8:16 pm: If your squats don't make every part of your body feel like it's about to explode you're not doing it right.

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Comments

[Shirley Applebee]

06:41 PM on 01/03/2011

As a recent hip replacement has limited my physical ability to exercise, most of these ideas are impractical. Weightlifting should always be done with a spotter in case you have a problem. If it hurts, to lift weights, you are doing it wrong. It is better to injure the ego than to injure your body.

[HerrMonk]

04:20 PM on 01/03/2011

Squats, dead-lift and bench-press.

The big three are the big three for a reason.

[senseandnonsense]

09:09 AM on 01/02/2011

Thanks for all the information about squats!

[JustDuckyDesigns]

05:04 PM on 01/01/2011

P90X. It includes everything you need - resistance work, cardio, yoga, stretching. If you are just starting out, you have to modify and go slow with the routines. But it is possible for just about anyone. I am in my last week of my second round. I turned 51 last fall and I'm in the best shape of my life. I highly recommend it. For more information: http://doitthehardway.com/

[upriser]

12:54 PM on 01/01/2011

Swimming is the absolute best exercise a person can do. Your entire body is being strengthened and there is no stress on any body part. If you are a male and already have strong bones, proper nutrition is very important. But swimming is superior to all other forms of exercise. Jogging, when you are over 40 is bad for the knees and joints. It's good cardio, but swimming is just as good for cardio as running and you don't wear down your body parts.

[Karlin Carney]

08:47 PM on 01/01/2011

Running doesnt wear down your body parts....that just a myth

[senseandnonsense]

09:10 AM on 01/02/2011

True, but swimming is as boring as can be.

[brooklyncitizen]

05:05 AM on 01/01/2011

And the one activity that combines them all while nurturing your spirit? Yoga.

[upriser]

12:55 PM on 01/01/2011

The "other" one activity that does this is SWIMMING!!!

[brooklyncitizen]

07:11 PM on 01/01/2011

yeah, but then it becomes a hair maintenance problem.
yikes

[senseandnonsense]

09:13 AM on 01/02/2011

And walking doesn't?

[brooklyncitizen]

01:12 AM on 01/03/2011

I don't think so. Walking involves too much stimulus; yoga is precise and focused.I actually do both but they are distinct experiences for me.

[pranalisa]

01:02 AM on 01/01/2011

uh..YOGA! and varied classes...vinyasa can be both cardio and weight bearing, hot yoga too...ALL yoga is beneficial..doing planks, chair poses, warriors, etc...nothing else is even needed!

[TheLooseZeus]

12:04 PM on 12/31/2010

From what I've read the exercise needs to be load bearing. Swimming is great fitness but I usually don't see it mentioned when discussing bone health. Great for the joints though. Any exercise is good.

[WryAwry]

11:58 AM on 12/31/2010

I saw something on the internet that strengthened my bone.

[upriser]

12:56 PM on 01/01/2011

Powerful stuff on the internet, eh??

[coachdrs]

11:14 AM on 12/31/2010

The basic squat, step-ups, lunges, and pushups are some of the most effective exercises to improve your strength and fitness level.

[plebian3]

01:31 PM on 12/31/2010

I don't know if they still hold to it, but for years the Russian/Soviet Olympic Wrestlers relied solely on body weight bearing exercises for strengthening. Strengthening, toning, while preserving your joints, connective tissue, and bones is the way to go.

[upriser]

12:57 PM on 01/01/2011

Try swimming - it's even better than all those exercises and more relaxing as well - AND it's good for the heart - and spirit.

[senseandnonsense]

09:14 AM on 01/02/2011

A terribly boring exercise though...

[Yoannah]

10:49 AM on 12/31/2010

I agree with the "2-3 times a week" strength training, but would drop the cardio. Walking a lot is enough of low-impact exercise, not need for chronic, unnatural cardio.
I try to do strength (simple, at home, with very few tools) at least twice a week, and it's changed my life. My knees stopped hurting, I feel stronger and healthier.

And push ups are my all over favorite exercise. I always include it in my routine, in many variations.

[ConfuciusSay-]

03:32 PM on 12/31/2010

You might enjoy Scooby's site, if you train at home:
http://www.scoobysworkshop.com/
He does squats with a skateboard !

Doing some cardio is good for our hearts, so some is better than none- which is better than too much. When I strength trained alone, the endurance to complete the workouts was lacking. Adding some staircase barefoot running helped me a lot- I can run 50 flights up & down now, and finishing the strength workouts became a breeze.

[Yoannah]

10:19 PM on 12/31/2010

thanks! I will research the website. I am getting better and better on quite diverse but simple routines I can do in a small office/guest room's floor!
I do cardio - any exercise that spikes my pulse can be considered cardio, right? I like short and intense stuff, like shadow boxing, kicks, tabatas etc., but I also walk a lot (I have no car), which gives me a good amount of low-impact, natural movement.

[IgnoranceKills]

12:35 PM on 01/03/2011

Scooby is also on testosterone, yet claims he isn't. BS.

[Fernando]

09:43 AM on 12/31/2010

" and while swimming..."

Where did this come from? I guess they had swimming as an exercise and then went against it. Regardless, these are not bad exercises, although I'd be hard pressed to find a "bad" exercise (not bad work-outs - there's tons of those).

If performed correctly, the deadlift is probably the best weight exercise you can do.

[shishkabob]

10:38 AM on 12/31/2010

I'll agree on the deadlift. A couple if years ago, I had a bad fall on ice that almost made me a candidate for back surgery. I started deadlifting (slowly) and it has really helped to strengthen and stabilize my back. Over time, I have been able to deadlift 2x body weight, so this is definitely 'heavy enough and different enough to stimulate a bone response', as the article recommends.

[Fernando]

11:00 AM on 12/31/2010

Glad to hear of your recovery, Shish.

Did you know the deadlift was called the "health lift" back in the 19th Century? Some trainers used to say that was the only exercise pne needed. Now we call it "deadlift." Go figure. : )

[ConfuciusSay-]

03:06 PM on 12/31/2010

I'd probably give "best" to the squat, and offer deadlifts second place- regardless, they are the basis for heavy leg destruction day for me. Once you use the correct form and the right weight, it's excellent for building whole body power.
There are lots of variations with them, so we can't get bored.

[fr33d0mhawk]

09:36 AM on 12/31/2010

Two to three times per week is too much. Once per week is plenty if you work the entire body, and the same thing applies to cardio. I know from personal experience that working out too much causes damage to ligaments and tendons in the long run. I reduced weightlifting to one day per week and I have similar results as when I was working out 3-4 days per week, only I don't have all the tendon problems I used to have.

[ConfuciusSay-]

03:25 PM on 12/31/2010

You might have a low grade tendinopathy like me.
I lift as often as my clunky body permits, and rest it when it hurts too much. Mike Mentzer claims that we can easily get away with much lower frequency of lifting than people traditionally recommend.

Many people can lift practically every day with no problems, though.

[EmilyRose2010]

07:56 AM on 12/31/2010

and what do you suggest for older adults?

[theredqueen]

01:47 PM on 12/31/2010

I qualify as an older adult. I weight train twice a week (I do have a trainer to advise once a week). I also treadmill walk at about 3.5 two or three times a week for 45 minutes to an hour. I also walk a lot outside and take the stairs once in a while (I live in a high rise). I am no athlete and never was but I was diagnosed with osteoporosis some years ago and took a bone density medicine for some time plus the usual calcium as advised by my doctor. I am off the bone density meds now, also as advised by my doctor.Just had a dexa test and there has been no advance on the osteoporosis for years now and have actually reversed some of it. I had to start out very slowly but can do a fair workout now for my age. Even though I never "enjoy" exercising I know if I don't things will get worse instead of being able to enjoy better health.

[b525]

06:30 AM on 12/31/2010

Many African Americans as well as Afro-Europeans are now suffering from a plague of moderate to severe vitamin D deficiency, that, as they age, will result in severe disease manifestation.

African American skin was evolved to deal with harsh tropical sun and is not able to properly synthesize vitamin D from weak NORTHERN sunlight.

Vitamin D is synthesized in human skin when our skin is expsed to vitamin D.

Because of the darker pigmentation of African American skin, weak northern sunlight is not able to effectively penetrate the lower layers of their skin to trigger the production of vitamin D effectively.

African Americans need much longer exposure to direct northern sunlight to synthesize vitamin D than European Americans.

Vitamin D deficiency is now at epidemic levels in all races because more people are spending excessive amounts of time indoors in front of computers and televisions, offices, factories and not doing traditional activities such as farming, fishing and hunting which we have done for hundreds of thousands of years.

Because of inability to digest milk (lactose intolerance) many people cannot pull vitamin D from milk and even supplements in extreme cases. (100% !! of Native Americans are lactose intolerant).
In these cases only sunlight and fish (salmon in particuliar are high in vitamin D and are a traditional food of Native

Americans) can provide adequate levels of vitamin D.

All the diseases caused by vitamin D deficiency such as heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes are epidemic in these populations.