After a long car ride do you have backache, shoulder pain, hip pain, calf pain…….? A lot of driving pain can be eliminated with good posture. Check out my video and see what your doing wrong or right when it comes to driving in your car.

Here in cold, rainy Michigan it can be hard getting outside to walk. I’m not putting the treadmill away yet. Check out this fun video from OK Go- and get moving!

This weekend I’m going to clean my pantry. I can’t describe the shocking state of my shelves and floor. A half bag of spilled flour, dried out raisins, a jar of crystallized honey, folded store bags on the floor with all the unreturned bottles. It would kill my Mother to see it. The cleaning is integral to my new eating plan, (no saying diet here). As I clean and refill my shelves I’ll be careful not to hurt myself. Standing for hours on a ladder can be hard on your low back and hips. If you’re spring cleaning be sure to take time to stretch. This is one of my favorite stretches to do when I’ve been standing too long.

Side Roll Stretch

I’ve been off line for the past few weeks with computer problems. Hopefully the darn thing is fixed and I can load and share several new videos I’ve made. This video is for the folks in areas where there is still snow (we just got a few new inches last night) so be safe and enjoy the last few weeks of winter sports.

This has to be the longest January on record, it seems to be unending. Snow is hitting the Midwest and east coast again so be careful when your shoveling out.

Yesterday a client told me she gained 5 pounds over the Thanksgiving Weekend. I’ve heard that 7 pounds is the averaged gained from Thanksgiving through New Years. It’s important to stay the course and keep up with your exercise program and keep your head when it comes to standing in front of the buffet. The coconut shrimp was my temptation last night at my Chamber of Commerce holiday party. Paige Waehner at About.com has some ideas how exercise can keep that weight off. http://exercise.about.com/b/2010/11/30/vote-do-you-usually-gain-weight-over-the-holidays.htm?nl=1

For all you golfers who want to hit the links one last time, be prepared. Remember golf is primarily a game the requires eye hand coordination and not a lot of physical strength. Having said that, I know “putting” requires low physical effort while “driving” is a high effort activity. The action of your swing is a real stress-er on the shoulder and low back. Remember to warm up and to stretch before you play. In this cooler weather you may be more prone to injury.

Did you know more than 65 million Americans suffer from low-back pain? According to Newsweek magazine direct costs of treating low-back pain is $26 to $100 billion to treat all back pain. Back pain sufferers miss over one month of work a year. Can you afford to be a back pain sufferer? Be sure to stretch this weekend before you head out to rake and work in the yard.

The New York Times article Phys Ed: The Best Exercises for Healthy Bones says “the current state-of-the-science message about exercise and bone building may be that, silly as it sounds, the best exercise is to simply jump up and down, for as long as the downstairs neighbor will tolerate. “Jumping is great, if your bones are strong enough to begin with,” Dr. Barry says. “You probably don’t need to do a lot either.” (If you have any history of fractures or a family history of osteoporosis, check with a physician before jumping.) In studies in Japan, having mice jump up and land 40 times during a week increased their bone density significantly after 24 weeks, a gain they maintained by hopping up and down only about 20 or 30 times each week after that. ” Maybe I should find my kids old jump rope?

It is the time of year when frost is on the pumpkin and the leaves are falling! Don’t wind up with sore shoulders and back. Do these 2 awesome little stretches and you will be ready to dance the cha cha cha after a day of raking!