EXERCISES TO IMPROVE YOUR POSTURE

Exercises to Improve Posture 

 

"HAPPY NEW YEAR!" 

Stand tall in the New Year.  Being physically active is an important part of improving your posture.  Doing the right exercises can actually decrease some of the visible symptoms of osteoporosis, improve your balance, and reduce your risk of falling.  Studies have shown that individuals with a dowager’s hump who consistently practiced a series of specific spinal exercises strengthened their spines, became more flexible, and reduced their humps over the course of a year.

Here are some exercises recommended exercises:

• Strengthen the upper back. While sitting, place hands behind your head, elbows out. Use shoulders to pull elbows back slightly. Return to sitting position.
  
• Strengthen the shoulders. Stand facing a corner, about one step away. Put your forearms up against each wall, elbows even with your shoulders. Keep your neck relaxed and chin slightly tucked. Tighten your stomach. Pinch your shoulder blades together across your back. Hold, then relax. Repeat. You can also strengthen shoulders by standing facing one wall and placing both hands flat against it above your head. Alternating arms, slide one hand down the wall to shoulder height and then up again.
  
• Use a wall for support during weight training. Standing against a wall can help keep your body aligned correctly as you lift weights (for example, bicep curls or raising arms above your head). Face forward (chin and head high), bend your knees slightly, and keep your stomach tight as you do standing exercises.
  
• Floor exercises. When you do floor exercises to strengthen your core, keep your belly button pulled in towards your spine and avoid arching your lower back or lifting your head. Learn how to use your abdominal muscles to lift and move your legs.

This is just a glimpse of the ways in which you can have healthy, strong posture despite osteoporosis.

Blessed for your highest good!


><>  Sherry Perkins
Personal Fitness Training and Certified Raindrop Therapy Practitioner
Empowered Fitness and Holistic Health
Website: www.EmpoweredHealthFitness.com
Website: www.raindroptherapy.net
PH: 734-646-5582

KEGEL EXERCISES ~ A HOW-TO GUIDE FOR WOMEN

Kegel exercises can help you prevent or control urinary incontinence and other pelvic floor problems.  Pelvic floor muscles, which support the uterus, bladder and bowel, as well as aid sexual intimacy.  You can do Kegel exercises discreetly just about anytime, whether you're driving in your car, sitting at your desk or relaxing on the couch. You can even do Kegel exercises when you're pregnant. Start by understanding what Kegel exercises can do for you — then follow step-by-step instructions from the Mayo Clinic staff for contracting and relaxing your pelvic floor muscles.

WHY DO KEGEL EXERCISES MATTER?
Many factors can weaken your pelvic floor muscles, from pregnancy and childbirth to aging and being overweight. This may allow your pelvic organs to descend and bulge into your vagina — a condition known as pelvic organ prolapse. The effects of pelvic organ prolapse range from uncomfortable pelvic pressure to leakage of urine. Pelvic organ prolapse isn't inevitable, however. Kegel exercises can help delay or even prevent pelvic organ prolapse and the related symptoms.

HOW TO DO KEGEL EXERCISES
It takes diligence to identify your pelvic floor muscles and learn how to contract and relax them. Here are some pointers:

• Find the right muscles. Insert a finger inside your vagina and try to squeeze the surrounding muscles. You should feel your vagina tighten and your pelvic floor move upward. Then relax your muscles and feel your pelvic floor return to the starting position. You can also try to stop the flow of urine when you urinate. If you succeed, you've got the basic move. Don't make a habit of starting and stopping your urine stream, though. Doing Kegel exercises with a full bladder or while emptying your bladder can actually weaken the muscles, as well as lead to incomplete emptying of the bladder — which increases the risk of a urinary tract infection.
  
• Perfect your technique. Once you've identified your pelvic floor muscles, empty your bladder and sit or lie down. Contract your pelvic floor muscles, hold the contraction for five seconds, then relax for five seconds. Try it four or five times in a row. Work up to keeping the muscles contracted for 10 seconds at a time, relaxing for 10 seconds between contractions.
  
• Maintain your focus. For best results, focus on tightening only your pelvic floor muscles. Be careful not to flex the muscles in your abdomen, thighs or buttocks. Avoid holding your breath. Instead, breathe freely during the exercises.
  
• Repeat three times a day. Aim for at least three sets of 10 repetitions a day. You might make a practice of fitting in a set every time you do a routine task, such as checking email, commuting to work, preparing meals or watching TV. 

WHEN TO EXPECT RESULTS
If you do your Kegel exercises faithfully, you can expect to see results — such as less frequent urine leakage — within about eight to 12 weeks. For some women, the improvement is dramatic. For others, Kegel exercises simply keep problems from getting any worse. For continued benefits, make Kegel exercises a permanent part of your daily routine.

10 FUN EXERCISES YOU CAN DO WITH A BUDDY

MORE FUN TOGETHER! ~ Fitness experts say having an exercise buddy keeps you focused on goals and makes the regimen feel less like work.  Exercise buddies s are a fantastic way to keep you accountable especially when you are just starting a new exercise plan or life gets too busy.

Working out with a partner is also a simple way to integrate new exercises (and a little fun) into a workout routine that has become a little mundane. 

Here are 10 exercises designed for two that you can try during your next workout: 

1. Back, Core ~ Partner Pull-Down
2. Back, Glutes, Quads, Hamstrings and Calves ~ Partner-Assisted Squats
3. Glutes, Quads, Hamstrings and Back ~ Double Bridge
4. Glutes, Hamstrings and Back ~ Medicine Ball Over and Under
5. Chest ~ Partner Chest Toss with Medicine Ball
6. Partner Chest Press
7. Upper Back ~ Partner Row
8. Arms, Obliques ~ High-Low Partner Exercise
9. Shoulder, Triceps, Chest, Back, Abs ~ Five Alive
10. Triceps ~ Triceps Extension with Tubing

Have more fun together!  

Blessed for your highest good!


><>  Sherry Perkins
Personal Fitness Training and Certified Raindrop Therapy Practitioner
Empowered Fitness and Holistic Health
Website: www.EmpoweredHealthFitness.com
Website: www.raindroptherapy.net
PH: 734-646-5582