Gentle Seated Workout for Seniors

Hi, welcome. So today I have my assistant Zoe. Hi. And we're going to do a 10 minute exercise class, all from the chair. So it'll be a gentle class, so do what you can, and if you need to have a break, then take that break. Okay, so shall we get started? Yes. Alright, so let's just do a gentle march. Hands to the side, or you can have them on your lap, whatever is comfortable for you. And let's bring our feet wide, and feet back together again. And if you'd like, you can bring your arms into it. So pumping those arms, and if you find that too much, then just do the march. So we'll do this for 10 more seconds, and then we are going to relax those arms, bring one leg out to the side. If you want, you can have the arm out to the side, bring that arm in, other side. Now if you find that confusing, you can just do your legs. There you go, you got it. And let's pick up that pace a little bit. Good job, Zoe. So just use the lower body if you find it too much. And we are going to go back into a march. And again, bring those arms into it if you'd like. So we're just trying to get that body warmed up, get some cardio in, get that heart rate up a little bit. Get that blood flowing. Alright, let's relax those legs, let's bring the arms forward. Breaststroke, right? So do you feel a bit of a stretch at the same time? A little bit? And let's bring the arms forward, and we're going to row back. So it's like we're rowing. What are we rowing? A boat. A boat, yeah. So really push and pull. So Zoe's kind of going forward and back. I'm sitting straight, you can do either. It's kind of whatever is comfortable for you. Alright, let's bring those arms in this position. We're going to bring the arms up and pull down. So really try and make those muscles work. It's like you're pulling a rope and you're like pushing a box. Yeah, perfect. So pushing up and pulling down. Like you're trying to break a rope. Trying to break a rope, yeah. You're using that much muscle. And we're going to switch to lower body again. So back to a march. Bring those arms in if you want to. First you can not get your arms in if you want. Because you might get tired. From the what? Like from putting your... Relax those legs. We're going to bring the arms out, forward, down. Forward, out, down. Out, forward, down. Excellent. Up, out, down. So we're working our shoulders here. It is a bit confusing, but once you get it, it is a very good exercise. Because you're working the front and the middle part of your shoulder. Good job. Okay, relax those arms. Bring those shoulders back. Back to a march. Do you have any ideas for the legs? Except legs. Okay, we'll do that in a little bit. Sounds like a good idea. Alright, five more seconds. Okay, we're going to bring a leg out this time. And then the other side again. So again, if you wish, you can bring your arms into it. Or just use your legs. You're doing great. Five more seconds. And we're going to go into a chest press. So bring the arms out here. You bring those elbows and the hands together. Press and then pull back. So pretend there's resistance going both ways. And if your legs feel cracked, to get them out is good to get them out. It will also crack you. All the crackies? Okay, bring those arms forward again. Back to a row, Zoe. Back and forward. Really pulling and pushing. Excellent. Concentrating on tightening those muscles. Five more seconds of this one. Now we're going to do Zoe's exercise. So we're going to bring our legs up and down. So tighten those quads right here. So you're tightening them when you're bringing them up. So tighten and then control on the way down. Tighten those legs and down. You don't want your legs just to drop. You want to control them as they're going down and then up. And when your feet are up, squeeze those quad muscles, Zoe. Squeeze. Five more seconds. And then we're going to go into a calf raise. Last one. Good. Now you're going to lift those heels up and down. Up and down. So we're trying to strengthen the lower part of our legs here. You can either do that one or stand up and do it like this. Okay, good. Yeah, you've got it. That's perfect. Perfect example, Zoe. That's great. So for those who can stand, this would be the better option for you. It's harder because it's lifting all of your body weight. Okay, one more. Good. Okay, let's go back to upper body. So sitting down again, bringing the arms out. Actually, let's do a V this time. We're going to bring our arms up in the middle. Like a V. And down. Just to about chin to eye level. That's it. Yep. So this is also working the shoulders again. And your arm muscles, they can also bring that over. Yes. So I've only got about two minutes left. And then we're going to go into our stretching. Ten more seconds. And let's do a little mini run. Are you ready? And go. Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, and one. Good. And punching forward. So I couldn't have any seniors come into my house, so Zoe is my assistant today. Because of COVID, obviously. Okay. Let's do a back row, and then we are done. So leaning forward, arms are down, lifting up, and down. Lifting up, squeezing that upper back, and down. So if at any point you feel this isn't enough, you can pick up weights or use water bottles and use those to increase the intensity of the exercise. Good. And our last one, we're just going to push those hands back. And then bring it to the shoulder. So keep the upper part of your arm straight, like this. So it's just my lower arm that is going back and forth, controlled at all times. You're feeling it right here in your triceps. Good. Taking a deep breath in. Big breath out. And again. And out. Bringing the hands forward, reaching forward, feeling that stretch in your upper back. And we could also do like this. Sure, you can do that. Yeah, either one works. And then bring your palms together. You're going to bring the arms back, feeling that stretch in your chest. So bring them back as far as you can. Reaching one arm overhead as high as you can to the ceiling, feeling that stretch all the way down your side. And then the other side. Bringing one arm in front, crossing it in front of the body, pulling that arm in for a shoulder stretch. Do you feel it in your shoulder? Good. It's only if you bend your arm like this. That's true. Because it's like this. Let's bring the other side up. Crossing in front of the body. Yeah, you want to try and have the arm fairly straight. You're right. This one's easier. Often that's the case, that one is easier than the other. Alright, let's stretch the legs. Let's bring one foot up. We're going to flex that foot so toes are pointing towards you. And pointing the toes away. Where do you feel the stretch now? Oh, right here. Yeah, exactly. Rotating that ankle. Sometimes we do this when I was at school. Other direction. In the gym. So... Other foot. Yeah, because like... We do it because we don't get our ankles hurt or our heads when we turn them. We dress them around so we don't get any of our body parts hurt. For running and playing games. Yeah. Well, that's good. That makes sure that you're stretched out and feeling good. Ankle the other way. I'm sorry? And taking a deep breath in. Bring your arms overhead. Big stretch up. Big breath out. Let's just do one more. And big breath out. It's like a big air balloon. High five. Thank you for joining us. Take care. Until next time. Bye.