The tensions, worries and stress of daily life are lodged in the body.
In this sense, it is not at all strange for a person to report
pain
in the neck, back and lower back.
Being able to consciously stretch those areas to relieve tension is such an effective strategy that it is being used more and more.
Mindful stretch: what it is about
What is
conscious flexibility
?
"Many times we move our body as if it were a block, and as a result of that there is discomfort, but what happens specifically is that we do not then have the possibility of disposing of our body as we want for daily life", explains the trainer Jackie Gleser, in a video made for
Clarín
.
Accustomed to differentiating our body according to zones or functionalities, she proposes a change of perspective, to perceive and experience the organism as a whole.
"I always think of my work from the framework of health and quality of life," says Jackie, who is a psychologist as well as a trainer, and has a
holistic view
of the world of fitness.
His comprehensive experience is key when it comes to encouraging his students to concentrate on what they are doing: that they can connect with their body in another way, focusing on the "here and now".
“The objective of mindful stretch is to learn to move the body in the direction that one wants to give it, work on
flexibility
, trying to work from the joints, to improve joint movement and mobility, work the body in a segmented way, part by part, bit by bit, to later rejoin all the movements”, he describes.
Conscious stretching helps to work on flexibility.
Photo Juan Manuel Foglia.
3x3: exercises to work on key points
Why did you choose these exercises?
“Because of our daily life, a high percentage of the population has
neck pain
.
So both the neck and the posterior shoulder and the back, the lower back, are the exercises that I hear people need,” he explains.
Jackie offers some advice before you start: keep in mind the importance of mindfulness, that is,
registering each movement
will help you notice how tensions are easing.
1- Neck
The exercise consists of
5 different moments
:
First, we must stand up feeling the legs and the center of the body firm.
We place
one hand behind
, on the back, towards the opposite shoulder blade.
Simultaneously, we loosen the head towards the opposite shoulder.
You must be attentive to every movement.
Photo Juan Manuel Foglia.
Second, we
lean
sharply.
Third,
we look down
.
The neck is one of the areas that generates the most discomfort.
Photo Juan Manuel Foglia.
Fourth, we bring the
chin in
.
Finally, we place the
hand with the palm facing forward
, and push firmly down.
Hold 30 seconds.
To return, lift your chin, turn your head and raise it very slowly.
We place the hip back first, the central area of the back is accommodated, we open the chest, straighten the shoulders and finally we accommodate the head.
2- Back shoulder and back
To do this exercise, the elbows
must be pushed
forward, the arms are parallel to the floor and we hug the elbows with the opposite hand.
Keep your neck long and look straight ahead.
We take a slow breath through the nose.
We must take the elbows with the hands.
Photo Juan Manuel Foglia.
Bring the
head forward,
mobilizing the body from the bottom up, tucking the hip in and moving the lower back.
Head lowered, looking at toes.
Photo Juan Manuel Foglia.
Now, the head is going down, looking at the toes.
Relax the knees a little to better flex the spine.
and with the eyes look at the navel, to finish rounding the back well.
Pelvis forward, chest in, head looking down.
3- Core muscles
In this exercise we will mobilize the part of the body called
the upper body
: back, shoulders and neck.
In this exercise, a gentle twist is practiced.
Photo Juan Manuel Foglia.
We start the exercise seated,
rotating the spine
.
For that, we place the hand on the opposite knee, while the shoulder approaches the knee.
The arm
should be extended
upwards, while we push with the hand and stretch the fingers.
The head rotates, and we can look up, although if it bothers, the look can go down.
You should feel a
stretch
from the tail to the hand, through the back and the center of the trunk.
You should feel all the muscles stretch, from the tail to the hand.
Photo Juan Manuel Foglia.
To return, do it little by little: first we push the hip back, the central area of the back is accommodated, we open the chest, we accommodate the shoulders and finally the head goes up.
We can repeat this routine a few times a week, or when we feel a lot of tension in the area.
Listen to the body, and
do not force
movements.
Jackie clarifies, to close, that these exercises
take time,
and that if we are in a hurry, we leave them for a moment of greater tranquility.
***
Do you want to continue training with Jackie Gleser?
Find more routines in these notes with videos:
➪Strong arms: 3 exercises to strengthen the triceps
➪Three strength exercises for people over 50
➪Squats, lunges, deadlifts: an infallible series of exercises to tone the buttocks
➪Train like a "celebrity": series of sit-ups with a ball
***
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