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“The floors TOO hard” I said to my Yoga Teacher.  Then looked around and saw everyone else sitting on the floor in blissful comfort!

I could barely sit on the ground.  Everything touching the ground – ached and hurt!  Ankles, toes, knees, shins.

“No!  Too much gym work!” she said.

She was right!

It was one of my first yoga classes in Siena, Italy.

I was 40.  It was 2006.  I was fed up with the monotony of life.  And desperately wanted to get out of Australia.

One Sunday afternoon I watched the movie ‘Under The Tuscan Sun’.   6 months later I’d sold all my worldly possessions and brought a one-way ticket to Italy!  In my mind…never to return!

That yoga class was a wake-up call.  It was time to re-jig the balance of how I trained my body.

So why stretch after a workout?

Stretching is NOT optional in this age bracket.  You may have got away with it in your 20’s/30’s and maybe even into your 40’s.

But whether you like it or not….your body is ageing.  Every day.  It’s not optional.  It’s just fact!  And it’s not a bad thing.  There’s many wonderful things about ageing.

However with that ageing….comes a shortening in your muscles, tendons and ligaments.  This shortening IS going to effect your joints.  And the result of that…IS pain!

So if you understand this..…then you can accept that stretching is a non-negotiable part of your workout.  Pre workout.  AND post workout!

Your muscles are warm after you’ve trained.  It’s the perfect time to gently lengthen them.

And I don’t need to tell you that….your body takes longer to warm-up in this age-bracket.  Just look at how you get out of bed in the morning! 

Getting up to go to the loo at 2am….I move like an 80 year old woman!

Keep skipping your stretches?

Running short on time?  So you just do your workout and forget the stretching?  Your body will repay you with tightness, stiffness and aching.

If time really is the issue….do a shorter workout.  And DON’T skip your stretching.

If you’ve got one of my programs…do a 10 minute round.  (All my 20 minute workouts are designed in 2 x 10 minute rounds.  For this purpose!)

You’ll still get a strong workout.  AND you’ll have time to do your stretches.  CoreStrength50plus Programs

Find stretches that feel beneficial to YOU.  We’re all different.  And tighter in different areas.  Get a few different stretching sequences up your sleeve.  Then you won’t get bored.

After a body-lengthening stretch sequence – you move, breathe and feel 100% better.

Your 50’s is NOT the time to skip your stretches!

My never to return moment in 2006 didn’t quite pan out.   One year later I ended up back in Oz!   Back to the drawing board of ‘what was I doing with my life!’

Don’t give up or give in!

PS.  Hit an exercise plateau?  Bored with your workouts?  Busy Professional?  Short on time?  And the first thing to go in your day is your exercise session?  

Check out my challenging 20 minute Muscle Toning Programs.

Designed by a woman in her 50’s FOR women in their 50s…..click on the link here……….