Thrive In Five: Stretching

person stood doing the power pose stretching arms wide open at sunset on a rock

This week’s thrive in five is all about stretching

This is the last in the series of videos designed to help you improve your physiology. All geared around the international day of happiness, which was back on the 20th of March. And this particular one is about stretching.

Stretching releases endorphins

Stretching is a great way to generate endorphins. Endorphins are hormones that interact with pain receptors, so they make us feel good. You can get endorphins from running, you get it from exercise. You can get it through a massage. You can also get endorphins through stretching, which is probably the most accessible of all those things.

Stretching is something you can do almost anywhere, any time. It’s free and available to almost all of us.

The Power Pose stretch

The particular stretch that I’m going to show you is also known as the power pose made famous by Amy Cuddy in her Ted talk. The science has been kicked around a bit, but it’s been reproved and reestablished that it can give you:

  • A 20% increase in testosterone, which is great for energy for men and for women
  • A 25% decrease in cortisol.

So it boosts energy and makes us feel less stressed. Very powerful.

Now you need to hold this for two minutes and this is the pose. Your hands are pointing up, feet a little bit more than hip-width apart. Chin slightly raised there so your eyes are looking to the rising sun and you open up the chest. Bring your arms and shoulders back to the point where you can feel the stretch, but not so much that it’s uncomfortable. And then you hold this position for two minutes. You breathe through it. Breathe in, breathe out.

That’s how you’ll be able to hold this stretch for two minutes, but otherwise you will find that the arms get tired. But you’ll get an incredible tingling sensation during and certainly afterwards and that’s endorphins.

Feel great after only two minutes of stretching

So stretching and using the power pose is a great way to make yourself feel better, feel more alert, feel more alive, feel more energised in just a couple of minutes done as I say anywhere.

So I hope that’s all been helpful. Try this stuff, pick out what works for you. Disregard what doesn’t, you don’t need to focus on every single aspect of this, make it work for you, make it personal, all the very best for now. Stay healthy.

If you’ve enjoyed this post you make like others in the series:

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