SFH #12: Let's Stand Up ⬆️

Why I like to avoid sitting and how I started to focus on better spine health

I'm currently standing at my desk typing away on this post. At this moment, I'm placing my heels together with my toes spread well apart. Now, I'm pretending like there is a zipper going up from my feet to my head. And I'm focused on standing up straight by engaging my glutes (squeezing the cheeks a bit 🤣). Now you try it. What do you feel?

I feel a sturdiness beneath me as my shoulders relax. My abdominals want to engage in relieving my lower back. And finally, I notice that my hips feel a bit tight. There is no right or wrong feeling here. I was hoping you could take notice of your body and how it's holding you.🧍🏾

A little mantra I love when it comes to my physical fitness: 'If I always take care of my body, my body will always take care of me.' 'But Brian...', you say; '...there are many ways to be fit and take care of my body. Where should I focus?'

Let's start here. 🎬

How should we focus on our functional movement, flexibility, and mobility?

Here are five (5) main end goal postures that we can strive for that give us a full range of motion and access to the healthiest version of our musculoskeletal system!

• Sit in a squat🐒

• Touch your toes with a flat back🦶🏽

• Sit up straight on the floor👆🏽

• Hang from a bar for a reasonable amount of time (at least 60 seconds) 🤙🏽 

• Sit cross-legged both ways around comfortably🧘🏽‍♀️

Remember, these are the end goals. If you cannot achieve any of them yet, you are not alone. When I started a couple of years ago focusing on these, I could not do any of them adequately. Patience and consistency will make progress. If you want to start working on any or all of these postures, reply here, and I'll share how I tackled this challenge. 🏔