Functional Movements of the Week:

The Chair Stand and Staggered Sit to Stand

Chair stands are an essential and perhaps the most obvious functional movement. The ability to stand up to get out of bed or leave the table can become harder with age due to joint pain, stiffness, and loss of muscle strength.

Therefore, the ability to complete a chair stand is one of the key components in assessing an adult’s leg strength, balance, and level of risk for falling. The CDC’s assessment chart for health care professionals shows that adults over 60 years of age should be able to complete 14(male)/12(female) or more chair stands in 30 seconds. Adults 75-80 should be able to complete 11(male)/10(female) or more.

The Woodchopper 

The Woodchopper exercise is not just for Paul Bunyan. The movement is complex and when performed correctly will showcase both physical and neural coordination. 

The movement of swinging weight or bands from the upper side of the body down to the opposite side of the body strengthens all of the muscles in your torso especially the obliques (muscles along the sides of your waist). These stabilizing muscles are a key part of most racquet and throwing sports. We need them to play tennis, golf, softball, frisbee, or throwing a ball with the dog. We also use them in everyday activities like unloading the dishwasher then putting the dishes in the overhead cabinet, putting away the seasonal clothes in the top of the closet, and taking groceries out of the trunk of a car. 

-Kristin Dean, Vivo Care Team