Physiotherapy bed exercises - geriatric physiotherapy

When spending long periods in bed your muscles
weaken and your circulation tends to slow down. It is
important to maintain good muscle strength and
circulation by doing these exercises.
Your physiotherapist will advise you which of the
exercises in this booklet are best for you.
Repeat these every half an hour in the recovery
period until you are regularly up on your feet.
Your progress is largely dependent on how much
effort you put in. In order to get the best outcome
your self-motivation is crucial!
Foot and ankle
Bring your toes and feet towards you and point
them away again. Repeat x 10.
Buttock squeezes
Tighten your buttock muscles, hold for 5 seconds
then release. Repeat x 10.
Knee bending
Bend and straighten your hip and knee by sliding
your foot up and down the bed. Repeat x 10.
Knee straightening
Sit upright with your leg in front of you. Bring your
toes towards you and press your knee down into
the bed by tightening your thigh muscles. Hold for
5 seconds. Relax and repeat.
Knee hangs
If you are unable to straighten your knee fully, you
can help this by lying down and resting your heel
on a thick rolled up towel. Allow your knee to
'hang'. Tighten your thigh muscles. Hold for 5
secs, relax and repeat.
Leg sliding
Keeping your leg straight and your toes pointing
towards the ceiling, slide your leg out to the side
as far as you can manage, then slide back in.
Repeat 10 times.
Quadriceps
Place a rolled up towel or pillow under your knee.
Squeeze your thigh muscles to lift your heel up off
the bed. Hold 5 seconds then relax. Repeat 10
times.
Straight leg raise
Keeping your knee straight lift your whole leg
slowly off the bed. Hold 5 seconds then relax.
Repeat 10 times.
Any further questions?
Please feel free to ask your physiotherapy team if you
have any further questions.
Your physiotherapist is