7 Exercises You Can Do When You Can’t Walk


For those of you who cannot walk, there are exercises you can do to help you stay fit, despite being immobile.

Limited mobility exercises are a great way to increase strength, improve cardio, and continue to lead a healthy lifestyle, especially for those of you who are seniors, overweight, obese, unfit, and cannot walk. Daily exercise will allow you to stay active within your home and community, lose weight, and live a longer healthier life.  

The nature of these exercises will allow you to do them in the comfort of your home and some of them without having to get out of bed.

Try these 7 exercises when you can’t walk:

Limited Mobility Exercises

#1 Recumbent Bike

The best exercise you should be doing if you can’t walk is the recumbent bike. This machine allows you to do cardio by pushing and pulling with your legs and arms.  It is an easy machine to get into and out of. The exercise itself is extremely easy and you can set the machine to different resistances as well.

If you’re serious about exercising, you need to get the Sunny Health & Fitness Magnetic Recumbent Bike. 8 levels of adjustment and an adjustable seat make this the obvious choice. Stick this right in front of you living room television.


#2 Supermans

Another great exercise to help strengthen your back is the superman. Stay in bed and roll on your stomach. Lift your arms in front of you, squeeze your glutes, and lift your legs straight up off the bed as if you were flying like superman. Hold at the top for 5 seconds. This exercise will work your erector spinae, hamstrings, glutes, traps, shoulders and rhomboids. This exercise is great for those of you who can’t walk.


#3 Swimming

Another great exercise for those of you with limited mobility is swimming. Swimming will allow body to get a great cardio workout, while limiting the strain on your joints. Grab a swim board or join a group exercise class at the local pool. To make swimming easier for those of you who can’t walk, use the lift chair in the swimming pool to get you into the water and get your body moving. Move your arms in all directions and allow the water to resist your movements.


#4 Clams

An easy exercise to do on your bed, couch or floor is the clam. Clams are great exercises for protecting your hips and knees by strengthening the gluteus medius. Lay on your sides with heals pulled in. Lift the top knee and rotate straight up.


#5 Arm Bike

If you can’t walk, you can exercise using your arms with an arm bike. The arm bike will give you a great cardio workout in the comfort of your home. This limited mobility exercise allows you to strengthen your arms, back, and chest.

Another form of the arm bike could be a wheel chair. Take the wheel chair out for a spin as often as you can. You can get a great workout this way. Join an event, a race, or anything that keeps you active.  

One of the best arm bikes on the market is the Sunny Health & Fitness Magnetic Recumbent Bike with arm exercisers. This arm bike has an 8-level control system, a large seat, and is backed by rave reviews.


#6 Band exercises

A great way to do seated exercise as an overweight, obese, or unfit person is to grab some exercise bands, wrap them around a stable object and get to pulling and pushing. Exercise bands are simple exercise tools that anyone can use. If you can find an immovable structure to wrap them around, you can do rows, curls, flies, shoulder raises, and many other exercises with a fitness band.

A perfect set of exercise bands are the FITFORT Resistance Bands. These multi-functional bands come in many colors, sizes, and resistances.


#7 Glute Bridge

A good way to strengthen your legs while laying on a flat surface is by doing a glute bridge. Just lay on your back, pull your heels in to create a bend in your knees and lift your hips straight up in the air, aligning your back and legs. Strengthening your glutes will provide your back strength and stability. The glute bridge will exercise the glutes, hamstrings, and lower back, while stretching the quads and hip flexors.


Summary: Exercises to Do When You Can’t Walk

When it’s hard to walk, it’s hard to exercise. Knowing this, you need to find an exercise that fits your needs and lifestyle. As a senior, obese, or unfit person, there are different limited mobility exercises to build your strength, endurance, and balance. If you can’t walk this becomes even harder. Mix these exercises into your weekly routine and you will become healthier over time.

Recent Posts