Quick Fit with Cassy

- If you've woken up stiff today, get ready to feel loose and ready to go.

I'm Cassy, and this is Quick Fit , your daily dose of stretching to lubricate your joints, release tight muscles, and strengthen the weak ones.

We'll be working from a chair without our shoes, and if you're ready to go, let's do this.

[upbeat music] Sitting forward in your chair, with your legs wide enough to get some good movement.

Let's start with just some simple hip shifts, and you can use your feet to press down against the floor to help you lift one hip and then the other right up off the chair.

Now try not to lean your shoulders off the chair.

In fact, try to lean your shoulders towards the same-side hip that's lifting.

So we're squeezing the side, okay?

[inhales] Begin your breathing too, [exhales] lift and lift.

Couple more, these'll get a little easier with the doing.

In fact, look at the hip you're lifting, inhale, [inhales] and exhale.

[exhales] Good job, hands on your hips.

Let's just tuck that tailbone under, you can tuck your chin.

We're making like a big curve with our spine, like a big letter C, and now pull the tailbone back as much as you can, release your hips from the chair, stick your chest out and arch.

Good, rock.

Again, rock back on that pelvis on the back of your behind, tailbone's tucked under, sit up tall.

When your pelvis is tight, everything is tight.

So if you want to have a loose torso, start with the pelvis.

Inhale, [inhales] exhale.

[exhales] One more time, a little quicker, a little easier.

And now, let's make these big barrel arms and we'll just make this short rainbow curve up to the outside of your thigh.

Up tall, exhale [exhales] and over.

We do lots of breathing to make sure our diaphragm and our breathing muscles are strong, and it also helps your muscles to relax and lengthen.

All right, let's extend your legs a little bit more out to the front, and we are sitting forward on the edge of the seat.

Right arm, we're going to reach nice and slow, right in line with that leg.

Inhale, [inhales] exhale.

Use your feet to keep you firmly planted in the chair; reach.

And as you reach forward, try not to drop the arm.

We're going straight out from the shoulder.

Now let's lift.

Inhale, [inhales] exhale, lift.

[exhales] Working the back of the shoulder, the upper back.

Head is neutral, meaning your neck is in line with the rest of your spine.

The head's not droopy and we're not trying to compensate with the neck.

Okay, let's do the other side.

Right in line with the leg, the knee, the foot, shoulder height, exhale.

If you feel tight, come in a little bit.

Big breath, exhale, reach it further.

Can you find more room in the shoulder from the hip, the sides?

[inhales] Chances are you can go a little further than you think, especially with your feet slightly forward of the knees.

Lift higher with that arm.

Inhale, [inhales] come out a little.

Exhale, go deeper.

[short exhale] Little more stretch through the shoulder.

Reach, excellent.

Now this time, take the arm across the body.

Reach at shoulder height, little higher, little lower, shoulder height.

Reach it across.

Enjoy the twist in the spine.

Little higher, exhale.

[exhales] And down in front of the foot, exhale, stretch.

See how much further you can probably get.

One more time.

Medium height, inhale.

[inhales] Higher.

[exhales] Down in front of the foot.

[inhales] Exhale, [exhales] extend, extend more, and blow.

[short exhale] Good job, other side.

All right, medium height, hands in line with the shoulder.

Exhale.

[exhales] A little higher.

[inhales and exhales] Lengthen through the ribs.

Lift, [exhales] and now down in front of the foot.

Big inhale, [inhales] exhale.

[exhales] Twist through the spine, extend through the shoulder, [exhales] blow.

One more time, shoulder height, reach, reach it further.

A little higher, [inhales] exhale.

[exhales] A little more twist, a little more lift.

[inhales] Last time, don't let this leg fall in.

All right, extend, exhale.

[exhales] Really, really, really good.

Good job, all right.

Shift around a little, and two arms are up, right next to your ears.

Now, I call this an upper spine rotation, so imagine your spine right about here, okay?

And the vertebra is just rotating.

Right up high, the bottom half of your spine is in place.

[inhales] Okay, arms by your ears.

Arch that upper back.

Keep those arms back, [exhales] to the side.

It's just a slight lean forward, just a little bit with the neck and through the chest.

[inhales] Arch back.

Maybe each time you go, you can bring those arms further back.

Try not to overcompensate with the neck if your upper spine is tight.

[inhales] Let's reverse.

Exhale.

[exhales] And try not to make up for a tight thoracic spine by moving the arms.

Arch as we finish it.

All right, now, let's get those feet in front of us, so we can lean and pull.

I'm on the front edge of my chair.

Tuck that tailbone to generate strength, reach and lean back.

When you lean back, you're going to need your abs, so tuck the tailbone to support your spine, so that you don't end up relaxing or reclining against the chair back.

Reach and pull, reach and pull.

A few more, reach.

And now hold it here.

Scoot forward so that you don't lean against the chair back, and reach towards the back chair leg near the bottom.

Get your legs out to counterbalance, [inhales] exhale, [exhales] reach, exhale, stomach tight, twist, stomach tight.

Can you get a little lower?

[exhales] Sure you can.

Other side, reach it back, and up.

[inhales] Exhale, [exhales] back and up.

Hopefully you're leaning back slightly past vertical or a little more.

Stomach's in, and hold it here.

Go a little lower.

Good, now let's alternate.

One side and then the other, reach, up, reach, up.

Last couple.

And up.

All right, legs super wide now because they're gonna keep us in the seat, and move it to your left and right.

Now, as you do this, make sure I can see your chest the whole time.

Make sure your shoulders don't turn.

I want your spine rigid, one way and the other.

And hold it here, lift, and arms are back.

I can see your chest and your face, right?

And other side, far as you can go, use your foot to keep you in the chair.

Arm is at shoulder height, right?

Not down here?

Nice, long, pretty neck.

Lift that arm up, and then exhale.

[exhales] Good, good, good, and out.

All right, take this right elbow to the side.

Other elbow lifts.

That is such a nice stretch down your ribs.

Do it again.

[inhales and exhales] Lift one elbow and the other's to the side.

Let's do the other side, bring that elbow down by your hip.

Other elbow up, [inhales] exhale.

[exhales] And again, lift and over.

This one feels so nice.

So good, especially after all the other things we've done.

Let's bring this knee towards your chest.

Lift.

Cross it above your knee or below, doesn't matter, and just do a little press away.

And the other side, lift, arch that spine as if you want to touch your ribs to your thigh, not your shoulders, okay?

Grabbing leverage from your leg, and two legs down for a few circles, right from the chair, hands on your hip, [inhales] circle it around.

You guys did a really good job, and let's reverse, good.

These classes always make me think of the Tin Man from Wizard of Oz .

Remember, when he'd stop moving, he'd seize up.

But once his friends oiled his joints and as long as he kept moving, he stayed loose and mobile.

Remember that, and keep your joints oiled and loose by returning here each day to pbswisconsin.org/quickfit to move, stretch, and strengthen with me and the rest of the Quick Fit community.

And until next time, keep on moving.

– 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.