Master the Art of Working Out by Malcolm Balk

Author:Malcolm Balk
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781910231593
Publisher: Pavilion Books
Published: 2015-06-24T00:00:00+00:00

Semi-supine can be done on any firm, flat surface and provides a tremendous boost to the recovery process.

• To improve breathing. For many of us, sitting usually involves a degree of collapse. In this state, the ribs end up practically on top of the pelvis, greatly reducing the capacity of the lungs to expand. Breathing then, as a matter of necessity, gets stuck up in the chest and can even require assistance from the shoulders, neck and head (we will breathe any way we can, even if it is extremely inefficient).

Slump in your seat and try to take a deep breath. Now sit up and repeat the process. Breathing deeply is far easier in the second instance. While most exercisers do tend to reduce their habitual slump when they work out, their breathing may still be laboured – and it’s not due to the demands of the exercise. Instead, the muscles which pull the ribs down have not fully released and have to be worked against. It’s a bit like running in a T-shirt that’s a couple of sizes too small. Lying down and encouraging the torso to release into lengthening and widening helps to remove this kind of restriction.

• To give more length. Running coaches advise us to ‘run tall’, class instructors encourage us to ‘stand tall’ and gym ball teachers exhort us to ‘sit tall’, but the sad fact is that most of us don’t. We tend either to shorten ourselves or try and overcome the downward pull with a correspondingly greater pull upwards – which is well nigh impossible. An example of this is the well-meaning advice to imagine pulling your head up with a length of string. Since muscles work by shortening and, in most cases, the muscles in our body are below the head, any muscle shortening will pull the head down. Studies have shown that the average person loses around 1cm (½in) in height between waking up in the morning and going to sleep at night. This is caused by pressure on the spinal discs, plus a tendency to pull down or collapse. This literally squeezes the juice out of our spines. The phenomenon can be lessened if we lie down and learn to lengthen ourselves on a regular basis.

• To improve focus and attention. A good workout is related to what sports psychologists call ‘arousal’ or ‘activation level’. If it is too low, we feel sluggish, tired and unmotivated. If it is too high, we feel stressed, pressured and tense. Most of us know when we are ‘in the zone’ as we walk to the gym with a purposeful stride, energized, focused and raring to go. Semi-supine can help you become aware of how you are reacting to a workout (for example, shallow breathing, tension in the neck and shoulders, worry about performing well), while creating the conditions for ideal performance (long spine, relaxed breathing, free muscles and a sense of control).

• To move from rest to activity. Semi-supine work can help smooth the transition from a sedentary state to a more active one.

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