70 yo parents' mobility

if you are willing to expand, im curious why not? they are good at air squats and have good hip and knee flexibility. they both did yoga until appx 3 years ago. its mostly my father's toes, then ankles that are troublesome. im willing to bring them to a professional, just not certain where to start.

i do sincerely appreciate your engaging in this conversation

ok ill do that. im simply trying to get them moving, and including some light resistance training. do you agree with the assesment that lunges are bad for 70 yos?

thanks

only just today i sent a first inquiry email to a PT clinic in our area. i hope o be present for their first assessment . im ignorant on the medical industry in general and PT specifically; will i be allowed to sit in on their assessment?

I’m not sure tbh. A few years ago my mom, who’s not quite the same age as your parents, had knee surgery and they introduced her to the aqua physical therapy sessions. The LAF near her house held the classes, which were primarily filled with elderly people mostly the late 60s/early 70s age range. Never met the instructor, but I’m guessing they wouldn’t have had a problem if I wanted to check it out and see what the regimen was. I guess that part depends on the PT recommendation/instructor’s discretion.

Nothing is bad, necessarily.

I might toss out starting with split squats in place of lunges. One problem people have with lunges is a lack of consistency with foot placement and knee travel. You can brace yourself for balance.

Step ups are another good unilateral exercise that might relieve the issues he's experiencing.

Unless it's an acute problem, a little extra mobility is never bad. Starting with simple ankle mobility and toe mobility is fine unless there's an underlying injury.

This article has a pretty good writeup on testing mobility and stretches.

LINK