We’re at day 2 in our challenge of 21 days of exercise in a row. When you first think of 21 days in a row, it might seem like a pretty big commitment. The main point we talked about on day 1 was “starting small” with 10 minutes a day. I’m not asking for an hour a day here, just 10 minutes. Some of you may be wondering why I’m not hitting you with a super-intense 10-minute blast workout right out of the gate… which brings me to the main idea I want you to think about on Day 2…
PROGRESS COMES LATER!
Habit –building fact: People who exercise daily don’t deplete themselves so much today that there’s nothing left for tomorrow’s workout. It’s also a fact that new exercisers have a tendency to start their new routine going full throttle and then, even if they survive the first 2 days, end up feeling sore, exhausted and finding the first excuse to miss a workout. Hello, slippery slope… Regular exercisers know that the routine itself is the important thing, and it’s not all about maximum intensity every day.
Even if you’re starting out smaller than you anticipated so far, this will cancel any excuse not to practice daily! Many people find that “starting small” over the first 2 weeks of daily exercise can give them the energy boost they need and they feel ready at that point to kick it up a notch (READ: A NOTCH, not 10 notches!!)
Habit-building solution: Once your body is used to daily exercise, THEN you can start to increase the amount and intensity of your efforts.
DAY 2/21 CHALLENGE – Stretch!
Many of you may be back to work today after the long weekend or your summer holidays and your muscles will likely be putting up a fuss if you’re at your desk all day trying to play catch-up. This inspired today’s challenge – stretching! Spend 15-30 seconds feeling a gentle stretch (no pain and no bouncing!) with each of these office-friendly stretches. If you have stretches that are your favourite or that work best for your tight spots, do those! It’s a simple way to keep your muscles feeling good and to release some tension before it becomes a bigger issue. If you’ve been coming to classes, you know what stretches you need to focus on!
This routine appears in the book “Stretching” by Bob and Jean Anderson. It’s a great reference since it’s broken down by body part and also by activity so the perfect stretch for you is just a page away!
Enjoy your stretch today! Coming soon, I’ll post some pictures of my top upper and lower body stretches to keep you loose, limber and de-stressed! Do you stretch regularly? If so, when? Why? If you don’t, why not?! Have you ever tried a regular temp or hot yoga class for a good stretch?
Don’t forget to post your comments and share your tips. Join me for Day 3 and a great core-focused workout!
Just finished it! Heard a lot of cracking but was a nice break!
Getting some things caught up at my desk and just did another round – abbreviated this time to my favorites: 1, 3, 10 and 11. And the cracking? Me too!
Felt really good. My neck feels so much more loose. Love these stretches. I do most of them every morning when I get out of bed, seated on the bedside. They’re also great tension relievers when I’ve been seated for over 30 minutes, making jewellery. Thanks Kelly!
Just did the stretches before starting to tackle the daycare’s annual budget. I may be doing the routine 3-4 times by the time I get this job done! Also, really enjoyed my MCC workout today!
I don’t work at a desk job, much stretching is always good. I should find a yoga class.
My job is about as anti-desk as it gets!! I find that standing – even though I’m not standing still – can be hard on the legs and back… which now I feel a lot more being pregnant!! My day-to-day routine focuses a lot more on the lower body.
I’ll definitely be doing a version of these tomorrow night after driving 9 hours! Don’t suppose you have any for stretching or calisthenics in the car? 🙂
As long as you’re not the driver!! Being 6 months pregnant and driving to my parents’ place up north, I actually do stretch in the car!! The only real muscle work I’d suggest for the car is to think about your posture and your abs – see how long you can keep your core muscles engaged! When you realize they’ve eased off, try again!! Back to the stretches…
I hope you can take some walk and stretch breaks along your route!! The desk stretches are actually a good reference for long drives. While in the car…For the glutes, cross one leg over in the ‘figure 4’ position we do in class (you’re in the exact same position only you’ll be sitting instead of lying down). For the upper back and shoulders, simple shoulder rolls forward and backward can feel really good too! Exaggerate your motion to really loosen things up. My big one is the ear-to-shoulder stretch: Start with your left ear moving to your left shoulder. Put your left hand above your left ear and gently pull down a bit deeper into the stretch. The whole time, try to keep your right shoulder down either by holding onto the seat or simply reaching to the floor with your right hand. Repeat on the other side. After being in the car for 9 hours, your hip flexors will definitely benefit from a good stretch (which you can’t do in the car) The modified lunge stretch is perfect – assume the position you would if you were going to lunge. Bend both knees slightly and tilt your pelvis (hips) under. You’ll feel the stretch in the front thigh of the back leg. Repeat on the other side.
Hope this helps!
Thanks! I actuually did a lot of those stretches while driving, and it certainly helped…no stiff neck or back when I woke up this morning, yeah!
Well today wasn’t the first day after Labour Day but it was still my first day back to work after an extra long weekend! I took a couple of extra days off work. This challenge was also perfect timing because I was just talking to Christine about desk exercises a few days ago. This is definitely something I need to do everyday. Not only do I work at a desk all day, I work from home. The extent of my movement on a typical day is moving between my bedroom, my home office and the kitchen.
I decided to do the 21 day challenge with my class! Today we didn’t do the stretches, instead we did a mix of jumping jacks, knee slaps, running on the spot and wall push ups (against lockers!) and since I like dancing so much we spend our last 30 seconds dancing all around the class!
Stretching really helps me during the day – how did y shoulders get up around my ears?! Even if I can’t find 10 minutes in a row – 2-3 smaller chunks feels great!
Day 2 done! Good stretch! Looking forward for day 3 tomorrow. :-).