Stand Ground & Level are you?

Did you know that power is the first thing we lose as we age?

Understanding how our bodies change as we grow older is essential to our overall health and wellbeing. So, when you start to notice that it’s getting a little more challenging to move with ease, it’s essential that you begin to incorporate core strengthening exercises into your daily routine.

We all know that everyone has their unique level of flexibility, strength, fitness, and differing mobility restrictions due to pain or other health issues, which is why the team at Xali aim to provide bespoke workouts based on your daily emotion, fitness level, experience and motivation. Some days, you'll want to push outside your comfort zone, other days, you'll need to nurture your body, and we have a routine for every step along the way.

Each workout on our platform has been meticulously designed to support women's bodies, keeping joints and muscles safe, no matter the exercise. By answering a few easy questions when setting up your account, Xali creates a personalised recommendation of daily workouts, recipes and articles to support your health. We will take into consideration how you are feeling emotionally as well as physically to work in harmony with hormonal changes.

Why should I improve my core strength?

If we were to sit you in a chair and tie your hands behind your back, could you get up? If the answer is ‘no', that's ok!

As you age, this type of systematic training, based on repetition, will assist in strengthening your core and help give you confidence. Mastering basic strengthening movements, such as the Ground and Stand, is imperative to maintaining mobility into your older years. The Ground and Stand is a simple move whereby you begin on the floor and manoeuvre your body in a certain way to get back up in a standing position without using your hands. As a fitness trainer, I have worked with clients at different levels of ability, mobility and strength, so I understand that although this particular move sounds like a simple feat, it can, unfortunately, become much harder to complete the older we get.

There is no right or wrong way to do it; as long as you're determined, you can build your strength back up over time. Beginning on a level that is comfortable for you and working your way up is critical. Drills such as this play a significant role on the Xali platform, both in warm-ups and recovery workouts, to keep your body vital and strong at any age.

What

Test your current strength by sitting in a chair and sliding down to the edge of the seat. Position your knees over your ankles. Can you stand up without putting weight on your hands? If this proves to be a little tricky it may be time to incorporate some more recovery and stretch exercises into your daily routine.

If you can do this with ease, try moving to the floor. Once sitting on the floor, move into any grounded position you find comfortable and stand up without using your hands. It's tough - do not be embarrassed if you're unable to complete the move right now - use another chair next to you for assistance.

Here is a step-by-step guide of me completing one from a crosslegged position. I aimed to be able to get up and back down again - and I decided to make it a little more complicated by doing it on sand! One side is more accessible than the other for me, so I make sure I train both sides.