corporate health & performance prograM
Week 4
Be flexible!
Over the last 4 weeks you have developed a deeper awareness of you mind-body connection. You have expanded your knowledge around the relationship between strength, flexibility, and stress. You have learned the foundational principles to guide your continued journey. My final words of wisdom are simple:
“Be flexible!”
Long-term sustainable success relies on adapting to your environment, being fluid, and rolling with the challenges of life. Be careful of becoming too rigid in your practices. Remember, quality of movement and consistency lead to transformation which requires being creative, open, and curious — Be flexible.
R - A - D - D
In addition to introducing you to some foundational principles around pursuing and achieving your strength & flexibility goals, here is a helpful acronym when thinking about how to structure your personal strength and flexibility practice. Follow this sequentially:
Reflect.
Activate.
Do the work.
Downregulate.
REFLECT
Choose a reflective practice to begin your session. This is invaluable for setting up your mind-body connection in preparation for the work ahead. Be intentional. Be present. In this video, I will guide you through a standing body scan influenced by the Chinese disciplines of Tai-Chi and Qigong to introduce alternative practices.
1
body scan (standing)
activate
Choose practices that prepare your body for “doing the work” you have planned ahead, whether that be a formal workout, outdoor activity, or the daily challenges of life. This may be breathwork, flexibility, mobility, or a skill specific to your practice (ie a specific athletic skill, coordination drill, or meditative practice). For this guided session, I’ve included flexibility focused practices as part of your “activation” below.
2
Tai chi & qigong
split stance hip flexor
DO the work
This is where the training principle of Specificity comes into play. “Do the work” refers to your specific intention and purpose for your practice. Be as specific as possible. If your intention is to center yourself and connect with your body, then “the work” refers to your body scan. If it’s hip flexibility, then “the work” is a specific hip practice. When planning your personal workouts, or thinking about how to integrate a new practice, it may be helpful to reflect on “The work” first, as it may help guide your specific “Reflect” and “Activate” practices. And, it may be that one single practice fulfills all three!
3
single leg reach
stand to floor
Crab to push up
Ground to stand
1
Ground to stand
2
Ground to stand
3
down-regulation
“Down-regulation” refers to practices that calm your mind and body by stimulating the rest and digest branch of your nervous system called the parasympathetic nervous system. These practices include breath work, meditation, flexibility and mobility practices, or even light gentle cardio like short walk.
How do you know what practice to choose? Go back to the training principle of Specificity - Choose a practice that supports your specific goals AND that feels best! You should complete every session feeling energized and relaxed.