Five Moves That Reverse the Effects of Sitting Better Than Walking After 65

Stiff hips and difficulty rising from the floor after 65? Begin with these five exercises.

Many people over 65 spend much more time sitting than they think, and the consequences often show up first in the hips and legs. It becomes noticeable when getting out of a car, stepping sideways off a curb, or standing up from the floor.

I’ve worked as a personal trainer for nearly 40 years, and I’m a co-founder of TRAINFITNESS, which provides in-person and online personal training courses in the UK. Once the hips and legs are given back the movements that sitting has taken away, they usually respond well. These five exercises are designed to do just that.

What Sitting Does to the Body

Long periods of sitting leave the glutes underused. Over time, that can lead to weak glutes and hips that feel stiff and do not rotate or move sideways easily. The front of the hips often tightens and shortens, while the legs lose the strength needed to stand up quickly or catch yourself from a stumble. I also see lower back pain, swollen ankles from poor circulation, and reduced balance, especially side to side.

The practical problems show up just as often. Getting in and out of a car turns into a task. Lowering to the floor and rising again becomes something people avoid because they are unsure they can manage it. Many clients tell me they “only walk forward now,” and that usually comes from hips that have lost the ability to move in other directions.

Why Walking Alone Is Not Enough

Walking is useful, but it only moves the hips forward and backward through a limited range, at a steady pace, on two feet. It does not train sideways motion or rotation, it does not strengthen the glutes very much, it does not take the hip fully behind the body, and it never practices getting down to the floor and back up. Sitting for years reduces exactly those abilities.

Targeted exercises cover the directions and ranges that walking misses. They also build strength rather than simply movement, which is what weak glutes need, and several of them improve balance, which matters for fall prevention.

For safety, use a kitchen counter or sturdy chair for support during all of them. If you have had a hip replacement, check with your surgeon or physical therapist about hip circles and the depth of the side lunge, since some movements are restricted for a period after surgery.

Supported Side Lunge

This exercise moves the hips sideways and strengthens the inner thighs and glutes, a direction walking does not train. It helps with quick side steps and regaining balance, such as when someone brushes past you or you need to move out of the way of a cart.

How to Do It:

• Stand facing the kitchen counter with both hands on it and your feet together.
• Step out to one side with a wide stride.
• Bend that knee and push the hips back, keeping the other leg straight, until you feel a stretch in the inner thigh of the straight leg.
• Press back through the bent leg to return to standing.

Avoid These Mistakes:

• Do not let the bent knee cave inward or move far past your toes.
• Do not lean your chest heavily over the counter.
• Keep the knee over the middle of the foot, the chest lifted, and the hips back.

Sets and Reps: Do 8 to 10 on each side for 2 sets.

Form Tip: Begin with a smaller step and a shallower bend.

Standing Hip Circles

This movement takes the hip through its full rotation, which is one of the motions most affected by sitting. It can help with getting in and out of a car and turning in place, both of which become difficult when the hips are tight.

How to Do It:

• Stand side-on to the kitchen counter and hold it with one hand.
• Lift the outside knee to hip height, or as high as feels comfortable.
• Slowly open the knee to the side, then move it behind you, then lower the foot, tracing one large, slow circle with the knee.
• Change legs after each set.

Avoid These Mistakes:

• Do not rush.
• Do not twist your entire torso to make the circle seem bigger. Keep the pelvis and trunk still and let only the leg move.
• Do not worry if the circle is small at first. It usually gets larger with practice.

Sets and Reps: Do 5 circles in one direction and 5 in the other, then switch legs.

Form Tip: Keep the standing leg soft and the body upright throughout.

Backward Walking

Walking backward challenges the glutes and hamstrings more than walking forward, and it takes the hip farther behind the body than normal walking does. It also trains balance in a direction most people have not practiced since childhood.

How to Do It:

• Use a clear hallway, or walk along the kitchen counter while lightly touching it with one hand.
• Look over your shoulder to check the path, and clear away rugs or obstacles before starting.
• Step back by reaching with the toes first and rolling down onto the heel.
• Take 10 to 15 slow steps backward, then walk forward to the start.

Avoid These Mistakes:

• Do not shuffle with tiny steps and stare at your feet. That makes it feel unstable.
• Use normal-length steps, reach back with the toes, and stay tall.

Sets and Reps: Do 3 to 4 trips down and back.

Form Tip: Look straight ahead rather than down at your feet.

Floor Get-Up Practice

Years of sitting often reduce the ability to get down to the floor and back up. Knowing you can rise after a fall changes how confidently you move through the day. This exercise works the legs, hips, arms, and balance together, and it is the one I would choose if someone could only do a single movement.

How to Do It:

• Place a sturdy chair against a wall and put a cushion on the floor in front of it.
• Holding the chair seat, lower one knee onto the cushion, then the other.
• Pause on both knees.
• To come back up, bring one foot forward flat on the floor so you are half-kneeling.
• Place both hands on the chair seat and push up through the front leg to standing.

Stage 1 is simply kneeling down and back up. Move on to sitting fully onto the floor and returning to kneeling only when that feels easy. If kneeling hurts, or if a knee replacement makes it uncomfortable, skip this exercise and practice the half-kneel onto a low step or firm bed instead.

Avoid These Mistakes:

• Do not try to stand straight up from both knees at once.
• Do not pull yourself up with your arms. Push through the front leg instead.
• Always pass through half-kneeling and let the front leg do the lifting.

Sets and Reps: Do this 3 to 5 times, changing which leg is in front each time.

Form Tip: Have another person in the house with you the first few times.

Standing Knee Lift Hold

This strengthens the hip flexors, the muscles at the front of the hip that become both tight and weak from sitting, while also training balance on one leg. Strong hip flexors help lift the foot over curbs and stairs, which can reduce trips.

How to Do It:

• Stand side-on to the kitchen counter and hold it lightly.
• Lift one knee to hip height, or as high as is comfortable, with the foot relaxed.
• Hold for 5 seconds while standing tall on the other leg.
• Lower with control.

Avoid These Mistakes:

• Do not lean back to raise the knee higher. Lift it only as high as you can while staying upright.
• Do not hold your breath. Keep breathing normally.

Sets and Reps: Do 6 to 8 on each side.

Form Tip: As balance improves, reduce the grip to just your fingertips.

Your Weekly Routine

Yes, keep walking, and try to walk most days if possible. These exercises cover what walking does not, and walking covers what they do not. Together, they are far better than either one alone.

Do the five exercises three times a week on non-consecutive days, allowing about 15 minutes in total. Do not cram them all into one day and then do nothing for a week.

Also break up sitting during the day. Every 30 to 45 minutes, stand up and do a few hip circles or knee lifts while the water boils or during ad breaks. Once a week, if you are steady on your feet, try a few backward steps at the end of a walk on a safe, flat path. If that does not feel right, keep backward walking in the hallway.

After a few weeks, progress gradually: try a deeper side lunge, longer knee lift holds, or a lighter hold on the kitchen counter. Keep the changes small and add them slowly.

What Results to Expect

In the first week or two, most people notice their hips feel looser, especially after sitting for a while. Getting out of the car is often the first thing clients say has become easier.

By four to six weeks, people usually feel steadier on one leg and side steps feel less awkward. The legs are stronger by then too, so standing up from a low chair no longer feels like something that has to be planned.

By eight to 12 weeks, getting down to the floor and back up can start to feel possible again, and that often changes how people move generally. They begin to stop avoiding things.

Exercise cannot undo every effect of years spent sitting, and the best results come from sitting less during the day as well. Strength, hip mobility, and balance all respond well at any age, but they fade again if you stop, so choose a routine you can maintain.