Staying Physically Active: Fitness Tips for Kids and Adults with Hearing Loss

Staying Physically Active: Fitness Tips for Kids and Adults with Hearing Loss

- in Fitness

As the new year unfolds, it’s always a good idea to set health and wellness goals and improve your overall lifestyle. For example, a previous post guides you through making mental health a priority in 2025. The article includes tips like creating a daily sleep routine to maximize rest, identifying sources of stress to better manage your triggers, and exercising regularly to release feel-good hormones like endorphins and serotonin.

The last factor is particularly crucial for holistic wellness, as staying active not only enhances physical strength, mobility, and endurance but also lifts your mood and relieves stress for better mental health. For the 1.3% of children and 18.8% of adults in Ohio with hearing loss, exercise is especially beneficial for preserving their hearing health and ensuring their condition doesn’t worsen. Since exercise boosts cardiovascular health, the ear’s cochlea receives the oxygen and nutrients it needs to maintain the auditory system’s health and functioning.

However, kids and adults with hearing loss must still take precautions to ensure their ears stay healthy and safe during workouts. Below are some tips that’ll help hearing-impaired individuals maximize the benefits of exercise while also continuing to care for their hearing health.

Consider hearing aids as workout gear

Whether they plan to participate in sports or do solo workouts like cardio and strength training, kids and adults with hearing loss must be reminded to wear their hearing aids while exercising. Doing so helps them communicate with team members or a fitness trainer and keeps them alert to their surroundings, which is especially important for safety when exercising outdoors.

Thus, hard-of-hearing individuals must ensure their hearing aids are lightweight, comfortable, and well-fitted for outdoor activities. In this scenario, Nuance’s latest hearing technology could be a great option, as it integrates over-the-counter hearing aids into smart glasses for greater wearability. This all-in-one vision and hearing solution removes background noise to reduce listening effort and is available in timeless and lightweight frame styles like Square and Panthos.

Be careful of loud noises or music

Listening to music can boost motivation while exercising. However, individuals with hearing loss are more sensitive to loud noises and thus need to keep the volume on their devices at a comfortable level. If the music or sounds come from their environment, such as a gym or a recreational area, they may opt to wear earplugs to avoid damaging their hearing.

Alternatively, hearing aids themselves have sound settings that can be tailored to different listening environments and an individual’s specific hearing needs. For example, the Apple AirPods Pro’s hearing health features include hearing protection at all times, mainly through the device’s active noise reduction, adaptive audio, and transparency modes. The adaptive audio mode, in particular, allows the user to customize the environmental noise level and exposure limit to keep one’s ears protected while still letting audio pass through.

Choose the workout or physical activity carefully

Lastly, the choice of exercise or outdoor activity can also make a significant difference in hearing health. For example, research shows that young people of elementary and middle school age are vulnerable to hearing damage when participating in athletics, especially contact sports like soccer, hockey, tennis, and football. 

Sports equipment, fast-moving balls, and physical contact with other players can hit students and affect their hearing, making it crucial for them to wear protective gear like helmets and masks to minimize the impact on their heads and ears. Lifting weights can also affect the pressure in the ears and contribute to or worsen tinnitus and hearing loss. Therefore, hard-of-hearing individuals engaging in strength and resistance training must seek professional assistance to avoid this hidden hearing hazard.

By following these tips, deaf individuals can reap the health benefits of regular exercise at any age and improve their overall quality of life. Continue reading the posts here at Northeast Ohio Parent for more guides on healthy family living.

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