At the start of a new year it’s easy to conjure up the desire to make
positive changes to your health and fitness, but generating the
motivation to see those changes through is significantly harder. We
asked model and trainer Roger Frampton – whose TEDx Talk "Why Sitting
Down Destroys You" incidentally has approximately two million views on
YouTube – for his tips on making the maximum difference with minimal
effort.Stand instead of sit
We have around 300 joints and 800 muscles in our bodies and sitting
on a chair repeatedly freezes our spine in a flexed position. Think of
the stereotypical posture of an elderly person. That’s what we’re moving
towards, faster than a Japanese bullet train. However, we can make
conscious and informed choices to stand up on the train, have a walking
meeting or even stand in the pub on a Friday night. So instead of
hunting for a seat like a dog fixated on a bone, take the higher
ground... literally.
Squat like a three-year-old
Do you think when young children sit in squats, that they’re exercising? In fact, the squat is the innate resting position for the human being. Unfortunately at around the age of four, you were introduced to a new resting position - the chair. One of the unfortunate consequences of this is that we lose our ability to sit in a squat. The squat not only keeps our hips flexible but also lines up our digestive system for bowel movements. One of the best things you can do to make certain you’re not getting your hips replaced in a few years is to get your squat back. This requires spending three minutes a day sitting in the squat position. Heels must be in contact with the floor, feet facing forwards and your knees should be wider apart than your feet. Also, it’s easier with a wedge under your heels (Louboutins, anybody?) so you can start in heels and work your way down to bare feet.
Discover a free outdoor gym
By the
age of 75, two thirds of us will be suffering from a chronic illness
and may be reliant on pharmaceutical drugs to keep us alive. However,
some of these are preventable and London is full of free outdoor gyms -
although they are not always that easy to find. Some have pull-up bars
that you can hang on, parallel bars where you can test out your inner
Olympian, and an array of random things to jump over and swing across.
Some of my favourites are tucked away in Primrose Hill, Kennington and
Maida Vale. Why not go on a Sunday adventure with a friend and see how
long you can hang for? If they can train outdoors in Russia, we can
certainly do it here.
Engage in bed play
Here’s a fact for you, repeated sedentary
behaviour blocks fat-burning enzymes, stopping you from losing excess
weight easily. The best things about beds are they are super
comfortable, easily accessible and when you travel you’ll most likely
have access to one too - unless you’re at Glastonbury (but then you’ll
get plenty of walking exercise in anyway). But back to beds. How about
utilising the very thing you sleep on? We can use beds to stretch on. To
use your bed to improve your leg flexibility, start by sitting on the
middle of the bed with your feet as wide as they can go over the edges
and hold. Imagine you’re going into the splits. Spend a few minutes
every night trying out some stretches on the comfiest mat in the world.
Watch television
Are you planning
to watch any television series this year? If so, where are you going to
watch them? Slumped on a sofa, only later to complain about how terrible
your posture has become. Repeated sofa slouching puts pressure on the
same vertebrae, forcing your spine into a curved shape. This shrinks the
space in which your lungs allow you to breathe so how about soaking up
the benefits of floor stretches with the added bonus of reversing some
of the tightness that you’ve picked up over the years, all whilst being
distracted by your favourite show.
Try the following:
Sit cross-legged. This is the classic position most yoga classes start in and the one all kids innately adopt. Don’t forget to switch sides.
Pancake.
Start seated on the floor, put your legs out in front of you and out as
wide as you can. If you feel you’re falling backwards stack up some of
your favourite books to make it easier.
Front lying. This one does exactly what it says on the tin. Lie on your front and prop yourself up on your elbows (think sphinx).
Visit Roger.coach for video tutorials on stretches that you can do anytime and anywhere.
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