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The Massage Table Work-Out

As you open your eyes first thing in the morning, you notice it is another bright beautiful sunny day in Colorado. Your thoughts dance around to hiking, biking and the great outdoors. You look out your window and ahhh, the blue sky becons you to the mountains. You get up, get dressed, and start heading for the door, then you realize “I have to work today”.
This has likely happened to all of us when the day is sunny, we long for summer sun and fun. However, sometimes keeping in shape so you can do all the things you want to can be tough.  On the plus side there are exercises you can do with your massage table to help tone up and stay strong, so when you do have a day, or part of a day, you can head off into the wild blue yonder. Now keep in mind I’m not an expert but I do spend a fair amount of time in my office with my table, and I do know how muscles function. So jump on, and enjoy the ride of “The Massage Table Work-Out”. (Do I sound like an info-mercial or what???)
Tri-ceps Trying to Keep Up:dsc001333
 No saggy flapping in the wind arms for us. Because your bi-ceps get tons of work you may find the tri-ceps are not holding their own. Simple back-wards push-ups can build strength and tone those puppies. The massage table is soft, so it’s not so hard on your palms. Keep your neck neutral like there is a ball under your chin, and look up. Go slow, down and up. (Rebecca demonstrates.)
Your table is also a great place for push-ups, girly ones or boys.
Abs of Hyper-Tonicity:dsc00130
You may notice that some massage tables have a great place to prop up your legs at a 90 deg. angle to do some crunchies. Next, position your body and lay flat on a blanket or soft floor. Keep the neck neutral, look forward and hands can go behind the head, across the chest, or hold a towel by both ends behind your neck. DON’T PULL your neck; keep it neutral if this gives you any strain on your neck, check to see you are using your abs only, not momentum to pull you up. Feel the deep burn in the abs not the neck.
Remember, use control and only go as far up as is comfortable for your body.

Bust a Move, by Busting Your Gluts.

dsc001381
If you have been taught the old leg lifts of the 80’s aerobicisers fear not, there is much better way to do it without killing your back. Get on your table and grab a pillow in side-lying position. Keep one hand in front for support. Keep your feet together and lift the upper knee using external rotation of the hip. Keep the tension on and slowly bring the legs back together, pause keep knees together and slightly lift the upper ankle off the lower one.   That gets the other two of the gluts. A few sets of those, and your gluts are burning like a summer camp fire.

Only you know what is best for your body but if you need a quick idea on some strengtheners remember contraction builds muscles, you likely already know your muscle actions so if something is getting squishy find your contraction and pump that muscle up. (Time to end my info-mercial) But wait… there is one exercise left this one is my favorite; it is exercising your right….dsc00141

TO NAP!!!

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Jessica

This entry was posted on Monday, May 25th, 2009 at 10:59 pm and is filed under Alumni News, Prospective Students. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.