The benefit of including some squats and skips into our healing programme during and post chronic fatigue are numerous. The combination of these strength training and cardio exercises helps to gently buildup our muscular system to exercising again, while helping to boost our energy and vitality.
When we exercise our leg muscles and deepen our breath while exercising, we accelerate our circulation, which allows for more oxygen uptake and increases the speed in which fluids travel through the body, allowing for greater nutrients uptake, nourishing our cells, promoting body chemistry regulation, enhancing our innate healing mechanism, resulting in greater energy and sense of overall health.
Both squats and rope skipping are an ideal duo when done on regular basis. These simple and easily accessible exercises can be done anywhere, at any time, and are easy to implement into any busy schedule. In addition, they help to raise our metabolic rate and improve our overall wellbeing on all levels – physical, mental and emotional.
NOTE: Please start gently and build up.
How to do squats safely:
1. Standing with your feet apart (a little wider than your hips), point your feet slightly outwards, so when you bend your knees, they will be aligned over your toes
2. Pick a focus point straight ahead of you, which you will concentrate on while doing your squats
3. You can place your palms on your thighs and slide them down so your wrists and forearms slide below the knees, and elbows can rest just above the knees (some people prefer to have their arms stretched out parallel to the floor, so choose the best option for you)
4. Tighten your core and with your feet firmly and evenly planted down and your chest and gaze up, start taking a deep breath in through your nose and start squatting down with a neutral back, sticking your bottom out slightly, as if you are sitting down onto a low stool behind you - ideally get to a parallel position where hips and knees are in line or slightly below (but please work at your own pace, one can build on that in time)
5. Now slowly and gently start coming back up, breathing out through your pursed mouth while extending your legs and gently squeezing your gluteus muscles. Your breathing is very important while doing squats – don’t hold your breath!
6. Depending on your level of health and fitness, build up slowly to 10 squats, alternating with short bursts of skipping (again, please start gently and build it up overtime) and aim to eventually do 3 repetitions of both at each session.
How to skip safely and easily: from Amanda Kloots:
