Compared to tightening your abs, toning your triceps, or dropping a dress size, beefing up your bones can seem like a pretty thankless pursuit. You can strengthen them all you want and you won’t see results. You can vow to make them harder than last year, but they won’t steal the spotlight in your spring break bikini. And, no matter how great they look under the glow of an x-ray machine, they won’t catch the eye of the cute boy next door (unless he’s a radiologist, of course).
But your skeleton needs love, too. Without it, all of your hard work at the gym would be, well, soft. And, keeping your bones strong now will help prevent osteoporosis later. The condition, which means “porous bones,” causes broken bones in 50% of women over age 50.
Check out these tips to support healthy bones and a healthy body—because you can’t have one without the other.
Feed Your Bones
If you’re over the age of 20, you already have nearly all of the bone mass you’re ever going to get. But even though you can’t go back to middle school and swap your granola bars with Go-Gurt, you can make sure you don’t lose what you’ve got by consuming the right nutrients now. Calcium is well-known as a key building block of bones, and vitamin D is like its mortar: Without the latter, the calcium won’t stick.
Experts agree that women between the ages of 20 and 50 should get about 1,000 milligrams of calcium a day. This translates to at least an 8 oz. yogurt, a cup of milk, and a slice of cheddar cheese. Three daily dairies is pretty standard for my Wisconsin-raised taste buds, but if your tummy isn’t so lactose tolerant, try salmon, spinach, almonds, and fortified juices, cereal, and breads—all are great ways to consume your daily dose of calcium.
When it comes to vitamin D, the ideal amount is far from unanimous. Though some scientists push for higher levels, the Institute of Medicine recommends that most adults get about 600 international units (IUs) of vitamin D a day. While you can find it in fatty fish and in fortified milk and juices, it’s tricky to get your entire daily allowance from food alone (a cup of fortified OJ, for example, only has about 100 IUs).
The most natural way to reach your daily D needs is through direct sunlight, which causes the body to produce the vitamin. But while a few rays a day can do your bones (not to mention your mood) good, valid concerns about skin cancer can make their benefits difficult to weigh against their dangers. In general, if you’re darker skinned, live in a particularly cloudy or dark environment, or usually wear full-coverage clothing or sunscreen, talk to your doctor about taking a vitamin D supplement.
Finally, keep in mind that smoking and heavy drinking are associated with decreased bone density and an increased risk of osteoporosis. Both habits, which can interfere with the absorption of nutrients, are harmful your body—straight down to the bone.
Feed Yourself
My first semester of college, I lost 20 pounds. My friends battling the freshman 15 called me lucky; a bone density scan called me unhealthy. According to the test, I had osteopenia, a condition describing low bone mass. Thanks to my excessive exercise regimen and restrictive diet, I was one step away from osteoporosis—and I was only 18.
As I discovered, when you are so underweight that your period stops (mine did), you deprive your body of estrogen, a hormone that, among other jobs, supports your bones. From the point of view of my skeleton, I was a post-menopausal woman.
Fortunately, the scan was the wake-up call I needed to start packing on the pounds—but by maintaining a healthy weight, you can avoid scares like mine altogether. If you have irregular or absent periods, a family history of osteoporosis, or just aren’t sure if you’ve taken weight loss too far, talk to your doctor about a bone density scan. Once you know the status of your bones, you can take the necessary steps to make—and keep—them strong. No one should have to go through menopause more than once.
Work It
Just like your muscles, your bones need to be challenged to stay strong. Running, walking, hiking, playing tennis, dancing, and weightlifting are all “weight-bearing” exercises that not only boost your muscles, but also the bones they envelop.
But just like running won’t tone your shoulders and push-ups won’t do much for your glutes, you need to switch up your routine in order to ensure that all of your bones are getting their fair share of attention. If you’re a swimmer, try adding a weekly run to the calendar. If you’re an eliptical gal, sign up for a weightlifting class. My favorite weight-bearing workout is Les Mill’s Body Pump, a class that uses barbells (and the mood-boosting beats of Katy Perry, Pink, and Usher) to strengthen all of your muscle groups, and thus your bones.
So while you may never list “skeletal” as your best-endowed body system, your work to support it will help you avoid injury, stand taller, and even add years to your life. And those are the kinds of results that will turn heads, x-ray vision or not.
Photo courtesy of Photostock.
