Quick and Simple Sequence of Moves to Prepare for a Physical Event or to Just feel Good!

Mini ‘Feel Good Routine’ for energizing, rejuvenating, preparing muscles for more movement or just to…. give yourself a quicky body/mind therapy session!

 
Key benefits
  • Stretches the major muscles in the body
  • Warms them up to prepare for more intense use
  • Keeps the muscles moving and limber
  • Aids in circulation of blood, oxygen, lymphatic system, respiratory system and musculoskeletal system
Cautions
  • Always be careful when doing any exercise if there is any pain caused from it
  • If you have been sitting for a long time or have not done any exercise for a long time, start slowly and only do as much as you can. Do not go to the level that Michael is doing. Back it off a little.
  • If balance is an issue make sure you are near a table, stand, counter or something sturdy to hold onto for balance
Key Points
  • Soften down and lengthen up from the waist
  • Soften gaze
  • Breathe slowly and deeply through nose
  • Follow the instructions of this flow of exercises that will open and stimulate the major muscle and joint groups
 
Instructions
 
We will warm up the neck, shoulders, lower back, hips and legs. For all of this routine the following applies:
  • Start in neutral standing position
  • Bring awareness to nostril breathing
  • Allow your body to lengthen from the waist up, on the inhale. You should feel this expansion happening on all inhales. This is subtle but present
  • Gaze is softened
The Neck
  • Exhale chin to chest – slowly feeling a deep stretch in the back of the neck
  • Inhale head back to neutral
  • Repeat if you have time otherwise….
  • Exhale right ear to right shoulder – do not raise shoulder to ear. Keep both shoulders at the same height (neutral)
  • Inhale head back to neutral and exhale to other side
  • Repeat if you have time otherwise…..
The Shoulder Area
Number 1
  • Take right arm out in front of you and up to shoulder height; bend arm to bring hand towards left arm (at same height)
  • With left hand, take outside of right elbow and pull right elbow towards left underarm on the exhale. Resist by pulling the right shoulder back to neutral. Feel the stretch into the shoulder socket
  • Repeat on other side.
Number 2
  • Take hands behind head and clasp together. Elbows are open at sides
  • On an exhale draw the elbows towards each other in front of you
  • On inhale draw elbows away from each other
  • Repeat as many times as you have time for. Take a breath or two with elbows open and same when they are closed together. Breathe into the back when they are closed together.
Lower Back Stretch – be careful with this one if you have blood pressure issues
  • In standing position, place hands on lower back, fingers pointed downwards towards floor
  • Draw elbows back towards each other
  • Inhale and lengthen up as though you are growing an inch
  • On exhale push hips forward a bit and draw your shoulder back and come into a bit of an arc – take a deep breath here
  • Inhale back to standing
  • Repeat if time allows.
Hip Flexor/Calf Stretch followed immediately by Thigh and Knee Stretch
 
  • Get close to a wall or table
  • Step back with right foot and root right heel into the ground (think of the very back of your heel and try and root that part down)
  • Inhale while keeping hips neutral to each other and
  • draw the right hip up into the body by slightly pressing the right hip forward. Stay there and exhale the air out. If possible take a breath or two here.
  • Feel the stretch through the right calf and through the whole leg. To deepen the stretch in the leg, lift the right toes up off the floor. Release
  • Bring weight and awareness into the left leg from here
  • Raise the right leg off the floor and bend the leg behind you (make sure you are near a counter or stable base to hang onto if needed). Grab onto the front of the right foot and draw the foot towards the right buttocks.
  • Feel the stretch here and breathe a few breaths into it if possible.
  • Exhale the leg down to neutral standing
  • Repeat this whole portion on other leg
You are done your mini work out or warm up. Either way you have just stimulated all the major muscles in your body and stretched out a lot of them. This took less than 4 minutes. Stop for a moment and feel the sensations throughout your body. Enjoy!
 
Consider This
Movement of any kind stimulates improved circulation and also helps create synovial fluid which is a ‘lubricant’ needed between joints to keep them from becoming stiff. Oxygen is critical to clear thinking. Our lymph system is moved by gravity. Just by standing, bending, lifting arms over head you are stimulating motion of the lymph through the body and increasing it’s effectiveness. Fresh oxygen in the body is always needed to optimize cell performance. Just by moving for a minute or two or three, you are moving out ‘dead’ air from the body and bringing in new, fresh oxygen. This energizes the body.

 

 

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