Physical Skills #6 and #7: Flexibility and Coordination
A little love for your muscles and joints
This week’s workout is great medicine for your muscles and joints and targets 2 more of our 10 general physical skills. Flexibility is defined as “The ability to maximize the range of motion at a given joint” and Coordination is “The ability to combine several distinct movement patterns into one distinct movement. These two skills go hand in hand because if we can maximize our range of motion of various movements, what follows is a greater ability to coordinate multiple movements more seamlessly. These skills help maintain the ability to perform routine activities of daily living as we age into the later decades and also help with athletic performance and injury prevention.
The first step is to warm up the muscles and joints. Each segment of this week’s workout starts with 3:00 of zone 2 (low to light-moderate intensity) cardiovascular work. The second and third movements of each segment are also meant to be performed at low to moderate intensity and target flexibility, skill, and coordination. There are several movement options for any skill level, so take some time to test out these movements and select what works for you for this workout.
Lastly, to give credit where credit is due, today’s training session is a modification of an awesome workout from Train FTW. They provide amazing online functional fitness/CrossFit-style workouts with thorough warm-ups and cool-downs, as well as amazing accessory work at a super low price. They continue to be a staple in my personal fitness repertoire.
Warm-Up and Movement Practice
Cardio movement options include bike, row, and run. If these options are not accessible to you, substitute an easy stair climb/step-up or another cardio machine (i.e arc trainer, elliptical, etc.). Ideally, select two different options for the workout, however, it is fine to select just one option for all three rounds. These cardio segments are to be done at a lower intensity (zone 2) level that is “conversational”.
To warm up, select one cardio option and go for 50 seconds at an easy pace and 10 seconds at a hard pace for a total of 5 minutes.
Watch the movement demo videos below and select your movement options for the workout. Take 5-10 minutes to practice each movement and select weights as appropriate.
Plank pull-through or Plank Shoulder tap (Knees or toes for both options)
Oblique twist (Option: no weight)
Duck walk - body weight (Advanced option: Duck walk holding a light to medium kettlebell) or Inchworm
Workout
3 rounds
3:00 Bike
1:00 Plank pull-through (Alternative: Plank shoulder tap)
100 ft double dumbbell front rack walk
1:00 rest
3 rounds
3:00 row
1:00 sit-through (Alternative: 100 ft bear crawl)
50 ft / 50 ft over-under carry
1:00 rest
3 rounds
3:00 bike
30-second weighted oblique-twist
50 ft duck walk (Alternative: 50 ft inchworm)
Cool Down
Muscle tension from external stressors is an often overlooked cause of muscle tightness. Where people “carry their stress” is different for everyone. Some carry it in their lower back, others in their upper back, shoulders, and neck. This simply means that when we are experiencing life stress, our muscles often unconsciously tighten up resulting in pain and stiffness.
Today’s cool-down is a restorative yoga segment that helps release tight muscles, thus promoting a greater range of motion and flexibility throughout the body. Enjoy!
25-minute Stretch and Release Yoga
Housekeeping…..
Introducing our new partnership with Health Steps Nutrition to provide a nutrition coaching resource for all Clients of Carla DiGirolamo, MD!
Healthy Steps Nutrition provides individualized coaching using a habit-based approach to help clients take control of their health one step at a time.
The coaching program includes initial consultation, weekly check-ins, daily habit tracking and ongoing support with your coaching.
Get $40 OFF your first month of coaching through our partnership with Healthy Steps Nutrition.
Book a free discovery call to learn more and see if Healthy Steps Nutrition coaching program is right for you.
NOW TAKING NEW CLIENTS!
If you are an active woman or competitive midlife athlete who feels abandoned by mainstream medicine, I’m here for you!
It is with great excitement that after more than 2 years of preparation, I have FINALLY launched my Telehealth Consultation Medical practice focusing on the Reproductive Endocrine needs and Menopausal Care for active, athletic, and high-performing women.
Active and athletic midlife women have needs and risk profiles that are different from the general population. These needs often go unmet by the mainstream medical community due to a lack of understanding of fitness and sport and their impact on mid-life hormonal physiology or even a lack of acknowledgment that this dynamic exists. We put your health, fitness, and performance at the center of the equation so that you can achieve your healthiest, highest-performing self!
You will find all my service offerings on my website including a link to my calendar so that you can reserve your place in my schedule!
I love the term athletic ageing! We need to push back on traditional understanding of aging.