Mobility

Planks with a Twist

Today’s movement is called a Plank Knee Twist. It it pretty much exactly what it sounds like. The move starts with a plank and then involves a twisting motion carried out with the knee.

This exercise builds cores strength, works on the oblique muscles along the sides of your torso, and challenges balance for stability work.

The move starts from a plank position with your hands directly under your shoulders and a straight line running from shoulders to heels. If you slightly rotate your hands outward, so they would be pointing towards 11 and 1 on a clock rather than straight up towards 12, you will have a better base for balance. While holding your arms steady, pick up your right foot and bend the knee toward your left elbow, giving you a twisting motion. Bring the leg back down, and repeat on the other side.

Of course, all this means you are on the ground again. So have a plan for getting back up. If you do not get on the ground. This can be done by leaning on the kitchen counter or a stable chair in a plank position with your feet some distance away from the cabinets/base, and picking up your right foot, bending the knee towards the left elbow, putting your foot back down, and repeat on the other side.

Today’s workout:
WARM UP
2-3x
lay down on the ground on your back, roll right and stand up, if you cannot get off the floor, skip this
lay down on the ground on your back, roll left and stand up, if you cannot get off the floor, skip this
3 sit to stand with a two second pause while sitting

CIRCUIT
2-3x
8-10 plank knee twists – 4-5 per side
6 step ups alternating feet, 3 per side (scaled option is toe taps)
Rest as needed

One of the pitfalls of aging is the likelihood to increase our inability to get back up from the floor. This skill is rarely practiced because – duh, who is going to go around rolling across the floor. Well, the answer to that is – US. I spend in inordinate amount of time getting down and back up from the floor with all the workouts we do in the OPG (Old People Gym – or our garage). Craig, our son, our coach, and a firefighter, is often called out to help the people in Sun City get up off the floor. He does it with kindness and concern, but he would really like it if his parents didn’t have to make that call. So we are on the floor in some capacity for at least 75-85% of the workouts.

The thing is – with practice, it gets easier. Life is always like that. The first time is hard but by the 50th time, you don’t even have to think about it. We probably should have been practicing this for a long time by now. But if we haven’t, the next best choice is to start now. If this is completely out of your wheelhouse, if you KNOW you cannot get off the floor by yourself, the next best option is to work on balance so you never end up there.

We are each in a different place. We’ve had a different life with different experiences. But we can all look forward with less fear and greater confidence if we work on our weaknesses now, before they become more severe and more limiting. There is a real purpose to all this. It is worth it. Because you are worth it.

Stay balanced.
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Shoulders

Head, shoulders, knees, and toes (knees and toes). There are two and only two ball-and-socket joints in the human body. They are the shoulders and hips. This type of joint allows for free movement across several planes. In the shoulder, the ball part in the end of the humerus which sits the socket of the acetabulum. This arrangement means your shoulder loses a bit of stability in order to extend range of motion (ROM).

Since that is the way we are built, utilizing the full range of motion means we are getting the best bang for our buck. Dislocates and pass-throughs are a way to facilitate that full ROM. Your shoulder is going through all the planes of motion with the ease of a PVC twirling around.

Why? This is a warm-up exercise to prepare for load. By going through the full ROM movements, you are preparing your muscles for greater use. You are also reminding your muscles that we used to be able to do this with ease and with practice, we can again. Warm-up movements allow your body to acclimate to the stressors of exercise, prepare for load later, and get your heart in gear for a greater challenge.

Having full ROM in your shoulders allows for greater arm movement, but also stabilizes your shoulder for reaching and your arms for pulling or pushing. Having a strong shoulder girdle makes getting up off the ground easier. You would think it was all legs. You would be wrong.

Story time: My son is a personal coach, used to own a CrossFit gym, and is a firefighter. One of his company’s stations is right outside a Sun City. While assigned at that firehouse, he spends a lot of time picking up old people. Many falls occur in the bathroom and we are usually not at our most dignified in that room. While he is a kind and generous man who can help the fallen, he doesn’t want his parents in that situation. He programs our workouts to keep us upright, but also to get us back to upright should the worst happen.

I complained about all the arm work because my bench press just sucks. I feel weak and hopeless because my brain wants to move more weight than my spaghetti arms can handle. So I whined. “Why all the arm stuff?” He answered that I was not going to defy gravity and magically rise from the floor without the ability to push myself up. It’s not all legs. You need your arms.

I still hate bench presses. I do them with sadness in my heart. I don’t feel that way with dumbbell bench presses which makes no sense, but as we go through our fitness journey, we must realize that not everything can be explained with words.

Shoulders are important because they are the connection to the arms. Strong arms, good core strength, and determination is what is going to get me and you into a position so we can rise like a phoenix from the ashes if we are ever flat out on the floor.

Did you realize how important arms are to getting up off the floor?

Stay balanced.

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