It’s amazing what a few of the right exercises done consistently can do for keeping flexible!
Before you read any further, please know I am not a doctor or am I prescribing any medical advice. Everyone is in a different place with flexibility, so know your own body and proceed slowly if you feel resistance and stop if you feel pain. You should just feel mild tension.
Recently I’ve been gently doing finger, hand and shoulder exercises to carefully stretch and limber up my fingers. I don’t pretend to be near as flexible or nimble as this cat, but I have seen a significant improvement lately.
I’ve been working on my hands, shoulders and neck. Too much time on my computer and working on my phone has caused things to tighten up. It’s made a minor injury flair up from last fall. I was hiking and slid down an embankment. I grabbed a sapling to slow my fall which pulled my shoulder up and back quicker and farther than I had expected. It was sore for about a week in October, but my fingers and hands started hurting more recently. So after a trip to the chiropractor, I have some stretches that are really making a difference.
Here are examples of what I’ve added twice a day. You can Google images to find these exercises. I am not linking or attaching them, because my virus protection cautioned me to watch out. Also many of the downloads are copyrighted. The version I’m using is pretty old – 1996.
My twice a day routine:
- Hand, Arm and Shoulder stretches
- Computer and Desk stretches
- Doorway shoulder stretches
- I’ve also added some 90/90’s and windshield washers for my hips.
Making sure I have range of motion is really important to me as I age… And one of the only ways to make sure that it happens is take care of myself. Ignoring things like this doesn’t usually make it go away.
What do you do to stay flexible? Let me know your routine or other ways you take care of yourself. Leave a comment below or reach out on our @becomingelli social media. We’re on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube.