An Eye On The Future
If you’re here, you’re curious about how to manage the aging process in a better way. Largely my followers are women although I speak to anyone with birthdays. After spending YEARS, maybe decades, taking care of others and doing “what we were told”, being “good girls and boys” our time begins to open up a bit, and, lo and behold,…our vitality feels limited. This feels like a cruel joke doesn’t it? I’m finally free to ‘run’ and now my legs won’t work. This is where my advocacy comes in, hopefully like a blinking banner in the sky. I REALLY WANT YOU TO HAVE AN EYE ON THE FUTURE BEFORE IT BECOMES A PROBLEM. And although there are so many many cool things to explore and talk about in this arena, (read my other blogs and stay tuned!) today we are looking at unnecessary body break down.
I always keep a mental list and note of what the majority of people discover as a problem as they age. I want to know that NOW! (Yes please!) Why? So I can do something about it before that eight ball hits me between the eyes. Recently I helped move my parents into assisted loving at 87. Also I work out with a group of men and women who are my age and older. Here is a couple glaring consistencies:
1. Everyone’s shoulders hurt and don’t work well. (Nobody can lift their arms over their head.)
2. Almost everyone’s back hurts and requires them to be very very careful. (Don’t lift this, Don’t lift that!)
Hmmmm. Question to self: Why is this happening? How can I be sure it does NOT happen to me?
One obvious answer (but not the whole picture) is these are very USED and abused body parts. Life requires a lot out of them. However, life also isn’t too fun without them in good form. The other pieces are people get busy and forget to strengthen and move them well. THE SHOULDERS AND THE BACK REQUIRE SPECIFIC ATTENTION AND INTENTIONAL MOVES TO KEEP THEM SAFE FROM INJURY. Surgeries to repair these critical parts are not fun and really hurt. No bueno.
The shoulders are very mobile joints. They can do all sorts of cool things when they work well. (Think- scratch that itch right between your shoulder blades, or fasten that bra easily.) The more mobile a joint is the more vulnerable it is to injury. Combine that with the delicate rotator cuff muscles that cradle the ball of the humerus, and the fact that we use them to do EVERYTHING.
Stretching, moving the shoulder in all directions, gently and consistently is critical. If you don’t know how, hit me up or google/YouTube it. Next is to always give a little attention in your workout routine to rotator cuff strengthening. I love resistance bands as a cheap, packable, evere-ready tool for this purpose. My photos depict some variations on the rotator cuff strengthening exercises that I love. They use a criss-cross pattern that is very functional. Again, make a plan, do some research, ask for help and incorporate.
What about the back? Although any part of the back can be problematic, the low back or lumbar spine is, again, the most mobile part and therefore the most often injured. Because it houses only our very ‘computer wires running our entire body, it is SO IMPORTANT we keep an eye on its well-being. The same 2 things apply here as to the shoulder: Flexibility and Strength. A flexible spine is the fountain of youth is has been said. And I tend to agree. Fully forward fold, fully backward unfold and everything in between. Gently flowing between those 2 extremes feels amazing. But with the low back it really doesn’t require a lot of time to keep it impervious to injury. It’s all about a strong core and this includes the stomach muscles, the (side) wrapping obliques, and the spinal muscles. I would say 10 minutes 3 days a week dedicated to this midsection would do the trick nicely.
If these moves look way out of your league, never fear, do whatever is within your current tolerance and work your way up. The key is gentle but firm nudging into that just out of reach range. You’ll find if you breathe and relax these new spaces open up!
Shoulders and back.
Back and shoulders.
Think movement to keep the range of motion AVAILABLE TO YOU, and muscle to keep them PROTECTED from injury. A simple eye on the future. These are your parts….vital parts you enjoy that make life very convenient and fun and easy. When they are on the blink, none of that fun easy convenient stuff is happening. If you need more specific personal instruction, please reach out to me for help if you cannot find what you need.