Out & About January 2018

OA fitness

Start as you mean to go on

Motivate.Believe.Achieve Personal trainer Vicki Brown is the founder of LiveFitNow, based in Wash Common. For a free consultation, more information and links to online home fitness videos, visit: www.LiveFitNow.co.uk

After the festivities of Christmas and NewYear, many people want to make a change and improve their fitness. VICKI BROWN has put together three short routines to kickstart the new you

F or those of you looking to improve your fitness, here are three things to consider – strength, cardiovascular fitness and flexibility. Each of these routines works on those areas. WORKOUT 1 Strength (no equipment necessary, but can be added to increase difficulty) THE GOAL: to increase your strength. Begin by completing as many reps of each exercise as you can and make a note of how many you manage. Every time you repeat the exercises try to increase the number of reps.

WORKOUT 3: Flexibility

3. SQUATS STAND with your feet slightly wider than your hips, toes out, keep your spine in a neutral position throughout. Breathe in, break at your hip and sit back. Keep your chest and shoulders up and look forward. Squat down until your hip joint is lower than

THE GOAL: to increase flexibility. Regular repetition of these exercises should mean you can move the targeted muscles more freely.

your knees, parallel. Breathe out, drive through your heels, keep your knees out and return to the starting position.

1. HIP FLEXOR/QUAD STRETCH Kneel on floor. Lunge right leg forward until it is at 90 degrees in front of you, right foot is flat on floor directly under knee, left knee on floor. Press back hip forward, leaning into stretch, keeping torso upright. Hold for 30 seconds; release. Do three reps; switch legs and repeat.

1. PRESS UPS Start in the hands plank position. Keep your spine in neutral and core engaged. Bend your elbows to 90 degrees, lowering yourself, push yourself back up to the starting position. Drop to your knees to make the movement easier.

4. PLANK Lie face down, engage core, tighten glutes, lift your body off the ground forming a straight line from head to toe, resting on forearms and toes. Hold. If your lower back starts to ache, or you drop or raise your hips out of position either drop to your knees or rest. Time how long you can hold it for and try and improve each time you do it. THE GOAL: to increase your fitness. This part can be easily adapted depending upon the level of fitness you are starting with. Beginners: walk. Intermediate: jog. Advanced: run/sprint. You’ll need a hill, steep slope (perhaps a driveway) or even your stairs. 1. Warm up before going up your hill, slope or stairs as fast as you can. Use a stopwatch to time how long it takes you to get to the top and record. Walk back to the bottom. Repeat this process five times, each time taking note of the time. You will see your improvement of fitness as the time it takes you reduces. WORKOUT 2: Cardiovascular fitness/stamina

2. RECLINING PIGEON Lie face-up, knees bent, feet flat on floor. Cross flexed right foot over left thigh, hook arms around left hamstring, and lift left foot a few inches, keeping back and shoulders on floor. Gently pull right leg in toward you, until you feel a stretch; hold for 45 seconds to two minutes. Switch legs and repeat. 3. SWAN STRETCH Lie facedown, hands in front of shoulders, fingers facing forward, legs together, extended behind you. Press into hands, lift belly off floor. Keeping abs engaged, shoulders down and pelvis grounded, lengthen upper body reaching out and up from your head. Draw shoulder blades together, opening chest. Hold for 30-45 seconds and repeat. These workouts are quick and easy to do anywhere. The key is consistency, to see the best results with fitness. Little and often is better than lots occasionally. See our videos for more details.

2. TRICEP DIPS Position your hands shoulder- width apart on a bench or stable chair. Slide your butt off the front of the bench with your legs extended out in front of you. Straighten your arms, keeping a little bend in your elbows to keep tension on your triceps and off your elbow joints. Slowly bend your elbows, until your upper arms are parallel to the floor. Push yourself back up to the starting position using your triceps.

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