EASY HOME EXERCISES FOR THE QUARANTINE DAYS

The Covid-19 restrictions have since loosened in many areas. Yet, people remain mostly home-based. The threat is still very much around, and everyone knows that it’s too risky to let one’s guards down.

But while staying put at home these days is highly advisable, it also has its downsides. For one, spending too much time in familiar, limited environment can breed boredom. Another thing, it limits one’s activities, which can have negative repercussions on one’s physical wellbeing.

Health experts say that one needs to sit less and move more. But is it even possible when being stuck at home for days on end? Well, it is, says Karen Asp at the website www.realsimple.com – one could move while sitting! She shares ways to exercise at home without even leaving the chair… and without need for special equipment:

Extended Mountain Pose. Sit on the edge of a chair with feet flat on the floor (about the distance of the chair legs) and toes pointed out slightly. Take a deep breath as you reach your arms overhead, keeping shoulders away from your ears. Feel a stretch through the front of your body. If you’d like, lift your arms toward the right so you feel a stretch on the left side of your body. Return to center and switch sides. Release to start.

Cat/Cow. Sit tall with your hands on your knees or the arms of the chair. Move into cat position by dropping your chin toward your chest and rounding your back like a Halloween cat. Then draw your shoulders back and open up and forward through the chest as you move into cow position, arching your back and letting your pelvis tilt forward. Repeat two more times.

Spinal Twist. Sit tall in a chair and extend straight arms up, inhaling as you go. As you exhale, twist your torso to the left and place your right hand on your left knee. Reach your left arm behind you, placing it on the back of the chair. Breathe in deeply, getting longer through the spine, and as you exhale, see if you can increase the twist more (gently). Return to center and repeat on the opposite side.

Hamstring Stretch. Sitting with your feet flat on the floor, extend your left leg in front of you, heel on floor with toes pointed up toward you. Keep your spine long as you hinge at the hips, as if you’re reaching your collar bones toward your toes. Breathe in deeply, and as you exhale, see if you can hinge forward a little more to increase the stretching sensation in your hamstring. Release and repeat on the other side.

Lunge Stretch. Sit to the front of the chair and turn your body to the left so your left glute is on the chair and your left foot is on the floor pointing left, knee over ankle. Extend your right leg behind you. Let the right hip and thigh relax as you ease into the pose, feeling a stretch through the right hip. Release and switch sides.

Pigeon Pose. Start by sitting with both feet flat on the floor. Lift your right foot off the floor and place your right ankle or calf on your left thigh. Sitting tall, exhale and hinge at the hips until you feel a deep stretch in the right glute and lower back. Hold here for a few breaths, hinging forward slightly more with each exhale. Release to the starting position and repeat on the opposite side.