Health and Wellbeing for Seniors
Try letting your shoulders drop or settle now into their most comfortable position, take them back and down a little. It isn’t too difficult to do for the moment but to maintain this position unconsciously in our daily lives is another matter.
We raise our shoulders unnaturally when on the computer, when we’re shocked by a loud noise or when we feel stressed. All your muscles are all linked together, firing together, supporting each other. However, if one muscle group is being overused then discomfort (and possibly pain) will soon follow. It only takes a slight but frequent rising of the shoulders to create enough tension to throw the nervous system out of balance, producing anxiety, stiff necks or headaches.
An excellent way to start managing stress is to use these three yoga practices for necks and shoulders along with deep breathing. Practiced daily they will signal the muscles to release and to relax.
Yoga postures should be practiced slowly and gently, with awareness, ideally synchronized with the breath. They should not be practiced absent-mindedly as you may hurt yourself. If you encounter any discomfort or pain stop immediately.
For the shoulders
Sitting on a sturdy straight backed chair, lengthen your spine by lifting the crown of the head up towards the ceiling. Take the shoulders back and down a little. Hold this posture.
As you inhale lift the shoulders up towards the ears, hold the shoulders here and hold the breath. Count to four. Now slowly exhale, counting to eight, while relaxing the shoulders down. Repeat four more times.
For the neck
Note: For anyone with whiplash or neck injuries, take extreme caution in approaching any new exercises.
Lift your chin and look up as you inhale, exhale relax your chin down towards your chest. Repeat twice more.
Bring your head back to a neutral position; begin to move your chin around in small circles so that you are literally just moving your skull around at the top of your spine. Make it relaxing and easy. When you have gone seven to ten times in one direction, pause, and reverse the movement for the same number of rotations.
Over time, when it feels comfortable, you may find that you can increase the size of the circles you are making with your chin.
For the neck and shoulders
Place your fingertips on to your shoulders, inhale, as you exhale drop your chin towards your chin and bring the elbows towards each other, possibly touching them together in front of your chest. Feel the shoulder blades behind separating.
Inhale, take to elbows wide out to the side and lift your chin to look up. Press the shoulder blades together behind as you gently press the elbows back. Repeat this three to five times.
Awareness improves as time goes on
The key is to keep doing these practices regularly; you will eventually become aware of emotions or situations that trigger feelings of tension and be able to consciously relax, letting the tension go before it builds up.
Where do you find you hold the most tension, neck or shoulders? Let us know in the comments below.
Health and Wellbeing for Seniors
Exercise can’t always totally cure the effects of poor circulation or divert you from the temptation of staying on the couch under a blanket when it’s cold outside! But as I tell my senior yoga students every week – keep moving and stay well. Extended periods of sitting can lead to joint deterioration and shortening of the muscles not to mention a decline in balance, something we’d all like to avoid.
So, here are some simple practices that can be done from sitting or standing, taken from hatha yoga. They systematically bring warmth and energy into the whole body. These are low-impact and easy on joints, collectively helping to give your circulation and respiration a boost.
Hands
1. Starting with the hands, move slowly through the body maintaining an awareness of the warmth starting to build up.
2. Lift your hands up in front of you and then let them become limp at the wrist. Begin to shake one hand as if shaking water off your hands. Then try the other hand in the same way. Then both hands together.
Arms
1. Relax both arms down by your side. Begin to swing them loosely, first from the elbow and then from the upper-arm. Shake one arm, then the other, now both arms together.
Feet
1. Lift your right foot off the floor, place both hands under your right knee to support your leg. Relax the foot. Now begin to shake your foot from the ankle. This might take some practice as the muscles in the foot are generally in a contracted condition.
2. Repeat on the other foot.
Knees
1. Again, start by lifting your right foot off the floor and place both hands underneath the knee. Relax the lower leg. Begin to swing the lower leg backwards and forwards, (if your knee joint starts to feel uncomfortable stop the movement).
2. Now begin to shake the lower leg from the knee down. Repeat on the other leg.
Hips
1. If it’s comfortable, stand up and place your chair on your left side so that you can hold on to it. Relax the right leg. Now pick up your right foot and start to swing your right leg backwards and forwards. The give the whole leg a really good shake. If this feels tricky you could place a book under your left foot to give you a bit of space. First one leg, then swoop sides and do the other leg.
The whole body
1. You can do this from standing or from seated. Relax the whole body. Starting again from the hands, start to shake the hands, add the arms, then feet, knees etc; until you are doing the hokey-pokey and “shaking it all about”.
2. Sing, bring smile to your face and feel the wonderful vitality in your body!
Have you found that yoga has helped you improve your physical health? Let us know in the comments below.