Exercise Safety
Respiratory therapist Nickole Hackney offers some tips on how to exercise safely.
Exercise is a crucial part of good mental and physical health, and exercise safety is important to protecting yourself against injury.
In This Article
Before you begin
- Talk to your healthcare provider about exercise and what amount is safe for you to do. If you’ve been to urgent care, the emergency room, or had a hospitalization since the last time you exercised, talk to your healthcare provider before starting up again.
- If you wear oxygen normally, ask your healthcare provider if you should wear it during exercise too.
- Wear comfortable clothes and well-fitting, non-slip shoes.
- Don’t exercise on an empty stomach! This is especially important for people who have diabetes.
- If you have balance concerns, consider doing chair exercises instead. Choose a steady chair without wheels and with a cushion that does not move.
During exercise
- Remember to start every workout with warm-up exercises, like shoulder rolls or marching on the spot. Warming up helps get your body ready for exercise.
- Follow your healthcare provider’s instructions regarding using oxygen during exercise.
- Stay hydrated!
- Monitor your heart rate and oxygen level. It’s typically recommended to keep your oxygen level at 90% or higher during exercise, but your healthcare provider will tell you what your target level and heart rate should be.
- Consider having a family member or friend with you, in case you need help.
- Remember to end every workout with cool-down exercises and stretching to help your muscles relax and prevent injury.
When NOT to exercise
- If you feel sick, have had a fever, or have been on antibiotics in the previous 48 hours, pause your exercise until you are fever-free for more than 48 hours.
- If you feel dizzy or lightheaded prior to exercise and your blood pressure is not in a normal range, contact your healthcare provider.
- If at any point you feel unsafe, stop and relax. Only begin again when you feel safe. And talk to your healthcare provider if you feel concerned about continuing.
- Exercise shouldn’t feel overwhelming and painful. So if you feel extreme shortness of breath, chest pain or pain that is unusual, and a change in heart rate or light-headedness, stop exercising immediately and call your healthcare provider.