Can’t Get Up Off the Floor? Exercises to Help Make It Easier
Have you noticed that getting up from the floor is becoming harder than it used to be?
Perhaps you can still do it, but you need to push heavily through your hands, grab onto nearby furniture, or use something solid to pull yourself up.
For some people, the bigger concern is knowing that if they did have a fall, they’re not confident they could get themselves back up again.
Getting up from the floor is a surprisingly demanding movement. It requires a combination of leg strength, mobility, balance, coordination and confidence.
The good news is that these are physical qualities that can often be worked on.
In the video below, we demonstrate some simple exercises you can practise at home to begin working on the movements involved in getting yourself up from the floor.
Why does getting up from the floor become harder?
There isn't one single reason.
For some people, reduced leg strength is the main limitation. For others, it may be difficulty getting one foot underneath the body, reduced hip or knee mobility, poorer balance, or difficulty coordinating the different stages of the movement.
Often, it is a combination of multiple factors.
Another issue is simply lack of practice.
As we get older, many of us spend less time getting down onto the floor. Over time, a movement that was once automatic can start to feel unfamiliar and increasingly difficult.
This is one reason we don't just look at whether someone can perform a particular strengthening exercise. We also consider whether they can put that strength together into useful everyday movements.
Exercise 1: Practise the transition
One of the most useful approaches is to break getting up from the floor into smaller components.
Rather than repeatedly trying to complete the entire movement, practise the part you find difficult in a controlled environment.
For example, this may involve practising moving from kneeling into a half-kneeling position and then bringing one foot forward.
Having a stable support nearby can provide assistance while you develop the strength, mobility and confidence required for the movement.
As your ability improves, the amount of assistance can gradually be adjusted.
Exercise 2: Build your leg strength
Getting up from the floor requires your legs to generate enough force to lift your body weight.
Simple strengthening exercises can therefore form an important part of improving your floor transfers.
Depending on your current ability, this might begin with exercises such as repeated sit-to-stands from a suitable chair before progressing to more challenging movements.
The important point is that the exercise needs to be appropriate for your current capacity and sufficiently challenging to develop strength over time.
Simply staying active or walking regularly does not necessarily provide the same strengthening stimulus as targeted resistance exercise.
Don't forget balance and mobility
Strength is important, but it isn't the whole picture.
You also need sufficient mobility to move through the different positions required to get from the floor to standing, as well as enough balance to control your body as your base of support changes.
If one of these areas is significantly limited, simply doing more strengthening exercises may not address the main reason you are having difficulty.
This is where an individual assessment can be useful.
What if you need furniture to get yourself up?
Using a chair, couch or another stable surface to assist you isn't necessarily a problem.
In fact, learning how to safely use your environment can be a useful strategy.
However, if you have noticed that getting up from the floor is becoming progressively more difficult, or you're increasingly dependent on furniture to do it, it may be worth looking at why.
Changes in strength, balance and mobility can occur gradually, which means people don't always notice them until an everyday activity becomes difficult.
What if you're worried about falling?
Being able to get up from the floor is only one component of managing falls risk.
If you have experienced a fall, are regularly losing your balance, or have noticed that your balance and mobility are declining, it is worth considering the broader picture.
This may include your leg strength, walking, balance reactions, mobility, medications, vision, home environment and other individual factors.
At Body Fit Physiotherapy in North Adelaide, our Falls Prevention and Balance Physiotherapy program assesses the factors that may be contributing to an individual's balance or mobility difficulties and develops an exercise program appropriate to their current ability.
Start before getting off the floor becomes impossible
You don't have to wait until you are unable to get yourself up.
If you notice the movement becoming harder, that can be a useful prompt to start working on the physical qualities involved.
The goal isn't simply to practise getting off the floor.
It's to maintain the strength, balance, mobility and physical capacity that allow you to continue doing the everyday activities that matter to you.
Still want to find out more you may also be interested in:
These resources explain different components of balance and physical capacity in more detail.
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