I’m Mitch DeMestre, registered physiotherapist and Founder of Be Mobile Physio. For over 17 years, I’ve helped thousands of patients regain their confidence to move and get active. Want to know what frustrates me more than anything?

It’s when I see people who’ve lost their independence because of poor mobility. It shouldn’t happen...but, it CAN happen to anyone if they wait too long to do something about it.

For years, physiotherapists have raved about the astonishing power of exercise to keep your body fit, strong and mobile. 

Trouble is, there’s a common misconception that poor mobility is a ‘normal sign of aging’. It’s why most people think they’ll never again have freedom to move like a 30 year old once they hit their 50s, 60s or 70s. It’s also why they think slowing down is the only option as they get older.

Want to know what happens when you let aches and pains slow you down? It causes a little-known condition called Disuse Syndrome.

Disuse Syndrome was first identified in the 1980s by a team of Dutch scientists. In a study of over 55s, they discovered that participants’ pain got more intense over time...even if their underlying condition didn’t get any worse. 

Their findings explain why most Over 55s get less and less mobile as they age. It also explains why physios were right to rave about the benefits of regular exercise...especially for those who’ve been held back from getting fit by persistent pain or old injuries.

Cast your mind back to High School. Do you remember studying algebra? And do you remember any of that algebra now? Like most people, you probably have no use for algebra in your day to day life. So, I wouldn’t be surprised if you had forgotten everything you learned within months of graduating high school. 

That’s because our brains and bodies prioritise what’s essential to get us through the day. It means we only store information that’s useful, and we forget everything else. In other words…

It’s the same with your body. 

Without regular exercise, you send a dangerous message to your muscles. You unintentionally tell your muscles they’re no longer important. Eventually, those muscles forget how to work because your body quits supporting them. In fact, your body actively helps those muscles to waste away in order to save precious energy.

It means muscles that used to be strong, become too weak to hold the weight of your body. And guess what takes over from your weak and wasted muscles? 

Your poor, aching bones! 

As time goes by, your bones have to work harder and harder to hold your body weight - until even a gentle stroll puts massive pressure on your skeleton. It’s no wonder, regular activities like climbing the stairs, carrying heavy shopping bags or making the bed leave so many people with agonising aches and pains!  

To make matters worse…

When you feel pain over long periods of time, your brain gets more and more efficient at signaling pain to your body. Left unchecked, your brain will start to trigger excruciating pain without any actual injury or damage.

What I’m about to say may surprise you. 

The information I just shared is actually GREAT NEWS! Despite how it sounds, you can take this knowledge and use it to change the way you move for good. That’s because you can actually reverse Disuse Syndrome to get fitter, stronger and healthier.  

Knowing this means you CAN move freely again. And you can become as active as you were in your 30s or 40s...even if you’ve been held back in the past by aches, pains and stiffness. 

What makes me so optimistic?

Well, given what we know about pain, it stands to reason that the pain you’ve experienced while exercising is NOT a sign of injury or damage. It’s simply a sign that your brain has become too efficient at signalling pain to your body.

So, while you should always pay attention to aches and pains during exercise...pain should not be a reason to stop exercising completely. Doing so will only make you stiffer, more sore and less mobile, until you completely lose confidence to stay active and independent.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the last 17 years, it’s that you can get fit and strong at any age. The reason most people fail is not because their body is crumbling with age. It’s because they’re afraid of hurting themselves. Sadly, this fear stops many people from staying active as they get older. 

Here’s the reality...

If you want to stay injury-free - you need to make some vital (but little-known) adjustments to your exercises. That way, you can get fitter and stronger, without causing any lasting damage to your body. 

Maybe you’ve tried group exercise classes. Maybe you’ve joined the gym. Or perhaps you’ve worked out with a personal trainer to get your strength and fitness back. I’m guessing the result was not what you’d hoped for. Chances are, they left you wondering if you were doing more harm than good. Why?

Because none of these solutions were designed specifically to help Over 55s get fitter and stronger.

None of these solutions were led by registered physiotherapists who understand how to exercise safely around painful conditions like arthritis, osteoporosis, or sciatica. 

In fact, if you’ve ever worried that gyms are designed for those in their 20s and 30s - you’re not wrong! 

A recent study published in the Journal of Aging and Physical Activity showed worrying evidence of ageism across the entire fitness industry. They found barely any opportunities for adults aged 55+ to safely and effectively build fitness and strength.

What’s really worrying, is that most fitness professionals aren’t even aware of the adjustments you need to make to stay safe as you exercise. In fact, working with non-physio trainers could actually make your condition worse...instead of freeing your joints and muscles, so you can move with confidence and ease.

It’s why we recommend following a fitness program designed by qualified physiotherapists, and created exclusively for adults 55+, so you can exercise safely and without fear of injuring yourself.

Now, you might be thinking you’re already doing enough to stay fit, strong and healthy. Many Over 55s think they’ve future-proofed their bodies with an exercise plan recommended by their doctor.

Speak to any doctor, and they’ll probably tell you to do ‘gentle exercise’ like walking, swimming or aquarobics. Sure, they do have some health benefits. But these gentle exercises barely scratch the surface of what you need to do to stay active and independent as you get older.

Not long ago, scientists in Germany and Finland discovered 3 essential exercise types for adults 55+ who want to stay active and mobile as they age. These are:

It takes a combination of all 3 for you to see the maximum improvement in your ability to carry out day-to-day activities without aches and pains.

How to safely build strength and fitness from the comfort of your living room

So, for the first time ever, we’ve made our 8 Week Fit & Strong Program available to adults aged 55+ everywhere, so they can get fitter and stronger at home.  

The 8 Week Fit & Strong Program is an online video-based fitness program designed to get you moving again despite aches and pains - even if it’s years since you last worked out.