I am used to ...................

a certain amount of pain and aches in the old bod after a surf, but sometimes, I seem to experience them more intensely than usual.

It has taken me awhile to realise that it is usually after a session where the conditions might not have been terribly good and I have wiped out a lot of times.

As our ageing, but still useful bodies, are not as flexible as they once were, I think that the contortions and distortions are bodies are forced through in a wipeout situation causes minor strains that we may otherwise not have experienced.

It is the next morning, as I am getting out of bed, that I really notice them and I hobble out of the room bent over like the old guy in the image below, until the stiffness eventually eases and I can straighten up again feeling like a surfer over 50 rather than a surfer over 90!

So, I have realised that I forgot to end this post, with the key element that I wanted to talk about, the forward bend.

I feel this is the most important regular activity I undertake to combat loss of flexibility.

This may sound strange but I generally do this in the shower as the hot water ensures my body is warm reducing the chance of injury.

Rather than a feet together yoga style bend, which I do occasionally, I am talking a feet shoulder width bend and just hanging there for a period whilst breathing gently. You will find that you are slowly able to breathe yourself further down and I can usually get the palms of my hands flat on the floor. This is the closest image I can find that matches what I am describing but with feet at shoulder width and allowing the arms to dangle or fold them up if you can get over enough to warrant it.

Doing this regularly ensures that my hamstrings are loose minimising the risk of back strain caused by tight hamstrings and releases tension in the spinal column, neck and shoulders as well as getting a bit of blood into the head.

Can you touch your toes?

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