staying healthy in the fast lane¾ Have a towel or belt (cloth belt/strap is best) to loop
around the arch of your foot so you can keep your back
straight if you are lying on the ground while flexing your
straight leg up and forward at the waist to do a hamstring
stretch. If sitting on the ground with straightened legs,
you can loop the towel or belt over your arches as ex-
tensions of your arms and bend forward from the waist.
Don’t curve your back. These stretch your hamstrings and
lower back.
¾ Standing with your feet at least shoulder-width apart, be-
gin to move your hips in a circular motion to the right for
five to ten rotations and then to the left. Keep your feet
planted in the same place throughout.
¾ Don’t sit for more than a half-hour without getting up if
possible (desk, chair, car, plane, etc.).
¾ Sit on a large, air-filled medicine ball at your home or
work instead of a chair (I have to thank Dr. Stella Volpe,
professor and chair, Drexel University, Department of Nu-
trition for this suggestion. The final stages of this book
were written sitting for hours on such a medicine ball in
my home office).
¾ If you jog, have good shoes. Put some type of cushion and/
or arch support in your shoe to see if it helps with your
legs and back. Jog on softer surfaces such as grass or dirt,
or do other exercises like a stair master, stepper, elliptical
rider, etc., that are less traumatic on your back.
¾ Do wall flexion and extension exercises, or what I call “Wall
Yoga” while standing up. Spread your feet shoulder-width
apart, with palms flat against the wall directly in front of
you at shoulder level. Let your pelvis sink toward the wall
with legs straight and your head tilted gently back, only if
comfortable (modified Upward Dog). Hold for five to ten
seconds, then walk your hands down the wall so your butt
sticks out, you are flexed forward at the hips with your
legs straight, and your arms are stretched at your head
level or above (modified Downward Dog). You will feel a
stretch in your low back, hamstrings, and shoulders. Hold
for five to ten seconds, and repeat. Do this complete mo-