Seated Stretches - For At Your Desk Or On The Plane
For many of us, the last year has been a year of inactivity. As a result, most of us have been sitting for much longer than we ever were before, and it is taking a toll on our bodies. Follow these simple stretches as you are sitting at your desk and introduce some gentle movement into your day.
For many of us, the last year has been a year of inactivity. The gyms were closed, we were encouraged to stay home, we lost our morning and evening commutes. As a result, most of us have been sitting for much longer than we ever were before, and it is taking a toll on our bodies. We use much less energy when we sit than when we stand or move. Sitting for prolonged periods can cause obesity which comes with a number of worrying health concerns. It can also lead to a weakening of the leg and glute muscles. We rely on these muscles to stabilize ourselves as we go about our day and if they are weak we can put ourselves at risk of injury. For many of us, working from home has been a huge factor in sitting all day long. As we sit at our desks hunched over our keyboards and peering into our screens we are putting enormous strain on our posture and our backs.
According to research published in 2020, you need to do 30-40 minutes of exercise every day to counteract a day of sitting. That sounds like a lot but remember every little bit counts. Standing up, walking to the kitchen, and getting a good stretch can all work towards offsetting the harmful effects of sitting all day. While we do encourage everyone to fit in some moderate-high intensity workouts throughout their week, the little things we do throughout the day will also have a positive effect.
As many of us prepare for a more active second half of 2021 and as we prepare for our first trip in a long time, we need to prepare our bodies by moving more now. But there is no need to overwhelm ourselves on the first day. If we work on building the habit slowly we will be more likely to stick to it and reap the benefits.
Here is a series of stretches you can do while sitting at your desk. Not only are these stretches going to be easy to incorporate into your day now (no need to get up or change into workout clothes for these!) they are also going to help prepare you for your first flight. Learn this routine now and have it on hand next time you find yourself on a long-haul flight or waiting at the airport.
Here are 6 easy stretches you can do while sitting at your desk
1. Hands above head
Find a comfortable seated position. Sit up straight, look straight ahead and raise your right arm above your head. Reach for the sky, engaging your arm muscles and stretching your fingertips up. Hold for 10 seconds. Repeat for the left side.
2. Side neck stretch
Take your right hand to your left shoulder and place your left hand just above your right elbow. Drop your left ear to your left shoulder and straighten. You should feel a deep stretch along the right side of your neck. Repeat 6 times and then do the same on the other side.
3. Arm cross shoulder stretch
Take your right hand to your left shoulder and place your left hand on your right elbow. Pull the right elbow towards your left shoulder. You will feel this stretch in your right shoulder and upper arm. Hold for 10 seconds. Repeat for the other arm.
4. Foot stretch
Bring the right ankle to the left knee. Hold onto your right knee if it feels more comfortable. Flex your toes towards your body and then away from you. Repeat 10 times. Repeat for the other foot.
5. Shoulder roll
Place your hands on your thighs, roll the shoulders up towards your ears and down. If you have a stiff neck this can be a challenging stretch. Make sure you move slowly through the rotation, acknowledging where it feels stiff and working through those areas.
6. Spine twist
Place your right hand on your left knee and your left hand either on the armrest beside you or behind your back. Twist your upper body to the left, looking over your left shoulder. Take three deep breaths. Repeat for the right side.
If you are looking for more tips on how to build a fitness habit from scratch check out this post. At Sanctifly we are here to support travelers build healthy and lasting habits. Even though we are not flying right now, maintaining healthy routines is still important. Building good habits around exercise both at home and on the road is one of the main pillars of support we offer our members. Find nutritional facts, healthy meal plans, and more in the Sanctifly app today and start your journey to better health and wellness.
You can find a video version of this stretch routine in the Sanctifly app. Download the app today to explore our content and start building your healthy habits at home with Sanctifly.
For more information on our membership types, click here.
Building A Fitness Habit – Tips and Advice On Where To Start
As we say goodbye to the holiday season and hello to a new year, it’s time to think about our resolutions and goals for the coming months. This blog post explores some easy ways we are slowly reintroducing exercise into our everyday routine and working on rebuilding our fitness habits.
As we say goodbye to the holiday season and hello to a new year, it’s time to think about our resolutions and goals for the coming months. With health and self-improvement type resolutions top of the list for most Americans, I am sure most of you, like me, have a fitness-related goal or resolution on your list. And, with 2020 upending most of our routines, a lot of us are starting from scratch. The latter half of 2020 and particularly the holiday season was not very fitness-focused for me. This blog post explores some easy ways I am slowly reintroducing exercise into my everyday routine and working on rebuilding the habit that has been slightly neglected over the last few months. This is not a blog post for fitness aficionados. This is for the people that have spent too much of last year sitting at a desk and haven’t even thought of exercise over the holiday season.
Here are 4 helpful tips to help you reintroduce exercise into your routine.
1. Set a daily step count.
Walking is an excellent type of low impact cardio workout and a great option for building back up your fitness habit. Often the thing that makes working out feel like such a chore is the level of effort it requires. Doing intense exercise when you are not very fit or have not done it in a while is really hard. Walking is a great way to kickstart the exercise habit again without having to work that hard.
Set a daily step count goal to help make walking part of your everyday routine. Many smartphones will have pedometers built-in and if not there are lots of pedometer apps you can download. Using a smartwatch to track your steps is even better as you can wear it all day. Yes, walking to the kitchen to get a coffee counts towards your daily steps!
The target number of steps you should be aiming for will be different for everyone. I would recommend tracking your steps over a few average days, see how many steps on average you take doing everyday activities, and then add 3,000 steps to that number. If you are easily hitting that target, add another 3,000 or 5,000 and so on.
2. Incorporate stretching into your routine – it’s easy!
Stretching is another great low impact exercise that can help slowly and easily build up fitness. Not to mention it feels really good to get in a good stretch, especially if you have been sitting at a desk all day. The best thing about stretching is that it is relatively easy. You are not going to get sweaty or uncomfortable, if you listen to your body and follow curated routines, you are only going to feel good.
Stretching is often overlooked as a form of exercise with most people associating it with warming up or cooling down after more intense forms of exercise. However, not only does stretching help improve your flexibility and range of motion, making other forms of physical activity much easier, but it also helps to improve your posture which helps prevent back pain, increases blood flow which helps increase your energy levels and it can be great for stress relief. If we are stressed we often tense our muscles, particularly in the neck and shoulders, causing everything to feel tight and uncomfortable. Stretching can help to release that tension and reduce stress.
Follow a quick stretch routine in the morning and evening and you will feel more energized and ready to take on more exercise in no time. The Sanctifly app has lots of follow-along stretch routines available to members. These are quick and easy stretches, originally designed for time-conscious travelers, but can be easily adapted into a daily routine. Download the Sanctifly app here to find out more.
3. Make your workday work for you.
Restarting an old habit or building a new one requires time and effort. The best way to get started and to have a better chance of succeeding is to try to fit it into your current daily routine, rather than trying to add it on. For many of us, our workday now consists of staying home and sitting at a computer or on the phone for long hours. While the best version of ourselves might get up an hour early to do a workout or go for a run on our lunch break, that is not the reality, especially post-holiday season. Instead, make your workday work for you! Incorporate some form of physical exercise into your normal daily routine. This could be standing whenever you take a phone call, standing at your desk if possible, or sitting on an exercise ball while at your computer. Replacing your office chair with an exercise ball forces you to engage your core muscles throughout the day and helps to improve your posture. It is often given as advice on how to be more active while at the office and can seem like an easy win that requires little effort. However, that is not completely true, it requires some work. You need to actively engage your core all the time or else it could have some serious negative effects on your back. Check out this great article on the benefits of replacing your office chair with an exercise ball and how to do it properly without risking injury to your back.
4. Make a habit stack to help get back into it.
Habit stacks are great ways to make habits stick. The concept refers to the idea of grouping new habits with old ones to make them easier to stick to. For example, do you love a cup of coffee in the morning? Only have your coffee after you have drunk a glass of water. Do you love listening to podcasts? Only listen when you are out walking or doing something else physical. There is a great article on the Sanctifly blog all about how to build healthy habits and using habit stacks. Read all about it and get some expert tips here.
The start of a new year is a great time to get serious about building healthy habits. There are two main pieces of advice I follow when trying to either restart an old habit or form a new one.
1) Use SMART goals. Create a measurable way to track success. Arbitrary goals such as ‘I want to get fitter’ will never feel as it they have been accomplished. Setting a daily step count is a great example. It is clearly defined, and you know exactly what you need to do to achieve it.
2) Don’t be too hard on yourself! Habits, especially healthy habits, take time to build and effort to keep. The above tips are examples of easy ways to incorporate more exercise into your daily routine and start to build an exercise habit. Nobody can wake up one morning and decide ‘today is the day I am going to run 10K’ or ‘from now on I am going to work out 5 times a week’. Start small and be nice to yourself and you will achieve great things, it may just take a little longer than you had originally imagined.
Do you have any tips or advice for incorporating more movement into your everyday routine? Let us know!
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7 Body Weight Exercises And How To Do Them Properly
Body weight strength building exercises are a fantastic option for those working out while traveling or at home. Doing these exerises properly is important, especially if you want to avoid injury and make the most of your workout. Check out these 7 body weight exerices and how to do them properly.
Body weight strength building exercises are a fantastic option for those working out while traveling or at home. You don’t need any equipment; you can do them anywhere and they are apartment and hotel room friendly (no jumping!). However, for beginners these types of exercises can be quite daunting. They often put pressure on sensitive areas that are prone to injury such as your neck, lower back, and knees and for many the risk of doing them wrong outweighs the potential benefits.
Well, there is no need to worry anymore! In this article we are breaking down 7 basic body weight exercises, explaining how to do them properly and what not to do so that you can work them into your exercise routine. These 7 exercises cover the entire body, working all the important muscles and helping to build core strength. Follow the instructions carefully and focus on mastering the movements properly before building your custom routine.
Lower Body
Squat
The benefits of squats
Squats are a fantastic strength building exercise for your lower body. The muscles in our legs, glutes, abdominal and lower back are responsible for the majority of the movement we do every day. When you get out of bed, when you get up off a chair and when you walk or run you are using the muscles in the lower half of your body. Maintaining strength and flexibility in these muscles and joints is important for staying fit and healthy as well as avoiding potential hip and back pain.
How to do a squat properly
Start with your feet apart, slightly wider than your hips, feet pointing in the same direction as your knees.
Extend your arms in front of you at shoulder height to help maintain your balance.
Keep your head and chest up and sit back (as if onto a chair).
Make sure to keep your knees above your toes, do not let them go in front of your feet.
Keep your core engaged and your back as straight as possible as you sit back and stand up. This is one rep.
Lunge
The benefits of lunges
Lunges are great exercises for the lower body. As mentioned above the muscles in our lower body get used all the time and ensuring they are strong and flexible will make everyday life easier. Lunges target your glutes, quadriceps, and hamstrings and also engage your abdominal muscles, helping your to build a stronger and more stable core and improve your balance and posture.
There are many different variations that you can incorporate, depending on what you want to target. Stationary lunges are great for building strength, walking lunges are effective at improving stability and balance and lateral lunges will help to tone your thighs and glutes. Learn how to properly do a lunge so you can incorporate this versatile exercise into your routine.
How to do a lunge properly?
Place one foot behind the other with your back heel raised off the ground.
Make sure your front knee is directly over your ankle.
Place your arms either on your hips or behind your head.
Keep your head and chest up (do not lean forward) and your back straight.
Drop the back knee, tapping it gently on the floor (you can place a pillow or blanket under the knee to protect it) and come back up. This is one rep.
Bridge
The benefits of bridges
The bridge is an easy lower body exercise that is perfect for beginners. It mainly targets your glute and hamstring muscles while also engaging your abs and lower back. If you have bad knees or are unsure about your balance, this floor exercise is a great option to get you started. Start building your lower body muscles with the bridge and then when you feel stronger and more confident you can move to standing lower body exercises. Learn how to do a bridge properly below and work it into your next exercise session.
How to do a bridge properly?
Lay flat on your back with your arms extended towards your feet.
Bend your knees so that your fingertips are just reaching the back of your heel.
Press your upper back into the floor and engage your core as you lift your hips off the ground.
Make sure you do not over arch your back, from your shoulder to you knee should be a straight line.
Slowly move your hips up and down, keeping them off the floor at all times.
Upper Body
Single leg tricep dip
The benefits of single leg tricep dips
Having good upper body strength is as important as lower body strength. Your upper body muscles are responsible for your posture and if you don’t work on building string and healthy muscles in your back, neck and arms you can put yourself at risk of back pain and injury.
The single leg tricep dip is a great upper body exercise that works the triceps (upper arm muscles), your chest and shoulders. The best part is you don’t need any equipment, just your body weight! Learn how to do a single leg tricep dip properly and start building those upper body muscles.
How to do single leg tricep dip properly?
Sit on the ground with your knees bent at a 90◦ angle and your hands on the floor directly below your shoulders with fingers facing forward.
Lift your hips off the ground as you straighten your arms.
Raise one leg straight out in front of you and bend your arms as you dip your hips towards the floor. Keep your head up and shoulders away from your ears, let your arms do the work.
Do not go all the way to the floor, keep your glutes elevated and you bend and straighten your arms to move up and down. Repeat the same action when raising the other leg.
Push up
The benefits of push ups
Another great upper body exercise, the push up is a classic for any exercise routine. They work the triceps, pectoral muscles, and shoulders and, when done properly, help to strengthen the lower back and core. Pay attention to where you are placing your weight when doing a push up, your core should be engaged and strong and your weight should be supported by your arms rather than your legs.
Learn how to do a proper push up below so you can get the full benefit from this upper body exercise.
How to do a push up properly?
Place your hands on the floor directly below your shoulders. Place your knees on the ground, slighting behind your hips and curl your toes in towards the floor.
Move your chest down and slightly in forward as you bend your arms. Your chest should be centered between your hands.
Straighten your arms and repeat. For a more intense workout lift your knees off the ground, putting the weight into your toes and so the same movement.
Core/Full Body
Plank
The benefits of planks
For those that want a more efficient exercise routine that works the whole body at one, planks should be the first exercise you add to your routine. Planks mainly target your core but because you must engage your arms and legs to maintain the posture, they are a great full body workout. Proper form is important when doing a plank in order to protect your back and to see the full benefit of the exercise. Engaging your core and keeping your back straight are the most important aspects of a plank hold. Learn how to do a standard plank properly below.
How to do a plank properly
Start on all fours and place your hands directly below your shoulders with fingers facing forward.
Curl your toes under your feet and lift your knees from the ground. Look at the ground just in front of your hands to avoid straining your neck.
Your neck, back and legs should be in a straight line.
Engage your arms, glutes, and legs for a full body workout.
If you have sensitivity in your wrists modify the posture by placing your forearms on the ground with your elbows directly beneath your shoulders.
Dead bug
The benefits of the dead bug exercise
The dead bug exercise is a great beginner exercise that will help to strengthen your core without putting too much pressure on your back. By making slow and steady movements you will not only work those core muscles hard, but you will also improve your coordination. Incorporating core exercises into a routine is important for strength, stability, and posture but can be daunting if you have weak back muscles. That is why it is so important to do the exercise properly and protect ourselves from injury. This exercise in particular is easy on the back and effective at relieving lower back pain. Learn how to do the dead bug exercise properly below.
How to do a dead bug properly?
Lay on your back and bend your knees at a 90◦ angle.
Press your hands against your knees while still maintaining the 90◦ angle in your legs.
Lift your head and neck towards your knees, keeping your shoulder blades and lower back flat on the floor.
Engage your core as you straighten the right leg and extend the right arm behind your head. Alternative between your right and left side, making slow and steady movements.
Build your own routine with these exercises so you can stay fit and healthy at home or on the road. With no equipment needed these are the perfect exercises to do in your hotel or in your bedroom.
Download the app today to explore our content and start building your healthy habits at home with Sanctifly.
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No Gym? No Problem! 5 Tips To Help Maintain Your Fitness At Home Or On The Road
As Covid-19 completely turns our lives upside down, a lot of us are missing our daily routines. With gyms and other fitness facilities closed, maintaining our fitness is getting tough. Here are 5 top tips to help you stay fit and healthy and get some exercise when you do not have access to a gym.
5 top tips to help maintain your fitness routine when you do not have access to a gym.
It is a strange time. As Covid-19 completely turns our lives upside down, it’s understandable that fitness is not top of everyone’s to do list. But as we were chatting among the team here at Sanctifly I realised that a common topic and problem for everyone was how much we are missing going to the gym and working out. Exercise will do wonders for your physical as well as your mental health and in these uncertain times, maintaining a healthy body and a healthy attitude is now more important than ever.
Covid-19 is keeping most people confined to their homes, preventing access to gyms and fitness classes and disrupting our fitness routines. Those with a fully equipped home gym and few and far between. And while we may have a dumbbell or two stuffed at the back of a closet, most of us do not have anything to replicate our usual gym facilities. While we usually focus on travel related topics here on the Sanctifly blog, what we are really interested in talking about and giving advice on is wellness and not letting anything (whether that be travel or a global pandemic) disrupt your routine. Some hotels, especially smaller, more affordable chains or inner-city boutique hotels do not have fitness facilities and when you return to travel and things get back to normal, you may find yourself in this same situation. Asking yourself, how can I maintain my fitness routine when there is no gym to go to? Here are 5 top tips for maintaining your fitness routine when you have no access to a gym. These tips are helpful now that we are staying home due to Covid-19 but keep them in your back pocket for the next time you are traveling and don’t have access to fitness facilities.
1. Follow a fitness instruction video
If you are a regular gym user, you probably have a routine that takes advantage of the equipment and weights available there. Translating that routine into an at home exercise routine with no equipment is difficult to do. Follow along with a fitness routine video to help get in a good workout without the pressure of designing it yourself. Search for ‘Exercise routine with no equipment’ and you will find lots of options. Check out this great core routine from Sanctifly ambassador and travel wellness expert, Sara Quiriconi.
2. Make a schedule and stick to it
Building habits is all about consistency. Make a routine and schedule for your fitness and stick to it! Plan out your week and decide which days and at what time you are going to exercise. Having a set plan written down makes it easier to do it. Set alarms on your phone to remind yourself to exercise and make sure that your workout clothes are clean and ready when you need them, just like you would if you were heading to the gym after work. Working out at home is hard enough, give yourself every chance to stick to your fitness routine and feel better for it.
3. Use what you have to replace equipment
No need to run out to the shop to buy gym equipment, just use what you already have at home as a substitute. Layer some towels on the ground to use as an ‘exercise’ mat. This will give you some protection from the hard floor and let you easily do some floor exercises without bruising yourself. Big books work great as light weights for side twists or overhead crunches and any ropes you have lying around can be re purposed as skipping ropes or resistance bands. OK, I know it’s not ideal, but if you get creative you can save a lot of the money and space required for kitting out a home gym.
4. Use your own body weight
Really you don’t need any equipment at all to exercise effectively at home. Body weight exercises have been around a long time and are used by fitness enthusiasts all over the world. Exercises such as lunges, squats, push ups and sit ups are a simple, effective way to improve balance, flexibility, and strength. Many of the ‘no equipment needed’ exercise routine videos will use body weight exercises so that you can easily work out at home.
5. Incorporate stretching and yoga into your routine
You don’t need to do a high intensity workout to get in some exercise at home. Yoga and stretching do not require any equipment at all and are a great form of exercise and movement. This situation can be a great opportunity to try yoga for the first time and feel the benefits of stretching and moving your body in an intentional and mindful way. If you are working from home and are sitting at a desk all day, a quick stretch routine at the end of the day can help loosen up your muscles and help you feel more energized. As an added bonus, most yoga routines will incorporate some kind of meditation or breathing exercises which can be beneficial for your mental and physical health.
The most important thing to remember is not to be too hard on yourself when it comes to your fitness. For some people working out by yourself at home is hard as it can be difficult to get into the right head space for exercise. While there are significant benefits to working out at home, especially as we spend more time inside, some people just exercise better in a class setting or by participating in a sport. On top of that, as we are all stuck at home, we are missing out on a lot of micro exercises through out the day. We are unintentionally exercising when we walk to the car or go to grab a cup of coffee. All this combined can make us put unnecessary pressure on ourselves to exercise more vigorously while at home. Don’t forget your mental health is as important as your physical health so don’t neglect it. Maintaining a fitness routine and moving your body is important but its OK if your fitness slips a bit during quarantine. Making sure you are safe, healthy and happy is top priority in these strange and trying times, so give yourself a break. 😊
Mental Health Tip for Quarantine
Get out in the fresh air at least once a day. You don’t have to leave your house, just stand in your garden for half an hour each day. Staying inside all the time can create a disconnect from the rest of the world and make you feel lonely and isolated. Even if you do not talk to anyone, simply being outside and breathing some fresh air will do wonders for your mental health.
Return to Travel
Right now, we are all staying at home and staying safe and for most of us, travel is the furthest thing from our minds. But things will get back to normal and we will travel again. We at Sanctifly believe that travel wellness and healthy travel will be a top priority among frequent travelers when we return to normal. To stay up to date with all things travel wellness and learn about how you can travel well when you get back on the road subscribe to the Sanctifly Travel Wellness Newsletter.
Until we travel again,
Stay safe from all on the Sanctifly Team.
