It is imperative that you do all you can to protect yourself from degeneration, illness and accidents that can rob you of many additional years of healthy and happy living. If the joints, muscles and nerves that make up your musculoskeletal system aren't kept functioning properly, you may be jeopardizing your overall health and well-being. Living long and being vigorous and vital the whole time means maintaining overall physical and emotional wellness. It means functioning at as high a level as possible, with physical and mental functions diminished only moderately, if at all. Most older individuals are concerned about their diet and digestion - they worry about sleeping well, seeing and hearing adequately, looking good, controlling their weight, experiencing as little pain as possible, maintaining their mental acuity, not being depressed, and remaining active and independent. These are all, to varying degrees, reliant on a person's musculoskeletal health.

The World Health Organization suggests health is a state of complete physical, mental or social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. Physical health includes such characteristics as body size and shape, sensory acuity, susceptibility to disease and disorders, body functioning, recuperative ability and the ability to perform certain tasks.

One aspect of physical health is the musculoskeletal system, which consists of 3 components; muscular strength, endurance and flexibility. Muscular strength (dynamic) is defined as the maximum force a muscle or muscle group can generate at a specific velocity. Muscular endurance is the ability of a muscle or muscle group to perform repeated contractions against a load for an extended period of time. Flexibility has 2 components, dynamic or static, where dynamic flexibility is the opposition or resistance of a joint to motion, that is, the forces opposing movement rather than the range of movement itself. Static flexibility is the range of motion about ajoint, typically measured as the degree of arc at the end of joint movement.

If strength, endurance and flexibility are not maintained, musculoskeletal fitness is then compromised which can significantly impact physical health and well-being. Many health benefits are associated with musculoskeletal fitness, such as reduced coronary risk factors, increased bone mineral density (reduced risk of osteoporosis), increased flexibility, improved glucose tolerance, and greater success in completion of activities of daily living.

Causes & Development