I have good news from my latest DEXA: a 1.6% gain in bone density in my spine. So over the past two years, the reading went from osteoporosis back to osteopenia. I credit this gain to a routine of squats and deadlifts in the gym twice a week, except for about 4 months in 2020, when gyms were closed due to COVID-19.
This positive result is especially welcome for me. Two years ago, in December 2018, my DEXA showed a 5% loss in my spine, putting me into the osteoporosis category for the first time. This was after faithfully performing the Biodensity exercises that I have written about previously. I was shocked. My doctor was, too, I even had a second DEXA a week after the first to check the result and it showed the same numbers (demonstrating to me that DEXAs are reliable in most cases).
This failure of the Biodensity exercises led me to re-evaluate my bone-building strategy. Although Biodensity helped me in the past with a 1.5% gain in spinal bone density and a 7% gain in hip bone density the first couple of years, after that, it lost its effectiveness for me. I decided to add squats and deadlifts in February 2019 and then in fall 2019 discontinued my weekly Biodensity exercises at the chiropractor's office and have not been back since.
Here are some take-aways from my experience:
This positive result is especially welcome for me. Two years ago, in December 2018, my DEXA showed a 5% loss in my spine, putting me into the osteoporosis category for the first time. This was after faithfully performing the Biodensity exercises that I have written about previously. I was shocked. My doctor was, too, I even had a second DEXA a week after the first to check the result and it showed the same numbers (demonstrating to me that DEXAs are reliable in most cases).
This failure of the Biodensity exercises led me to re-evaluate my bone-building strategy. Although Biodensity helped me in the past with a 1.5% gain in spinal bone density and a 7% gain in hip bone density the first couple of years, after that, it lost its effectiveness for me. I decided to add squats and deadlifts in February 2019 and then in fall 2019 discontinued my weekly Biodensity exercises at the chiropractor's office and have not been back since.
Here are some take-aways from my experience:
- Compound weight lifting exercises, especially squats and deadlifts, are effective at building bone in the spine and hip, even for post-menopausal women.
- These weight lifting exercises can be safe with heavy weights if guided by a personal trainer and practiced with correct form.
- No one bone-building strategy is sufficient; even squats and deadlifts need to be accompanied by a good diet, other weight-bearing exercise like walking, dancing, yoga, etc., supplements like calcium, magnesium, boron, Vitamin D, Vitamin K, and even sufficient sleep.
- Biodensity exercises can help, but perhaps for a limited time and with continued progress. For me, I seemed to hit a wall with them, not able to increase the force with which a pushed or pulled from week to week.
- Don't give up the fight to improve your bone density!
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