 You don't have to get up, just stay where you are. For the next three minutes you're going to
start getting rid of body stiffness and will be working your way to suppleness and greater
energy.
Go on, as they say in the ads, you're worth it! Nettie
We'll work from the top of the
body down and back up again. Do the routine whenever you remember throughout the
day. Better still, set a timer to remind you
every hour.
If you have any doubts about
exercising, talk to your doctor first.
First check your sitting position
Sit with the buttocks pushed
right back into the chair, chest lifted, feet hip-width apart and parallel, resting flat
on the floor, heels directly below knees, hands resting on lap, eyes gazing directly
ahead. You may need to move your chair back a little from your desk.
Count out two sets of 8 for each exercise
ie. 'and 1 and
2 and 3' etc. to 8 and repeat.
1: Alternate shoulder lifts
'and 1': lift right shoulder to right ear
and 2: drop right shoulder vigorously and lift
left shoulder to left ear
and 3: drop left, lift right
and 4: drop right, lift left
and so on for two sets of 8 counts
2: Both together shoulder lifts
'and 1, 2, 3, 4': lift both shoulders to ears and
hold
and 5, 6, 7, 8: drop shoulders vigorously and
hold
repeat
3: Alternate shoulder swings
'and 1': swing right shoulder forward
and 2: swing right shoulder back, left forward
and 3: left back, right forward
and so on for two sets of 8 counts
 4: Buttock squeezes
'and 1': squeeze buttocks and release
and so on for two sets of 8 counts
5: Individual knee lifts
'and 1': lift right knee up towards chest and lower
to replace foot on ground
repeat to eight then 8 with left leg
6: Individual foot circles
'and 1': with right foot lifted so that right leg
is stretched out and parallel to the ground, circle foot one clockwise turn
repeat to 8 counts then eight anti-clockwise turns to second set of 8 counts
replace foot on ground and repeat exercise with left foot
7: Both together hand circles
'and 1': with hands lifted in front of eyes, circle
both hands outwards for one full turn
repeat to 8 counts
circle hands inwards for second set of 8 counts
8: Head tick-tock
'and 1': without lifting the shoulder or 'sagging'
the chest, drop right ear towards right shoulder
and 2: lift head to centre and drop left ear
towards left shoulder
repeat to two sets of 8 counts
9: Head drop
'and 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8': without 'sagging' the
chest again, drop chin forward to chest and hold, lifting head to centre on the count of 8
repeat
10: Facial stretch (definitely not for the office)
'and 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8': open mouth as wide as
possible and lift eyebrows as high as possible and hold
and 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8': squeeze eyes
tightly shut, frown, purse lips and hold, and release on the count of 8
repeat
The routine is complete. Now,
back to work!
Memorise the exercise titles, and
you can do them when you are away from the computer too.
To view previous articles in this series - see the laterlife-interest index page
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