A Body Forever #2

Your spine makes up half your body.
So often we only move in one or two directions.
Good spine mobility is important for many reasons:

*Reducing back pain
*Joint health
*Function of the nervous system
*Balance and stability
*Enhanced breathing
*Overall muscular balance and function
*Improved circulation

Emotional trauma and stress can manifest itself in many ways and can affect our body showing up as:

*Muscel tension
*Postural changes
*Central nervous system impact
*Psychosomatic symptoms

Move your spine, breath, release, let things flow.

To be honest this is also relevant with drinks. Fake drinks, fake foods, it’s not good for you. It is a fact.

There is so much s**t on the market these days it’s ridiculous and I think the health and fitness industry has a lot to answer for. I see influencers doing “a day of food” etc. and I will see packet protein bars and snacks. Why? Why would you choose packet food over real food? Chemicals over nutrients. It is a no brainer. I don’t even like protein powder to be honest but, everything in moderation.

I am not saying I don’t eat packet food. I am busy, I am on the go a lot, but I am super conscious about the type of packet food, and it definitely isn’t my go too. It is in desperation if I haven’t been organised or on the weekend when I want to eat my fav salt and vinegar crisps.

Awareness is the first step. Be conscious of the food you eat and what you drink. Look at the ingredients, some packet food is better than others.

Love Amy.

There are many ways to train but split training for me has been the most effective for my body. If you want to bulk, you go to town and break each day up - chest, back, legs, etc. but for me I like to group it. I want long and lean.

1 x Lower Body - in this reel there is a bit of upper body, some days I will purely focus on lower body.
1 x Upper Body
1 x Cardio / HIIT
1 x Mat Pilates (ABF)
1 x Reformer Pilates

This is basically my week. Sometimes I will also dedicate my reformer workouts to either lower or upper.

I feel I get the most out of my lower and upper body days when I dedicate my session and exhaust the muscles. I have seen changes in my body and really notice a difference, plus being religious about how consistent I am.

If you have been training for ages and aren’t seeing any results you may have your weekly split wrong? Too much of one thing, not enough of another. Stay connected and in-tune with your body and don’t forget to ask for help if you are in doubt.

Love Amy.

ELIMINATE BACK PAIN | THE IMPORTANCE OF THORACIC EXTENSION

As we age, we tend to lose mobility in our back – especially our thoracic spine. The thoracic spine/upper back makes up 80% of our trunk rotation and is really important for keeping our neck, shoulders and arms healthy and pain free. The thoracic spine and rib cage create a stable base for your neck and shoulders to sit on, so they can function efficiently. An immobile thoracic spine forces the lower back, shoulders and neck to work harder as they are now placed in inefficient positions, which over time, can cause pain and dysfunction.

In this video I demonstrate how to extend properly over a barrel, but these teaching tips can cross over to any time you are extending your thoracic.

Abs on

Neck long

Head heavy in hands

Shoulders down and away from the ears

Ribs in, anchor your hips

Breath

It is always nice to move from extension to flexion (rounding the spine) to really get the back moving. Then of course, going into rotation and lateral flexion to finish.

People with exceptional neck and back mobility (i.e. gymnasts and dancers) are usually able to extend their necks with no issues, it also looks better in photos, but it is always about understanding what you are doing, where you should be feeling it and eliminating tension in the body when you do it. We carry a lot of tension in our necks so you could really injure yourself if the neck is not supported.

Back mobility is really important. Don’t forget to take time out to stretch your spine most days or after every workout.

FLEXIBILITY IN YOUR ROUTINE

For those of us in the northern hemisphere we are now well and truly into our summer holidays. The UK basically shuts down for 6 weeks whilst schools are off and everyone goes away.
The power of any good fitness routine is one that can be adapted anytime anywhere. Gym or no gym.
You really don’t need much to workout and it is good to keep the body moving whilst on holidays or at home. Unfortunately if you don’t use it, you lose it so it is important to be consistent. Here is a total body workout with the band. Who would have thought something so small could do so much. No excuses.