Autofitness: Maximum Fitness with Minimum Effort Part 3
Filed under: Equipments, Gym, Muscle, Nutrition, Physical, Trainer — arlene @ 7:17 am
Putting your foot in it
Now we come to dressing. The putting on of a shirt or brassiere or blouse is also a question of stretching and folding the arms and shoulders. These things become a routine whereby you are conscious of and enjoy the flowing of your muscles which you are keeping supple.
To put on our trousers or pantihose we must think about our balance.
The problem of standing on one leg is something which becomes more difficult as we get older. There are many reasons for this. Firstly, the balance capability in our ears seems to become less sensitive with increasing age. Secondly, the ability to balance on one foot is restricted by the ability of the muscles in our feet and legs to quickly adapt to weight changes.
Bend one knee slightly and raise the other foot high enough to put your foot into the trouser or panty leg. This is where the balance factor comes in. Try not to hold onto any chair or other help but always keep a chair or some other balancing possibility close at hand, in case you lose your balance and fall. (When you have mastered the little bends exercise shown in supplementary to exercise 5, you will find these movements easier). Having managed to get one leg in, repeat this tricky procedure with the other leg. It would, of course, be easier to sit on your bed while putting on your trousers but we are trying to get the maximum in physical fitness out of our day’s necessary movements.
These shoes are meant for walking
The next step might well be our shoes or slippers. Shoes are meant for walking! I have nothing against the most attractive fashionable shoes and slippers but never buy fashion at the cost of comfort.
Have you noticed that the man who retires in his sixties suddenly shuffles around in backless slippers with a stooped back although a few months before he was striding tall around his office or workplace?
Do you really like to wear shoes which have no laces? Shoes with laces can be selected to fit you better and the moccasin type can sometimes be chosen too small so that they stay on better. The fact is that many of us like the moccasin type because we don’t have to bend down to tie them!
The best way to put on your shoes, from a fitness point of view, is to put one foot in front of the other and bend the knees to a point where you are able to assist the forward foot into its appropriate shoe. If it is a tying shoe then you must stay in this position long enough to tie the laces. Then repeat for the second shoe with the other foot advanced.
If, however, you find this too strenuous, there are simpler ways.
Do you find it too much because you are a little too fat and bending over like this for a longer time leaves you short of breath? If this is so, then we will deal with that problem in a sitting position. Remember to sit down and stand up without help from your hands. Just use your legs!
Tying your tie and putting on a blouse or jacket is again done with a conscious use of the arm and shoulder muscles.
