Get Strong: Your Montly Fitness Challenge June 2022

Several months ago, I introduced my monthly fitness challenge, explaining my "inspiration" and why I think it's so important to do strength work ESPECIALLY as we age. (You can read all about that here.)

So.

How are you doing? By now, I hope you're having some success with my challenges. Keep up the good work. Every day! (And if you haven't started yet? Well. You can begin today!)

Here's this month's fitness challenge:

Challenge #9 -- Try this 10 minute beginners yoga today (or some time this week). And then keep trying it, once a week for the rest of the month.

So far, all of my monthly fitness challenges have been some little "tweak" or "thing" or "action" that you can easily fit into your everyday life without needing to worry about the fuss and bother of a workout.

Well.
This month is different.
This month, I'm asking you to try a 10 minute yoga workout.

Now I know some of you already do yoga (which is great). And I know that some of you used to do yoga. And I know several of you have tried yoga -- with mixed results. But . . . no matter how you feel about yoga . . . maybe give this a chance. Adriene of Yoga With Adriene has just released this all-new 10 minute yoga session just for beginners. I've tried it myself, and it is truly . . . designed especially for beginners. There is nothing weird or hard or super flex-y in there. There are no downward dogs or warrior poses or anything that will put pressure on your wrists. It's gentle. It's nicely stretchy. It's a great introduction to yoga. And . . . it's totally do-able. (It's also free.)

Why do I want you to try this?

Well. Because yoga is really good for us as we age.

• Yoga keeps us moving on multiple levels (standing, sitting, laying on the floor).
• It builds our flexibility and mobility.
• It helps reinforce our mind-body connection.
• It challenges us to develop our balance.
• It develops our core strength.
• It helps reduce stress and teaches us to breathe.

All of this? EXACTLY what we need so we can keep moving as we age!

I know I've shared my own "yoga-story" before, but I think it bears repeating. When I was first diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis in my early 30s, I decided to try yoga as part of my movement strategy/treatment plan. When I first started, I thought it was a total mistake. I couldn't do much, that's for sure. But just going to yoga once a week for an hour . . . ended up making a huge difference! Here I am, 30 years later, still doing a regular yoga practice -- and I've developed flexibility, range of motion, and core strength that blows my rheumatologist away!

Yoga works.

But you need to start at the beginning . . . and build from where you are.

So give this 10 minute beginners yoga practice a try this week.
And then maybe do it again. And again.  Do it once a week every week for just this month.

Try it.
See what happens.

=====

Previous Get Strong Monthly Fitness Challenges:

Challenge #8 -- Give yourself a couple of hugs (every day).

Challenge #7 -- Pay attention to how you walk. (With every step.)

Challenge #6 -- Get your feet off the ground! (And make it an everyday practice.)

Challenge #5: Get down on the floor. And then get back up again! (And make it an everyday practice.)

Challenge #4: Identify your core, learn how to engage it, and . . . do your Kegel exercises every day!

Challenge #3: Increase your physical activity every day.

Challenge #2: Stretch your hamstrings, activate those glutes . . . and spare your back just by changing the way you bend over.

Challenge #1: Strengthen Your Lower Body by Doing Body Weight Squats . . . All Day Long

 

Comments

[kat]

Thank you! I have saved the video link and will absolutely do this at least once a week. I will check in with you to let you know how I am doing!

XO

[Margene]

This is totally something I'm going to tap into. It's a perfect way to get stretchy-er and would be a very calming way to start the day. Thank you, Kym!

[Bonny]

I was just thinking that you hadn't reminded me about fitness in a while, but here it is! You haven't led me wrong with getting on the floor and getting back up again, or engaging my core, so I guess I can spare 10 minutes each week. I really don't like yoga (because I'm quite inflexible and can't do much of it; maybe because I don't do yoga!) but I'll give you 10 minutes a week and see what happens. (It better be something good!) :-)

[Sarah]

Yes, ma'am. I've been working on my flexibility through stretching, and I've been meaning to get back to yoga. I can do 10 minutes of beginner's practice.

[Kim in Oregon]

OK fine. Just for you.

[Carole]

I still do the sit/rise challenge (as I have named it) every day. And yoga is something I do on and off again. BUT! Dale and I were just talking about yoga for him. He's not very flexible and his balance is still an issue from the accident. I'm going to show him this beginning yoga video and maybe we can do it together. :-)

[Pam]

Thanks - I quit doing yoga after an April vacation - just kind of didn't start again. I miss it, and my body does too. Maybe this will help me get going.

[Jane]

I love Yoga although I tend to practice more in the winter. Thanks for this gentle reminder. That Adriene is amazing in many ways. I admire her.