Fast Fitness - Balance and Ankle Stability in the Dark

Here is Friday Fast Fitness - quickly improve balance and ankle proprioception - the ability of the ankle and foot to correct positioning, reducing sprain and fall potential.

This one helps balance for daily life, and also helps footing in darkness, which can be encountered on stairs, curbs, and late hikes.

1. Stand on one foot.
2. Balance on that foot with eyes closed. Switch feet.
3. Extend length of balance time with frequent practice.

Balance and proprioception are key to preventing and fixing ankle, foot, and balance trouble.

Obviously, don't do this near the stairs or the breakables. Use common sense to get started safely.

Maintain the arch in your foot. Notice if you flatten it downward or teeter too far to the side edge. Use foot and ankle muscles to lift it back to neutral position. See Fast Fitness - Fix Flat Feet, Pronation, and Fallen Arches.

Click the label "balance" under this post for all Fitness Fixer posts on balance.

Labels: ankle, balance, fast fitness, feet, sprain

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Fast Fitness - Handstand Rows

Here is Friday Fast Fitness - rows to strengthen the upper body, practice balance and neutral spine, and avoid lower disc injury from bad forward bending.

Readers have been writing in, excited about doing handstands for the first time or improving the handstand they do to get whole body functional fun exercise. My student Danielle demonstrates:

1. Hold a handstand, either using Easy handstand or Step Up To Handstand. Don't overarch the lower back (overarch is pictured). Instead of overarch/hyperlordosis, hold neutral spine in handstand.
2. Shift your weight to stand on one hand. Grasp a hand weight in the other hand
3. Do rows, and any variety of arm free-weight movements that you want to improve.

There is no need to bend over forward to do rows. It does not train functional posture, and unequally squeezes lower discs outward, which adds to degeneration and herniation forces that are common during bad daily sitting and unhealthy bending. You don't need more unhealthy things while exercising.

• To understand herniation forces on discs from bad forward bending, click: The Cause of Disc and Back Pain and Disc Pain - Not a Mystery, Easy to Fix

• To understand the damaging force on the lower spine of bad backward bending (overarching, hyperlordosis): Prevent Back Surgery

• To reduce overarching/hyperlordosis during handstand: Fast Fitness - Fixing Your Handstand to Neutral Spine.

Labels: arm, balance, disc, fast fitness, handstand, lordosis, shoulder, strength, wrist

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Fast Fitness - Step Up To Handstand

Here is Friday Fast Fitness - learn to lift up to a full handstand, for shoulder, arm, and wrist strength, balance, agility, skill, and fun.

Previous posts showed how to step up to an easy handstand by putting one foot up high behind you on a wall or surface. Here is how to learn swinging up to full handstand:

1. Stand close to a secure surface.
2. Plop both hands on the floor about a foot from the wall and swing one leg upward
3. Use momentum of putting hands down and swinging leg up, to swing the other leg upward to the wall.

• Mr. Sosaku at right holds the finished stance.
• Helen, center shows swinging up straight, bringing both feet to the wall.
• Kimberly shows the beginning - placing hands and getting the idea of lifting legs upward.

Let your feet come to the wall and straighten your body, so that you do not curl your back against the wall. Work to increase strength and balance, so that you need the wall less and less, eventually holding straight handstand without the wall. Note the hand weight on the floor. Future posts will show weightlifting with one arm while in handstand on the other.

More on handstand:

• Don't let your back sag or overarch when holding handstand- Fast Fitness - Fixing Your Handstand to Neutral Spine
• Step backward to easy handstand - Fast Fitness - Easy Handstand for Balance, Upper Body Strength -The Movie and Fast Fitness - Easy Handstand (still photos and full description)
• Using a Handstand for More Than an Exercise - Real Life.

Labels: arm, balance, fast fitness, handstand, strength, video/movie, wrist

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Students Balances, Listens, Fixes Father's Back Pain

My student Ginger sent the photo at right taken on her recent camping trip. Don't try this at home. It takes balance training, concentration, and a few changes to standard back bend technique.

Ginger is distributing the stretch along the spine so that no one area is compressed at an unfavorable angle, and is contributing most of the leg extension from the hip, not lower spine. More safe back extension stretch and strengthening methods will come in future posts.

Ginger is a good student who makes good use of my classes. Last week, while visiting her parents, she was out walking with her father. She told me that her father said that his back hurt from the walking. She looked, and saw that her father was standing and walking with too much inward curve to the lower back - hyperlordosis (swayback). Standing with the lower spine overarched is a slouch that compresses the spine unevenly downward, pinching the joints and soft tissue at the back of the lower vertebrae. Overarching is a large hidden cause of lower back ache during walking and running. This slouch is not fixed in the bone, it is a posture that is easily corrected. It does not require strengthening the back or core muscles, just using the ones you have. In moments, Ginger showed her father what I taught in class - how to change a slouching overarch to neutral spine. Ginger's father said the ache disappeared right there, and that was all there was to it.

• The article Innovation in Abdominal Muscles gives an overview, and the comments give a link to another post with a short movie showing the concept.
• If you want a whole book showing the concept, several techniques to achieve and use neutral spine, and examples of use in all daily life, try the book The Ab Revolution™ Third edition expanded. Part I of the book shows daily use without needing any exercises. Part II shows how to exercise using neutral spine to get more exercise, healthier exercise, and use abdominal muscles functionally to stop unattractive and damaging overarching.

Labels: balance, neutral spine, readers inspiring story, walking

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Fast Fitness - Easy Handstand for Balance, Upper Body Strength -The Movie

Here is Friday Fast Fitness - a quick, safer way to try a handstand. Standing on hands has many health and strength benefits and can be easily practiced in this way.

My student Dennis, Olympic medalist in wrestling, demonstrates in this short movie. Click the arrow to watch the movie:

1. Stand with your back about a foot in front of a wall, and crouch to put your hands on the floor (avoid slippery surface)
2. Put one foot high up on the wall, then lift the other foot up too
3. To get down, step one foot back down, then the other

To see step by step still photos and more explanation, click the post Fast Fitness - Easy Handstand where David from Belgium shows the handstand plus how to add a nice overhead hamstring stretch.


Keep breathing. Smile. Relax. Send in your own photos of trying this. Be safe and have fun.

Labels: arm, balance, circulation, fast fitness, handstand, shoulder, strength, upper back, video/movie, wrist

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Fast Fitness - One-Legged Party Trick for Strength, Flexibility, Balance

Here is Friday Fast Fitness - have fun while building balance, flexibility, coordination, concentration, and leg strength.

1. Stand on one foot with a can or other small container on the floor in front of you
2. While balancing on one leg, bend to lower yourself toward the floor
3. Retrieve something fun from the floor with your mouth - no hands.

Labels: balance, children, fast fitness, hip, leg strength, leg stretch, lunge, squat, strength, stretch

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Fast Fitness - Sprain Prevention and Rehab Training

Here is Fast Friday Fitness - feel how your own muscles work to hold ankle position, so that you can have stable ankles without artificial shoe supports or bracing, which weaken the supporting muscles from disuse:

1. Stand with feet parallel and look in a mirror where you can see your feet, or just look down.
2. Rise to toe and hold
3. Keep body weight over big and second toe with straight ankle position as you remain on tip-toe. Don't let your weight shift over the small toes, allowing ankle to bend outward.

Click the arrow to see this short movie of my student Diana's feet, as she first allows rolling the ankle outward when rising to toe, then at second 3 in the movie, she uses ankle, foot and leg muscles to pull to straight neutral ankle position. She prevents outward rolling as she again rises to toes three more times.

Prevent rolling outward whenever you rise on toe or push off or land from a jump or step.

Developing positioning sense in the receptors of your ankles prevents the sprain-promoting position called inversion, and gains built-in foot and ankle muscle strength and stability. Nice foot stretch too. Practice balancing on tip-toe, and rising up and down without rolling outward every day.

Labels: ankle, balance, fast fitness, feet, fix pain, injury, sprain, toes, video/movie

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Fast Fitness - Easy Handstand

Here is Fast Friday Fitness - if you have been afraid to try a handstand, here is a quick easy way to have success. You will strengthen your hands, wrist, arms, shoulders, upper body, and core, practice balance, and get blood circulating.

1. Crouch down near a wall (avoid slippery floor)
2. Put one foot high up on the wall
3. Lift up the other foot

If you have uncontrolled glaucoma or high blood pressure, ask your care providers first.

• Click here to see a quick video showing how to change sagging spine to neutral spine.
  
• Click Quick and Fun Arm and Body Strengthener for more on the benefits, plus drawings and description.

Labels: arm, balance, circulation, fast fitness, hand, handstand, shoulder, strength, wrist

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Married 63 Years With Good Balance

Reader Joe Blatt recently celebrated his 63rd wedding anniversary. He was a Broadway choreographer and dancer.

He demonstrates how to keep good flexibility and balance through the ordinary daily activity of standing to put on shoes and socks, and tying your shoes.

• Click Ancient Shoe Exercise for Hip Stretch and Balance to learn more about keeping fit through this normal daily activity.
• Click Fast Fitness - Balance, Strength, Stretch, and Socks to see the short movie of it made by reader David from Belgium.

Moving in the way your body needs for daily function is a functional exercise. Use this functional exercise every day.

Labels: aging, balance, hip, leg stretch, readers inspiring story, stretch

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Fast Fitness - Stronger Arms and Chest, and Core, Hip, and Leg Stability With A Friend

Here is Friday Fast Fitness - strengthen inner legs, thighs, arms, and core, while practicing neutral spine with a friend. Better than putting hands up on a bench or exercise ball My students Johanna (1) and Diana (2) demonstrate:

1. Partner 1 lies face up with bent knees
2. Partner 2 does pushups on Partner 1's knees while holding neutral spine, not letting the lower back sag and arch downward. Partner 1 holds legs stable and does not let knees wobble.
3. Switch and repeat.

• To see a short movie of how to change overarched hyperlordotic sagging spine to neutral spine for pushups, click Fast Fitness - Strengthen by Changing Your Plank.
• For photos to learn to spot hyperlordotic overarched spine and straight neutral spine, see Spotting Back Pain During Running and Walking - What Do Abs Have To Do With It?

To increase core and hip stabilization training for both partners, Partner 1 tilts knees slightly to each side while Partner 2 continues pushups. Try both moving continuously side to side, and holding legs stable at an angle. Do not twist your spine. Have fun moving and laughing with a partner.

Labels: abdominal muscles, balance, chest, elbow, exercise ball, fast fitness, hand, hip strength, leg strength, partner exercise, strength, wrist

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Fast Fitness - Leap for Balance on Leap Year

Here is Friday Fast Fitness for the intercalary year (Leap Year) - Leap to develop ankle and knee stability, leg power, and balance.

1. Leap forward, landing on the other foot with soft shock absorption. Don't land hard, which jars joints.
2. "Stick" your landing, without wobbling or setting the first foot down.
3. Leap backward to the original foot and place. Hold your landing steady. Try several leaps forward and backward, then change the leading leg and repeat.

When landing, keep ankle stable by preventing your foot from rolling to the outside. Info in the post No More Ankle Sprains Part II.
Train knee and hip stability by preventing your knee from swaying inward upon landing - Healthy Knees.

Labels: ankle, balance, fast fitness, feet, hip, holiday, impact, knee, leg strength, sprain

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Household Fitness in the New Year

Start off the new year with fitness as a lifestyle. Use healthy movement and body positioning as you go about all your daily activities.

David from Belgium trains balance first thing



Ivy from New Zealand uses a half squat to functionally strengthen her legs and prevent back pain while making the bed.






See - Bending Right is Fitness as a Lifestyle.

















Our friend MomPon is relative to the abbot of the Muay Thai Monks on Horseback near the border of Myanmar (Burma). We stayed with her during the time we spent at the monastery. She sits straight and comfortably in full squat to get things for dinner from her garden, then to wash dishes in her kitchen. We do the same when we help. She stands straight with chin in to reach overhead to get tamarind fruit from her tree, see - Change Daily Reaching to Get Ab Exercise and Stop Back and Shoulder Pain.

Labels: balance, biking, children, gardening, lunge, posture, sitting, squat

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Fast Fitness - Dynamic Partner Balance Challenge

Here is Friday Fast Fitness - fun challenge for body stabilization, strength, speed, and balance with a friend.

1. Stand facing a partner
2. Stand on one foot, pressing the other against your partner's raised foot.
   
3. Push, pull, surprise your partner with unexpected movement change, all while remaining balanced. Change to push toe to toe and side to side.

Reader Bernie supplied this photo. His inspiring story will be posted in January. He registered for my back pain workshop two years ago, then skipped it to do surgery instead. His doctors told him that since his pain was from structural damage (and it was) that no exercise or repositioning would help. Bernie took my class two years later to successfully fix a worsened structural situation.

Labels: balance, fast fitness, leg strength, partner exercise, speed, strength

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Fast Fitness - Stabilization During Speed and Directional Change

Here is Friday Fast Fitness - a fun, real-body skill to improve stabilizing your spine, knee, ankle, and foot (and hopefully everywhere else with good positioning) while having fun.

Have a pillow fight standing on one foot:

1. When one partner has to touch down, change feet.
2. When the other loses balance, game over.
3. Swing fully without letting your lower back arch on the swing. Keep neutral spine.

No score, just the big desire to practice again and improve functional balance, stabilization, and have fun from movement.

To practice this solo, swing a pillow on your own. Use a progressively heavy object, such as a ball on a rope, dumbbell, kettlebell, and any household item. Breathe. Have fun.

Labels: balance, children, fast fitness, neutral spine, partner exercise, speed, stress

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Fast Fitness - Functional Agility, Flexibility, Strength

Here is Friday Fast Fitness - build balance, leg and hip strength, and flexibility as a lifestyle.

Lightly sit down on the floor and get up again without your hands.

Being able to rise from the floor is natural lifestyle movement, done in many places in the world by people up to the oldest years. My martial arts student Ms. Han demonstrates in the short mpeg movie. Click the arrow to run the video:

Labels: aging, balance, fast fitness, hip strength, leg press, leg strength, leg stretch, sitting, video/movie

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After School Trapeze Arts is Good Exercise

My mother is a Russian circus teacher. We recently went with her to a recital of a neighbor who teaches elementary trapeze arts. The performers, age about 10 to a women in her 50s, were having fun moving and pulling themselves up and down ropes, scarves, and hoops. It wasn't a polished performance or high technical ability. That wasn't the point. They were lifting their body weight, climbing, stretching, balancing, focusing, burning calories, learning safety and cooperation, exercising, developing arm, hand, wrist, and grip strength, and moving their bodies in functional ways.

Their over-dramatic costumes flopped over their faces when they hung upside down. One young performer wore fly-front long johns. They seemed to think they were great artists. True or not, they were moving, smiling, stretching, laughing, and exercising to do art and fun.

Check for fun safe programs near you of healthy movement of all kinds. Get the good they can provide of new fun ways to use your body and mind functionally. If they use traditional stretches and exercises to warm-up that are not healthful, change or skip them. These posts give ideas:

• Sitting Badly Isn't Magically Healthy by Calling It a Hamstring Stretch
• The Stretch You Need The Least
• Common Exercises Teach Hip Tightness When Kicking, Stretching, and on the Stairs
• Aren't You Supposed To Stick Your Behind Out to Sit Down or Do Squats?
• Better Shoulder and Triceps Stretch
• Change Common Exercises to Get Better Ab Exercise and Stop Back Pain
• Stop doing crunches (ever again) - Good Life Works Better Than Bad Ab Exercise
• Instantly Better Hip and Quadriceps Stretch
• Better Achilles Tendon Stretch

Labels: arm, balance, children, hand, partner exercise, strength, stretch, warmup, weight loss, wrist

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Fast Fitness - Strength, Abs, Balance, and Ankle and Leg Stabilization

Here is Friday Fast Fitness - quickly increase functional stabilization of the knee, leg, and ankle while increasing overall strength and balance.

Anyone can lift weights, but can you do it balancing on a basketball? Get started by standing on one foot:

1. Do your regular lifts, curls, presses while standing on one foot (and then the other). Breathe.


2. Notice the leg you stand on. Don't let the arch of your foot flatten toward the floor, or knee roll inward toward the other leg. Hold knee, ankle, arch inline, using your muscles. See Arch Support Is Not From Shoes.
   


3. Don't lean your upper body backward (increasing lower back arch) when lifting arms up - a hidden source of back pain. See Change Daily Reaching to Get Ab Exercise and Stop Back and Shoulder Pain.

It reduces exercise to sit, even on a fitness ball. It is more exercise, more functional, and better balance training to stand on one foot than to sit. You sit all day already.

Be safe, be excited about having fun doing functional movement, be happy.

Labels: abdominal muscles, ankle, arches, arm, balance, exercise ball, fast fitness, hip strength, knee, leg strength, neutral spine, pronation, sitting, strength

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Fast Fitness - Balance, Strength, Stretch, and Socks

Here is Friday Fast Fitness with a new debut - web movies!

Fitness Fixer reader David D of Belgium has been making us many helpful mpegs. This one shows how to get several important physical skills and daily built-in fitness as a lifestyle by simply standing while dressing:

1. Stand with one ankle crossed over opposite knee
2. Put on your sock while balanced, safely.

If you want more, stay balanced and retrieve your shoe from the floor and put that on too. Stand to put on trousers and other clothes instead of sitting. The more you use balance, the more balance will develop.


Don't strain or force or round your back or make anything go pop. The idea is to learn to move in healthier ways, not unhealthy ones. The post Ancient Shoe Exercise for Hip Stretch and Balance explains more. Breathe. Have fun.

Labels: balance, fast fitness, hip, hip strength, leg strength, leg stretch, lower back, video/movie

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Fast Fitness - Speed and Eye Hand Coordination

Here is Friday Fast Fitness - Train speed and eye-hand coordination while having fun.

Have you seen martial arts movies where the master catches a fly with his chopsticks? The true master doesn't restrain or harm the lives of others. In the spirit of healthful exercise, World Vegetarian month and higher spirit, try this instead:

1. Tear a sheet of paper to different size pieces
2. Throw in the air
3. Catch as many pieces as you can as they flutter downward.

Want more? Use only one hand to catch. Then switch.

You can play this with children too. Get more exercise and prevent pain by using healthy bending to pick pieces up and start again.

Have fun.

Labels: arm, balance, children, circulation, fast fitness, hand, performance enhancing mo