Health surprises can arrive in many different ways. For the 30 percent of Australians that have high blood pressure it was hearing that new guidelines around which levels of blood pressure constituted a health risk suddenly meant that they were now considered having stage 1 hypertension.
Blood pressure that’s high over a long time is one of the main risk factors for heart disease and the chances of having persistently high blood pressure increase with age. The good news is that the new recommendations emphasise lifestyle changes and not medication – such as diet, stress management and exercise. Chair yoga targets two out of three of these objectives – physical activity and stress management. Over time the practice allows us to become fitter and calmer, not just in class but in everyday life as well.
There’s another method that is drug-free and easy to do, a number of my senior yoga students have tried this with great results – squeezing a stress ball for 2 minutes, 4 times in a row (with a 2-minute rest in-between each squeeze) 3 times a week. Several studies show that an average of 16 per cent drop in blood pressure can be achieved with this method, the practice is thought to strengthen and widen the arteries.
The main thing to keep in mind when doing hand grip exercises is not to use your full strength as this could raise your blood pressure, go for a low to moderate resistance. Aim to use about 30 per cent of your full strength, a good way to gauge this is to grip your stress ball as hard as you can briefly and then reduce your grip to about one third intensity.
With patience and a little bit of time each day it is possible to control blood pressure naturally and set yourself up to live a longer healthier life.
Did you know that one-quarter of the bones in your body are in your feet? 26 bones, 120 muscles, 33 joints – so complicated, so much potential for something to become painful. The reason age plays a role in potential problems with the feet is that as we age our feet actually widen and flatten, along with ankle joints becoming stiffer and less flexible.
For general care of your feet, here are five yoga practices for daily practice to help loosen these joints and alleviate general stiffness, they are anti-rheumatic as well. Try to include these movements in your morning routine – you could even do them before you get out of bed.
If your feet are stiff and they don’t ‘co-operate’ right away it may take about six weeks for the many muscles and joints to loosen so please don’t give up.
Start by either taking one leg or both legs out in front of you, if there is any cramp during these movements stop the practice:
Toe bending – keeping the ankles steady, place your heel on the ground, press out through your heel drawing the toes back towards you. Keeping the foot upright, inhale, squeeze all the toes together, exhale – press them down towards the floor. Inhale – toes back, exhale toes forward. Repeat 5 times on each foot.
Open the toes – draw the toes back towards you, press out through your heel, now spread the toes out as much as you can. Relax the toes for a couple of breaths, spread the toes out. Repeat 3 times on each foot.
Toe flexibility – draw the toes back towards you, press out through the heel. See if you can push the four toes away and draw the big toe back towards you. Hold for one exhalation and one inhalation. Now reverse it, push the big toe away and draw the four toes back towards you, again hold for one in breath and one out breath. Repeat on the other foot. Note: Many people find this movement tricky at first but it will get easier with practice.
Ankle rotations – separate the feet. Moving slowing and mindfully, rotate the right foot at the ankle 10 times in a clockwise direction, 10 times anti-clockwise. Try to synchronise the circular movements with your breath. Aim for a full range of stretch and movement. Repeat on the left ankle.
Foot massage – I like to start every Chair Yoga class using spiky rubber balls under the feet for an easy massage. Roll these balls around under the soles of your feet, the design helps to promote blood flow and stimulates the fascia. The fascia is a dense fibrous tissue that is tightly packed on the soles of your feet, it is defined scientifically as a bio-mechanical signalling system for balance.
Seasonal changes bring challenges to the immune system, the thought of winter ailments often sees us reaching for an extra dose of vitamin C. If you’re living in a place that becomes cold and dark in the winter months you might like to add a few simple yoga practices to your daily routine to boost immunity.
The immune system is made up of many components including the tonsils, thymus gland, digestive tract, lymphatic and circulatory systems. Each of these systems plays an important role in helping your body to fight off invaders like bacteria and viruses. The immune system changes with age, it becomes slower to respond so if you’re thinking that ‘an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure’ read on:
1. Do the twist
All of your internal organs have their nerve endings in your spine and nerves control the body’s functions, including sensation and movement. Moving the spine with gentle twisting is extremely beneficial for the internal organs.
Gentle daily twist: Before you get up in the morning, draw your knees up towards your chest. Take a breath in and as you exhale let both legs relax over to the right. Inhale the knees back to the centre, exhale them over to the left. Add on: turn your head away from your knees with each twist to move the whole spine.
3 to 5 times to each side.
2. Practice inversions
Inversions, such as legs up the wall, help to circulate lymph fluid through the lymphatic system – this is your body’s ‘rubbish collection’ service. It rids the body of toxins and other unwanted materials and transports immune cells around the body to fight off infection, significantly contributing to the workings of immunity in the body.
Here’s a couple of ways to practice inversions from reclining on your back.
Place your calf muscles on to the seat of a chair
In bed place 3 or 4 pillows underneath your lower legs and ankles
On the floor, sit with your right hip against the wall and as you lie back swings your legs up on to the wall. Stay here for 5 deep breaths.
Remember when you come out of an inversion pay attention to your blood pressure, roll on to your side and stay here for a few deep breaths. If there is pounding between your ears stay here a little longer. Sit up slowly.
3. Use your breath
Look after your lungs through winter with this easy yoga practice to increase the intake of oxygen, helping to build resistance to infection. A study from 1992 (yes, 1992) assessed whether arm positions affects air intake and oxygen consumption. The researchers found that when subjects held their arms at shoulder height whilst breathing, their oxygen consumption was higher compared to when subjects held their arms by their sides. These benefits continued for two minutes after their arms were lowered. It makes you wonder why we don’t all do this!
From standing or seated: Inhale, count to 4, lift your arms up level with your shoulders, as you exhale count the breath out for 8 and lower your arms down. Repeat 3 to 5 times.