#iorestoacasa, no excuses: gymnastics is also done from the sofa - Lifestyle

With the Coronavirus pandemic we are holed up in the house, attached to the TV, eating (too much) to console ourselves after every news, waiting in the window or on the balcony for the nightmare to end. The effect can be, from the point of view of physical form, not quite the desired one. Gymnastics at home, taking care of your body and leaving the sofa-tv, chair-computer mode for those who work in smart working, is the only way to save at least 5 extra kilos of weight and to keep your mood high , by moving endorphins, not accidentally called "happiness hormones". The psyche will also benefit from the movement: de resto, "Mens sana in corpore sano", as Giovinale recalled in the Satires.
To understand how important the issue of movement is for physical and mental health, it was established that April 6 is World Gymnastics Day. That said, we are not alone in tackling the abdominal, biceps and buttocks. There are many experts who show online in their tutorials what to do and many of them have opened free online channels for this period, as well as some gyms with their sportsmen. The fitness and slimming expert, Ivan Zangirolami, a graduate in sports sciences, combines the diets with a gym program suitable for all ages, which the trainer himself shows in a video: a journey of about 15-20 minutes to do comfortably at home. "Frequency is important, explains Zangirolami - the intensity and sequence of physical exercises. The aim is to reactivate the metabolism and to do so there must be some conditions. The program - he adds - tends to lower the level of stress, a factor that it affects nutrition, along with sedentary lifestyle. Our body tends to adapt to the physical activity we do and over time it learns to carry out the same activity more efficiently and consuming fewer calories. " "The Zangirolami method" practiced by many celebrities has become a book. Another manual even suggests transforming the sofa into a gym: " Sofa gymnastics ": trained at home, it is dedicated to those who are tired of sitting. The book shows how to train all the muscle areas with your own sofa. As explained to us by Luciano and Stefano Gemello, professionals of the world of sport with a degree in physical sciences for years: "with the sofa we can awaken the quadriceps, buttocks, calves, biceps, abdominals, backs and even stretching". 654 skeletal muscles in action . In the book "Sofa gymnastics" (Editions LSwr), the two coaches have collected numerous exercises that everyone can easily perform. It is therefore a complete guide to train at home, even without tools and machinery. The authors do not indicate the number of repetitions nor recommend series. "Sofa gymnastics - they explain - has the objective of being able to convince you to move. We do not intend to harness you in series and repetitions bound by precise numbers, which could discourage your good will. We will simply stimulate you to enjoy the movement ". Here are some exercises presented in the book.
1) Mono squat: leg behind on the sofa, starting position back on the sofa, one foot resting behind it, arms at the sides, foot on the ground 10 cm ahead of the knee of the flexed leg. Action Bending the leg on the ground bringing the arms forward. Attention distribute the weight evenly throughout the foot during the movement, try to go down as far as possible, do not push the knee forward with respect to the tip of the foot on the ground. Breathing exhale on the way up and inhale on the way down.
2) Elevation of the leg in quadrupedia. Starting position, kneeling on the sofa, one leg stretched out behind resting forearms.Action: raise the straight leg bringing the hammer foot (back flexion) to the maximum height that can be maintained for a few seconds. Attention relax the neck muscles do not rotate the pelvis, make a controlled movement of the free leg without jerking. Breathing exhale by pushing the leg up and inhale during the descent
3) Plank. Starting position: forearms resting on the sofa (variation, with resting hands and outstretched arms) body stretched out behind. Action: keep your position immobile for a certain period of time. Attention, keep the same line legs and back avoiding to bring down the pelvis, the shoulder blades must be brought as close as possible, the neck relaxed. Breathing, inhale and exhale with regular rhythm trying to raise the diaphragm during exhalation.