How about 6 Minutes for the Core?

Six-Minute Core Exercises
. . . & More,
with Silver Sneakers  

As part of my continuing body-refresh "exercise cure," I've been sampling Silver Sneakers (SS) routines online. Before finding the 4-minute exercises (below), I tried a few 6-minute routines--core exercises target the interconnected network of muscles, tendons, etc., in the hips, back, waist, shoulders, and thighs.

These exercises require login to SS (silversneakers.com). [After logging in, click on Classes drop-down menu (top row), select On-Demand Classes, and look below. You'll see targeted classes arranged by week with a few sets of routines for each week--you don't have to do them all!]

I found my thrill in Week One, on Day One, "Healthy Back and Core," and "Core Yoga." It seems that both of these on-demand Core routines are fundamental for conditioning to ease your advancement (if you so choose) of other types of exercise--swimming, running, dance, weight training, etc. So they're are a good place to start. The core exercises could keep busy for a while. Go slow, especially at first--they take concentration. Ease into them and gradually you'll feel more in control--the first day is the worst! Try 6 minutes for the core. I'm going to rest my case.

Day One: Exercises for Back Strength. (6 minutes)
Don't be intimidated by the first day's "floor" exercises toward the end of the session. The first day will kill you! But it gets better even after one day--really it does. You can incrementally adjust the speed of youtube and Silver Sneakers routines by left-clicking on the Settings icon (looks like a gear at lower right bottom of the screen). Give yourself a break and start slow and easy. It will make you feel good just to have completed Day One. You can even repeat Day One until you get the rhythm of the moves. It's entirely up to you. And best of all, no one's watching!

Day Two: Core Yoga. (6 minutes)
Day two is mostly seated. As with Day One, you'll be happy just to complete the Core Yoga routine. Don't ask too much of your body. Take it easy. You can even repeat Day One--you can three-peat, etc., any day, for that matter, until you feel comfortable with each set. It'll definitely feel better on the second day.

SilverSneakers: Posture Fix
(2 Minutes 41 seconds)

The Posture Fix routine is available on youtube without Silver Sneakers login. It's kind of Silver Sneakers "lite." These exercises are good but maybe not as good as the Silver Sneakers on-demand Core Exercises, above, especially to start your exercise "cure." Silver Sneakers seems to be a superior program as far as I've seen and many Silver Sneakers routines are available on youtube without logging in. So if you want to try something new, search on "Silver Sneakers" youtube and you'll be able to choose what appeals to you.

These exercise routines and this information should be enough to get you started and gradually let you ease into your more limber self just in time for the summer! Have fun! Be careful, go slow, and check with your doctor if you need reassurance. 

To view Snake Hips in action, search on
"Snake Hips Tucker" on youtube.