Stretching
 Whether you are doing a warm-up stretch or a cool-down stretch, the stretches will basically be the same. You want to make sure you are stretching your whole body even if you are just working your legs or just your arms. You might indirectly work other parts of your body without even knowing it. You also want to make sure you stretch period because it might be tempting to skip the stretch and just hop on a machine. Your muscles need to be prepped up or else you may be sore the next day or the day after that.
Here are some stretching suggestions:
Side Bends
· Starting position. Stand with your feet apart, right arm above your head next to your ear and the left arm at your side.
· Bend to the left, sliding your left arm down your lef, right arm still by your ear. Feel the pull on your right side as you do this. 
· Repeat this action to the right side, sliding your right arm down your left leg, left arm by your ear. Fell the pull on your left side.
· Repetitions: Do this slowly, twice on each side several times.
Leg Stretch
· Starting position. Sit with the bottom of your feet touching each other.
· Grasp your ankles and try to push your knees to the floor. You can lean over.
· Repetitions: Repeat this several times.
Leg and Trunk Stretch
· Starting position. Sit on the floor with your feet out in front of you.
· Slowly grasp as far down your legs as you can with your hands and pull your upper body down, trying to touch your stomach to your thighs (top of head toward feet, keeping legs straight).
· When you get as far as you can, hold that position for a count of ten.
· Repetitions: Repeat this several times, going further each time. Remember to use a slow steady pull. Do not bounce.
Calf Stretch
· Starting position. Stand facing a wall (abou two feet away) with your hands against it.
 · Keeping your body straight with heels on the floor, lean to the wall. Your heels should remain flat on the floor.
· Repetitions: Hold this position for several second, rest, and repeat. If you do this easily, move farther away from the wall.
Head Roll
· Starting position. Sitting comfortably, concentrate on relaxing your shoulders.
· Roll your head to the right a few times and to the left a few times. This should be done slowly.
Back Reach
· Stand comfortably.
· Grasp both hands behind your back.
· Keeping your arms straight, bend over and try to put your hands over your head.
· Go as far as you can, hold that position, and then rest.
· Repetitions: Repeat periodically throughout your exercise period.
Thigh Stretch
· Starting position. Grasp with foot behind you. (You may want to hold onto a chair or wall balance.)
· Try to touch your heel to your buttocks.
· Pull back so that you feel the pull on the front of your thigh. Keep lower back straight. That is, don't arch your lower back.
· Repetitions: Repeat this several times on each leg.
Back Clasp
· Starting Position. Sit or stand.
· Put your right hand over your right shoulder and your let h and under your left arm--that is, behind you.
· Try to grasp hands. If your hands don't quite reach each other, use a book, towel, or other objet to clasp onto.
· Try this on both sides.
· Repetitions: This should be executed several times, a few times throught your workout if you like.
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IMMUNITY THY NAME IS STRENGTH
Certain words when articulated connect with the meaning…’Immunity’ being one such. When I uttered the word immunity I felt as if I was literally shooing away something. Just the opposite happens when we chant AUM which is extremely engulfing or rather embracing. Now, how do we develop this ability to shoo away harmful germs, virus, bacteria etc. from our system and embrace or take into our system just what we need?
Firstly we need to understand ourselves—lock stock and barrel. The lock and stock is our mind and its thought process, while the barrel of course is the physical being or body. The mind orders the body to absorb or reject and there is a need today to train the mind to distinguish between the wanted and the unwanted.
Carrots and oranges for immunity is the general knowledge that most have but how safe are these today? We are not sure of the deep orange colour in the carrots for its vitamin content nor are we sure of the shimmering orange skins for its freshness. They are stored frozen and therefore available through the year or treated extensively with pesticides and growth enhancers. Turn that page over and what we have is seasonal fruits and vegetables and organically grown too—Nature treated with nature. All the nutrients are in and none lost to chemicals. Hmmmmm……are all these ingested nutrients actually being absorbed by our body! What do we need to do? You guessed right- Exercise.
Today’s goal to exercise wrongly seems to be to get into a size zero! Do we need to zero in our lives to this state or is it statuesque where in we sweat it out literally – yes we sweat good health out. Watching weight go down is worse than sensex. Weight loss seems to run parallel to regression where less productivity is leading to down sizing or is it true the other way round? Let us add weight training to work outs to build muscles for it is in these muscles that the work force of the body resides. Weight training can be based on free weights, gym equipment or just your body weight, what ever suits your level and taste. Concentrating on endless cardio and food deprivation (which we call dieting) to reach your goal of weight loss is surely no way to fight impending diseases for the defense force of the body is also lost with this kind of reduction. Every pound of fat that leaves the body carries with it some amount of muscle too. This is the reason for rapid weight loss leading to fatigue if not coupled with body toning work outs.
Being over protective about germs is also not done. Like bathing in mineral water--- oh yes some do! If you never at all expose your self to the different weather conditions, one fine day when you happen to stand in the sun you get sun burnt, a joyful morning walk by the sea shore catches you the cold virus and a sprinkling of rain on the head will do to trigger a series of ‘atchooooos’. Talking about virus, with Dec 1 around let us not forget that protection when needed should be adhered to. We need to acquire immunity and not the deficiency syndrome or else we would have to look up for ‘aid’.
Let us look into this lock and stock part – our thought process. 'You are what you think' is as true as 'you are what you eat'. Think joy, think health, think peace and think abundance and prosperity. Think clean and positive for what you think you are. Let me share an anagram told by my teacher Mr.Sundar for STRESS----- Self inflicted Trauma Resulting in Sustained Stupidity. I think that says it all. Immunity to outside elements does not necessarily need to be in the form of germs, it can even be an act or word. Let us be clear and straight forward and focused about what we need and what we do should co-relate with it. Let us aim at satisfaction and not just contentment. Satisfaction leaves us complete and peaceful within… there is a wee bit of negativity in contentment. Each person’s definition of joy is different and moving towards it is what gives us satisfaction; achievement is the bonus.
Before we think and talk about the earth’s ozone depletion, green housing the concrete jungle and using environment friendly things, we need to take care of the immune system of the body, for without this none of the above can be achieved or worked upon. Get into well guided and instructed workouts which are a combination of external and internal care like Aerobics and cross training along with Yoga \ Pilates to wash, rinse and squeeze out the toxins of your own body, before thinking and brooding over the hole in the atmosphere. The root cause lies within and that is what will safeguard your immunity.
Be strong and Stay guarded…Cheers to all!
-Vijayachamundeswari, Fitness Consultant/Trainer Certified by American Council on Excercise Reebok Integral Yoga Institute e-mail: vijaya.chamundeswari@gmail.com |
