Unplug and Recharge:How To Age Gracefully

The simple act of moving your spine regularly can dramatically shift your experience of being alive. All too often we hold a rigid, upright posture, without allowing our spines to dance and undulate in the ways that they crave and are designed to.

One of my yoga teachers says that the key to aging gracefully (meaning, feeling vibrant from within no matter what age you are) is to maintain a flexible and fluid spine. This exercise stands as of the best, and simplest, ways that I know how to do this.

1. Get down on your hands and knees. Place your hands under your shoulders and spread your fingers wide apart.

2. Place your knees under your hips. If your knees are sensitive, place a blanket under your shins and knees.

3. Inhale and drop your navel, ribs, and chest toward the floor. Move your shoulder blades together and look upwards between your eyebrows at the end of the inhale.

4. As you exhale, release your chin to your chest, draw up and round through your back ribs, draw your belly to your spine, and point your tailbone down towards the floor.

5. Repeat this for five to ten minutes.