Tim Robards: The exercise that could change your life

WE ALL know that sitting for long periods of time is not good for us. We’re simply not built for it. But many of us are still sitting in excess of 12 hours a day.
If you really acknowledged the link between your headaches, gut issues, lack of energy, excess weight, your posture and mood to what extended sitting is doing to your body you would probably think about change your sitting habits.
Its not just the effects of sitting, its what you are missing out on while you’re doing it. A ‘standing’ worker, say a retail worker at a clothing store, burns about 1,500 calories while on the job; whereas a person behind a desk might expend roughly 1,000 calories.
Now, this exercise (see video above) is one of the best and simplest I’ve ever used to correct poor posture from sitting. It’s called…. ‘The Wall Angel’. This exercise will fire up your core, activate your glutes, help you to extend your thoracic, stretch your chest and active your lower traps.
How to do the ‘wall angel’
With your feet a few inches from the wall. Place your bum against the wall, followed by your shoulders and your head. Level one you leave the natural curve in you lower back. Level two you flatten your lower back into the wall, using your core, so there is no gap to get any fingers between your lower back and the wall.
Next take your arms up at 90 degrees on the wall as shown.

 You must keep your fingers and elbows touching the wall at all time. this is imperative! Breath in, than as you exhale over 5-10 seconds, push your arms up in a straight line vertically until fully extended.

It is imperative that the elbows and hands do not leave the wall and you take your time. I would rather you didn’t extend as much than let your elbows come off the wall.
Complete three sets of 6-8 reps (start with 6 for the first week and progress).
Those who have great thoracic and shoulder mobility will have no troubles with this but the rest of us will find it challenging.
You should maintain a long neck through the exercise and be able to feel it predominantly between your shoulder blades and your core keeping your lower back on the wall.
To progress start with Level 1 — (neutral spine with small gap between low back and wall) and use two arms.
Level 2 — Low back is pulled into the wall using the core (pull belly button to spine and tuck pelvis back). There should be no gap between the lower back and pelvis. You can progress this with single arms and then as you get better use two arms. Always breathe throughout — never hold your breath!
This exercises is truly one of the best I have used for posture to combat sitting and forward head carriage. This may help to decrease your lower back pain, decrease your neck pain and headaches, open up your chest for breathing, increase your energy and boost your mood! Enjoy!