Sarah Avery, DPT, PYT, RYT200, a Doctor of Physical Therapy, a Certified Professional Yoga Therapist and a 200-hour Yoga Alliance Certified Teacher
Building Strong Bones: How Strength Training and Yoga Can Help Manage Osteoporosis
Osteoporosis is a condition that affects millions of people worldwide, especially older adults. It causes bones to become weak and brittle, making them more prone to fractures and breaks.
One of the most effective ways to build bone mass is through strength training. Studies have shown that loading bones can help to increase bone density and reduce the risk of fractures in people with osteoporosis. However, many people are hesitant to engage in strength training due to concerns about safety, access to equipment, and time constraints.
That’s why we developed our ‘Strengthen my Bones’ Training and Yoga for Osteoporosis Program. It is a virtual do-at-home program led by knowledgeable osteoporosis-informed coaches specialized in strength training. The program also contains yoga and balance exercises to offer a well-rounded approach to increasing bone density as well as preserving long-term wellbeing, function, and independence.
The program offers a safe and convenient way for those suffering from osteoporosis - and those at risk of developing it - to engage in resistance and strength training in the comfort of their own homes. The clients have daily access to their coach for a fully interactive and supportive experience.
Here are just a few of the many benefits of this program:
- Increased bone density: Strength training has been shown to increase bone density. By participating in this program, people can improve and maintain their bone health and reduce risk of future injury.
- Improved balance and stability: The program includes exercises to improve balance and stability, reducing the risk of falls and resulting injuries.
- Convenience: Clients can do their strengthening exercises in the comfort of their own homes, without the inconvenience of commuting to a gym or fitness centre.
- Personalized coaching: Each client has daily access to a knowledgeable coach who specializes in strength training for people with osteoporosis. This ensures that exercises are safe and effective.
- Community support: You’ll be part of a group with others who are also working to improve their bone health! Joint sessions, live Zoom check-ins with your coach, and a training buddy system provide motivation and support, as well as an opportunity to share tips and strategies for success.
It's not uncommon for patients with osteoporosis to have concerns about potential side effects associated with medications. While osteoporosis-related medications may be a suitable treatment option for some patients, a strength training approach can be beneficial, whether on its own or in combination with medication.
Strength training should always be done under the supervision of an osteoporosis-informed coach. Aside from making sure the program is suitable and safe, a coach can make modifications for patients with existing health conditions or injuries.
If you or a loved one is living with osteoporosis, strength training can be an effective alternative or a complementary treatment for building bone mass and reducing risk of fractures.
Together, we can work to improve your bone health and help you live a healthy, active life! To find out more about the program, visit our website to read program details and testimonials from happy customers.
Sarah Avery is a Doctor of Physical Therapy, PYT, RYT200, a Certified Professional Yoga Therapist and a 200-hour Yoga Alliance Certified Teacher. She specializes in working with osteoporosis clients in her clinical practice.
Examples of exercises:
Balancing exercise for increased stability
Balance: Unstable Surface Play
Simple resistance -training exercise using a looped mini-band for arm strength
Discover how a deliberate, well-planned and cycling-specific mobility routine can take your performance to the next level.
A thoughtful and structured mobility and recovery routine can create a big boost to your performance on the bike! Long training sessions in the saddle not only tire out the legs, but can also put strain on the back, shoulders and arms. In this seminar, you will learn how myofascial release, mobility exercises, breath work and recovery techniques lead to better performance on the bike, as well as helping you feel better in daily life.
Join Kaari Coach Sharon Iacono to learn :
- Common areas of tension that build up through the repetitive movements and static positions of cycling
- How to tackle potential areas of weakness before they turn into injuries
- The importance of breathing and recovery work to maintain good performance and athletic longevity
- Pre- and post-ride techniques to promote better function and performance on and off the bike
This one hour session will include an introductory overview, a short movement sequence, and time for Q&A. We’re excited to have Eva Aldag join us as a guest panelist for this session’s Q&A portion! Eva brings a wealth of cycling-related expertise to the table. In addition to working with UCI WorldTeam pro cycling teams such as Bora-Hansgrohe and Canyon// SRAM, Eva is a highly credentialed yoga teacher and fitness instructor with more than two decades of experience. We look forward to her insights on how these tools can be used to optimize strength, flexibility, mobility, endurance, balance, coordination, and nervous system down-regulation to help riders perform their best.
We're excited to have you join us for this seminar! If you cannot make the live session, but would like to have access to the recording, please register here. We will email a recording to everyone signed up for this session later that day.
Kaari Coach Michaela Smith talks osteoporosis on the Yoga Medicine podcast!
Michaela Smith, co-creator of our Strength Training & Yoga for Osteoporosis Program, joins Rachel Land on the Yoga Medicine podcast to discuss her work with osteoporosis clients. Listen here to learn:
- Positive actions you can take to maintain and rebuild bone mineral density
- The importance of loading your bones
- How yoga can help address rounded posture, improve balance and provide community support
- Specifics on safe, progressive loading to improve bone density
- Do's and don'ts of myofascial release for those with osteoporosis
Be sure to listen and gain more knowledge and empowerment over your health! For additional resources on maintaining your bone health, feel free to check out our Strength Training & Yoga for Osteoporosis program.
Free Online Seminar:
Frozen Shoulder: Managing Pain + Regaining Movement
This seminar was our most popular session to date, and you can now watch the replay for free whenever you like!
Frozen shoulder, also known as adhesive capsulitis, is a condition characterized by stiffness and pain in the shoulder joint. The shoulder joint is enclosed in a capsule of connective tissue. Frozen shoulder occurs when this capsule thickens and tightens around the shoulder joint, restricting its movement.
What causes frozen shoulder? It's unclear why this condition affects some people, but we do know it's more likely to happen after keeping the shoulder still for a long period, such as after surgery or an arm fracture.
Join Kaari Coach Sharon Iacono to learn :
- The different stages of frozen shoulder
- Contributing factors, and why some of us are more likely to experience it than others
- Breath work and recovery techniques to down regulate the nervous system, manage pain, and improve function
- Myofascial release techniques you can do at home to release tension in the tissues around the shoulder joint
- How to assess the shoulder joint for range of motion ,and working safely to try to regain mobility
This one hour session includes an introductory overview, a short movement sequence, and Q&A. Watch the whole seminar here at your convenience here.
*Please note: the time frame and symptoms of frozen shoulder vary greatly from person to person. The information provided in this seminar is intended as guidance on how you can begin your journey to recovery - it is not intended as a cure, or to be taken as treatment advice. Please consult your healthcare professional if you're at all unsure about what's safe for you!
Kaari Prehab is teaming up with FC Denver, the top adult-amateur soccer club in the Rocky Mountain region!
We will be providing customized mobility and recovery programming to support the womens’ Premier team, home to Colorado's best female players. We're excited to be part of the growth of this insiring organization!
FC Denver’s President, Eric Fulton states, "The Kaari team and app is top notch. As an elite women's soccer team, we're invested in keeping our players healthy and on the field. Kaari helps us do that with a flexible suite of exercises which provides our players with a well-rounded approach to keeping physically and mentally prepared for competition."
Kaari Coach Jules Gardner is in charge of program design. She brings a wealth of experience thanks to her time as both a Division 1 athlete and coach. “I'm extremely excited to work with the FC Denver team,” Jules says, “To be supporting a group of women that manage everyday responsibilities and stress while competing at a high level is an awesome opportunity. Given my background in sport, and specifically collegiate and post collegiate competition, I can relate to these women!"
FC Denver, we are pumped to help you to train and perform your best. Our team is here to support you on and off the field! 🙌 ⚽
Kaari Prehab is partnering with CANYON//SRAM Women's Racing Team!
We are beyond excited to announce our newest partnership!
Kaari Prehab is partnering with the CANYON//SRAM Women's Cycling Team. We are providing customized programming to support this elite team with their mobility and recovery. With fifteen riders from eleven different countries, CANYON//SRAM Racing is the home of a diverse group of highly ambitious women who are willing to invest in their future and the future of cycling by breaking new grounds and constantly challenging themselves and their competitors.
Kaari Coach, Sharon Iacono, is in charge of program design to support this team of elite women cyclists, both on and off season. Sharon explains: “Our primary focus is recovery; however, cross-training is also a key part of building resilience on and off the bike. Therefore, we’ve included strength training and mobility in all of the team’s support programs. The main points are core strength, cross-body connection and posterior chain function. As a cyclist myself, I am familiar with the strains being in the saddle can put on the body, so my goal is to provide a constantly evolving program to support the riders’ needs in every way.”
We are pumped to provide this awesome team with our personalized and innovative programming - helping the riders to train and perform their best, supporting them all the way to the podium Feel free to follow the team over on Instagram: they just finished competing in Le Tour De France Femmes, where CANYON// SRAM rider Kasia Niewiadoma took third place in the general classification! CANYON// SRAM also won the team classification by a phenomenal 14 minutes and 19 seconds!
Photo by Thomas Maheux, rider Alena Amialiusik
Strength Training & Yoga for Osteoporosis Program: next starting on May 10th, 2023
We're excited for another round of this program, starting May 10th! This program is suitable for strength training and yoga novices, and is digitally delivered, includes live zoom sessions, and comes with daily support from your Kaari Coach.
The program is:
- Designed and led by a Physical Therapist & NASM Certified Personal Trainer
- Safe & research-backed
- Fully interactive & supportive
- 12 weeks long
- Includes 4 days of strength and balance training each week
- An active yoga class/week (yoga is important for improving balance, posture and managing stress which can have a negative effect on bone density)
- A day for recovery, including myofascial release and restorative yoga/mindfulness practices
All done in the comfort of your own home, on your schedule!
We want to place the power back in YOUR hands to improve your bone density and live a life full of the activities you love!
Interested? Our next group starts on May 10th, 2023. Join the waitlist here, or find out more about the program! There are payment plans available.
Let’s move better, together! 🙌
Allison: pain-free and back on the bike!
When working with our clients, one of our big goals is to give them skills and knowledge that they can continue using on their own after the end of their program.
Allison came to us with pain in her lower back area, which was preventing her from doing what she loved… cycling.
She began a custom program with us, and started seeing results after just a few weeks 😃
Her program included sport-specific strengthening along with myofascial release. Here’s what she had to say:
“I have really enjoyed these exercises, and I think the gradual ramp up in the strengthening has been on point. I've been so pleased to see that I can go back and do some of the easier versions of the same muscle group with ease. And now that I am lifting more intensely with my trainer, I really need the MFR and relaxation techniques so I'm so glad that all of these are dovetailing so nicely! Thank you for all the education that is also included in your videos. Having the consistency of listening to the information over the last 8 months has been so illuminating”
Allison, we couldn’t be more happy that you’re back to doing what you love!
Do you have a nagging injury or chronic pain that is preventing you from doing something you love? If so, tell us more about what is going on so we can get you back on track - you can fill in our brief contact form here. It’s your turn to move better, and feel better, every day 🌟
We can’t wait to work with you!
We couldn't be more proud of our professional cyclist clients at Canyon//SRAM Racing!
Congratulations Ricarda Bauernfeind & Antonia Niedermaier! The two riders from the Canyon// SRAM Generation team just signed contracts with the World Tour Racing team for 2023 and 2024.
We love what we do here at Kaari, and we’re beyond excited to help athletes make the most of their rest and recovery time. It all adds up to moving better, performing better, and feeling better- on and off the bike.
Kaari Coach, Sharon Iacono, is in charge of program design to support this amazing team of elite women cyclists, both on and off season.
Do you or your team need help making your recovery routine, structured, intentional and sport-specific? After all, your training is planned to a T; your recovery shouldn’t be an afterthought after you’ve put in all the hard work. Let us know how we can help YOU enhance your athletic performance by filling out our brief contact form on our Bespoke Coaching page.
Desiree: a Frozen Shoulder client success story!
Desiree came to us with frozen shoulder symptoms that were impacting her daily life.Her range of motion was very limited, and she was experiencing intense pain multiple times a day and throughout the night. Wanting to avoid surgery, she reached out to us and started working with Kaari Coach with Sharon Iacono, who has lots of expertise working with frozen shoulder.
Sharon custom-built Desiree a program that includes myofascial release, mobility work, and strengthening exercises. Since our Bespoke programs are interactive, Desiree’s feedback allows Sharon to fine tune her program, so it’s always in lockstep with her progress.
In just 3 months, Desiree says her “painful episodes are rare, and my range of motion has greatly improved. I still have a ways to go, but I am so excited with the progress I have made with Sharon's coaching and guidance. I am excited to see where my shoulder gets in the next 3 months! Sharon is an awesome coach and responds promptly to my feedback and messages. This has been a great experience. Great team and support!”
Are you or someone you know experiencing symptoms of frozen shoulder? If you would like to get out of pain and get back to living your daily life, pain-free, fill out our brief intake form to tell us more about your symptoms.
Let’s move better, together 🙌
