I want to talk about movement during a chaotic and stressful time. Notice I did not say workouts!

Some of you may find working out during stressful times helpful, but when total chaos hits, you may find it impossible to keep consistent with any kind of routine.

That’s certainly what I found during the days leading up to my husband’s surgery as well as afterward. The first thing I noticed was my lower back and legs aching from standing next to and over hospital beds. As much as I’d like to say I was able to keep my core and lats engaged, that was the farthest thing from my mind!

I did realize, though, that I needed to find some relief, and doing a workout wasn’t going to happen anytime soon. So what did I do?

Sneaky Fit to the Rescue!

I often will curl my core against a wall when my lower back is sore, especially from a long day of standing or walking. Of course, it’s not always easy to find a suitable wall in a hospital room! I would lean against the bathroom door after closing it and more than once I leaned against the elevator wall as I went down a few floors. I used to do it only when I was alone—after awhile I just didn’t care! 🙂

If you have never curled your core against a wall, here is the short version (I share a longer version in my online programs):

• Stand against a wall, feet out about 4-5 inches
• Bring belly button up towards the rib cage (it won’t really go up that high, it’s the activation you are after)
• Now use the tummy muscles to flatten the lower back against the wall, tucking to accommodate as needed
• Keeping the core activated to flatten back against the wall, lift the ribs without arching away from the wall
• Shift knees out, weight off big toe
• Big inhale, exhale BIGGER! (Note: It WILL be tough to inhale big, do your best!)
• Step away and kick out

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Curling the Core alone went a long way to keep my sanity! Of course you could do Hoedowns in the bathroom, but to be honest? I just didn’t have the mental energy or motivation. I didn’t mind doing Butterflies (don’t imitate the gal behind Teresa! 😉 ), or even Flick Kicks (the more activated kickouts Teresa does in the newer workouts). Find a few moves that are “no-brainers” for you—you don’t need a lot of mental energy, just enough to focus on that move without taxing you. Scarecrow Ski is a fun move that is easy to memorize (found in Senior Fit and First Step as well as Turn Back Time). It might be a seated move. I did some of the push, press and pull Teresa does in this video clip How to Get Fit and Fabulous in 15 Minutes. Now with the T-Tapp Tuesday moves from Great Day Tampa Bay (WTSP Studio 10 Live), you could pick a few moves that click for you to do in odd moments when there is no one around (or maybe do it with the nurses coming in and out and advertise for T-Tapp!).

Even sitting and doing Butterflies or other moves can be helpful. Even just curling down in a chair, hanging onto your knees, then pulling to come upright can help!  A few workouts that have these and other great seated stretches are MORE Chair,  TappCore 2  and MORE 3 Chair streaming workout.

Here’s another great move from Studio 10 Live that I love—T-Tapp Tuesday Sit-Down Arm Exercise.

Even shifting your weight into your heels and doing several shoulder rolls can do wonders!

Pick one or two of these that stand out to you and learn them well so you don’t have to have the videos or dvds—and you’ll be well-prepared with moves for any crazy times that you can’t workout. No need to let chaos and stress create muscle tension and tightness! Sneaky Fit to the Rescue!

This is part 3 in a series on Self Care in Chaos. If you’ve missed the first two you can find them here:

Self Care in Chaos, part 1
Self Care in Chaos, part 2