Quick Fit with Cassy

- Hey everyone, I'm Cassy Vieth and I am so glad to see you here.

In today's Quick Fit class, we'll be practicing on our balance with moves progressing from easy to more difficult.

So grab a mat, remove your shoes, and join me.

[gentle music] Remember, as you go through the moves, you may come to a point where you can no longer stabilize.

This is your clue you need to stop and master that move before adding new challenges.

That's the only way to improve.

But you can, if you just follow that rule of thumb.

Let's start by standing with your feet about shoulder width apart.

And I'd like you to put all of your weight over onto your right leg.

I'm assuming you're just going to mirror me and this will be your right leg.

Have your other one out to the side.

Okay, toes down.

[inhales] And what I'd like you to do is just to start putting more and more weight down through this leg and less through the one that's out at the side.

But before you lift your toes off the floor, I'd like you to close your eyes briefly, if you feel like you can.

That right there is gonna be a challenge to make you feel very unstable.

So you can either work with it and allow your brain and your muscles to figure it out, or you can peek one eye open, whatever you feel like you need to do.

But remember, we still have your toes down, so you should feel fairly safe.

All right, so open your eyes, and now I'd like you to see if you can get a little less weight on those toes and just barely lift the toe up off the floor.

Don't do a lot.

Give yourself an opportunity to stabilize.

Very good, just hold it there, just above the floor, very good.

All right, now we'll draw that leg in.

Just create a very small base.

My toes are on the floor.

Lengthen your body, stand as tall as you can, okay.

[inhales] Your eyes are still open at this point.

Now see if you can just close your eyes briefly and everything kind of goes wonky, does it?

Doesn't it, 'cause part of your balance is your sight.

But we want to strengthen the other mechanisms for our balance, which is our feel and our sense of placement within our joints.

Okay, go ahead and open your eyes, and we're going to start sliding this leg up a little higher, if you can.

If not, remember, master the point at where you can no longer stabilize, master that before you go up to the next grade level, so to speak.

All right, so try to get it up higher.

Your standing leg is getting very tired, it's having to stabilize all of your weight.

[inhales] Go ahead and lift your arms up higher.

So as you notice, I don't have a chair, I can always put my foot down.

[inhales and exhales] And if you're really struggling with this class, we do have a three-part balance series that takes it in smaller chunks.

You might wanna find that series so you don't get overly frustrated.

All right, and we'll put that leg back down, shake it off, and we'll start over with the other leg.

All right, so put up all your weight now through this leg, your left leg, and we'll extend the other one out to the side, your toes are touching.

[inhales] Nice, big inhale, stabilize.

And now with the toes down, you can close your eyes.

Try that, everything will kind of go wonky.

And then it'll settle down.

[exhales] Try to relax.

Go ahead and open your eyes.

And now, real slowly, lift those toes up off the floor.

They don't have to be a foot up off the floor.

Just skimming slightly above the floor.

The whole idea is to get more and more weight through this standing leg, until this free leg over here just floats above the floor all on its own.

You don't have to lift and fall and lift and fall.

It's not like that.

You just gradually get more and more weight.

These joints get better at doing their job.

Now let's make a small base.

Okay, my toes are down on the floor, make a small base, hold it here, and then I'd like you to close your eyes, give everything a chance to relax.

Figure it out.

Your ankles are wiggling, your feet are wiggling.

[inhales and exhales] And then open your eyes.

That's better, and start sliding that leg up a little higher.

Doesn't have to come all the way up above your knee.

It can just be a little bit, take it in segments.

All right, and as you feel more stable, try more challenges.

I'm gonna try to do this.

You can see I'm wiggling all over.

The other thing to consider is if you have a very thick mat or carpet that you're on, it's going to be even more difficult.

So give yourself a break if you think, "What's going on, I can't do this."

All right, and come back down.

So good, shake that off.

All right, let's do a dynamic warm-up.

I just want you to start touching and touching, kind of loosening up those hips that we just made pretty tired.

And back, back, and let's slow it down.

Purposefully lift and touch, other side, lift and touch.

Other way, to the front, lift.

Don't put that foot down till you wanna put it down.

Other way, lift and down.

Good, a couple more, front and back.

All right, standing on your right leg again.

Let's draw your other leg to the front.

[inhales and exhales] Get stable on your standing leg and I'd like you to slowly lift, controlled, up and down, up and down.

[exhales] And if at any point you feel like, oh, you've got to put your foot down, just stop and let everything stabilize.

I don't even wanna turn my head much or it's gonna throw me off.

All right, lift, lift, lift, and lift.

All right, now let's try to go side to side.

Now this is a little bit harder.

Stabilize and circle, and this is the hardest.

[inhales and exhales] Reverse, lift, and your standing leg's getting to workout too.

All right, and down.

Shift around.

Let's do the other leg.

All right.

[inhales and exhales] Put it right out to the front.

Lengthen your body, try to stand nice and pretty.

And lift, and you don't have to look around a lot.

Just find something on the floor to just stare at.

Let your focus just glaze over and just get in your mind's eye and picture what you're doing.

You might find that your body relaxes and you're able to do this a little better.

Okay, cross and cross in the front, doesn't have to be high.

[inhales and exhales] Good, and circle, circle, circle, and reverse.

And it might help if you don't watch me flailing my arms around too, you might do better.

Just focusing on one thing in the distance.

All right, standing on your right leg, let's start with your leg reaching to the back, get your arms nice and wide.

[exhales] And slowly lift that back leg.

This will be really a good opportunity for you to practice that stare, just find something, but picture your body in your mind and lift that back leg up only as you feel stable.

[exhales] And as your ankle gets tired, it'll get more difficult.

[exhales] [inhales] Just try to breathe.

Don't lift if you feel like you have to put your foot down, just stop.

All right, let's come out of that, switch sides.

You guys are doing good.

[exhales] All right, put your other leg to the back.

Slight leaning forward, feel your hip and your hamstring loading up, arms are wide, [inhales] and when you feel stable on your front leg, start lifting that back leg.

Let your focus glaze over on some spot on the floor, [inhales and exhales] try to relax, breathe.

[inhales] Don't hold your breath.

You guys are doing really good, hang in there.

And we'll come back up.

So good, all right, partial squat, almost done.

So we're in a partial squat, you can have your hands in front of you or on your hips, but I'd like you to start getting all your weight on one foot.

See if you can just have your toes down and maybe you can pick your toes up.

See how long you can do that without putting your foot down.

And we're in this bent, super loaded way for your joints.

[inhales and exhales] Good challenge, you guys are doing so good.

Hang in there and don't quit.

All right, let's do the other leg.

Sit it back, [inhales] load up your weight all on this one leg, and when you're ready, start drawing your foot up until just your tip of your toes are touching.

Okay, when you feel ready, that foot will come up.

You won't have to force it.

If you're constantly just falling back immediately, then you're not ready to lift that toe off the floor.

You need to strengthen the joints of this standing leg before you lift that foot off, the toes off.

All right, such a good job.

Now I expect a few of you are discouraged, but don't be.

Just follow the rule of thumb about not advancing until you've mastered each step along the way.

If you're consistent, meaning you practice daily, you will improve, and quicker than you think.

Just come back here to pbswisconsin.org/quickfit to take this class regularly and mark your progress by how far you get.

And you will get better because you're determined and you believe aging well is possible.

And so do I.

Thank you, and I'll see you tomorrow.

– Announcer: Funding for Quick Fit with Cassy is provided by Greg and Carol Griffin, founders of ElderSpan Management, Focus Fund for Wisconsin Programming, and Friends of PBS Wisconsin.