Seniors Stretch Fit (Fitness Level 3)
Instructor: Kathy Paterson
This is an hour of overall stretching that stimulates and limbers up the entire body by:
- Decreasing muscle stiffness and back pain,
- Improving digestion, posture, flexibility and breathing, and
- Possibly reducing injury risk.
NOTE:
- The first half of this class is done standing.
- The second half is done on a mat on the floor.
- Equipment needed includes a mat, head rest (pillow) if desires, and a stretchy band (dyna band or long scarf)
Spring & Summer
- Wednesday, May 11 – June 22 (7 Classes)
- 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.
- Cost $63
STANDING COMPONENT
- We warm up with rhymatical moving such as marching, toe tapping, side stepping, arm movements and wiggles.
- We gradually move into full range of motion movements for the upper body, including full arm circles, trunk rotations, toe touches (or attempts) and overhead reaches.
FLOOR COMPONENT
- We get down on the floor and begin in a sitting position where we stretch our legs to increase flexibility and reduce leg pain.
- We then sit with legs out, doing a variety of leaning moves, reaching for our toes, etc.
- On our bellies/knees, we stretch out our chest, upper back and shoulders.
- We then roll over to be on our backs as we do some hip stretching – designed to relieve hip pain and improve our walking technique – with moves such as rotating one bent leg across the body, pulling knees to chest, etc.
- We then do pelvic lifts (pushing pelvis to the ceiling) to strengthen core and reduce lumbar pain.
COOL DOWN
- Finally, we return to seated position for neck and inner arms stretches, and cool down breathing techniques designed to lower blood pressure and promote a feeling of wellness.
