30-Min Full Body Mobility & Flexibility for Menopause | Low Impact, No Equipment

Hey, everybody, I'm Amy from BodyFit by Amy. And this is your full body mobility and flexibility for menopause workout. This is an active recovery, all body weight workout and this is a great mobility workout for anyone, but especially if you are in perimenopause, menopause or post menopause, as we'll be working with some of the tightness and issues that we experience during those hormonal changes, I'll give you lots of different options to work to your fitness level. Are you ready? Let's do it. Let's start just with a gentle march, similar to what we do in all of our cardio workouts, our strength training workouts. If you've done workouts with me before, you know I like to get the blood flowing and get our body's temperature up, and we're going to start with that. It's the same thing when we're working with mobility and flexibility. We don't have to start with those deep stretches. So as we're marching, you can either just let your arms swing by your side or you can just pump them here. Again, the goal is blood flow. Get our body's core temperature up, get the energy up. We're going to give it all low impact, all body weight today, but we're going to start with some active mobility. So often I call it cardio mobility or gentle cardio, because a lot of that is what we need to release some of that tightness and tension that we feel. Let's get some rolls of the shoulders. You can start small now. When we get into perimenopause, menopause and beyond, wherever you are in your journey, we start to see those hormonal changes, right? Those, the shift in our hormone ratios, certain hormones, certainly estrogen and others are starting to decline. So because of that, we get a little joint stiffness, maybe more than we normally had. Right. Also because of that, many of us really focus on our strength training and our heart health, which is great, but that can also lead to a little soreness. Sometimes it's more muscular. But all of the things we're going to be doing today are going to help with that, especially some areas that we see a lot of tightness and tension. Let's go one at a time, like hips, low back and shoulders. So maybe you've experienced some of this or maybe you've heard about some common things that happen as our hormones are changing. Let's go ahead and take it right here, nice and wide. We're just going to do a little taps and I just want you to turn your body right here. So getting that rotation through the torso, but also the knees and the hips, and then just let your arms move along with it. Now, certainly, I want you to work to your level. If you're coming into this and you already have some pain or some tightness, please listen to your body. And if you have some pain that is not responding to stretching or mobility or flexibility, certainly talk to your health care provider. We're going to keep this motion and just reach across this. All of this is going to help manage and alleviate some of that, those symptoms. But certainly if you're dealing with pain, you want to see a doctor, let's reach over the head right here. So just go within your range of motion. But what we're doing is we're using the fact that we're moving a little quicker, more, again, like gentle cardio, to get a little deeper into those stretches, active stretches, right? So taking it here, can you keep that motion and reach down? Maybe you're stepping out a little wider. And throughout this and all my workouts, I always say, be where you are today. So wherever you are in your fitness journey, in your menopause journey, maybe you're not there yet. Maybe you're past those years, wherever you are and how you're feeling today. So let's take a little roll of the hips. You can start small, keeping it grounded. And if that feels okay, we're going to take it up a bit. So where I am Today, I am 44, so I am starting to feel some of those symptoms of param menopause and some more of the joint stiffness and things that I have been feeling. And I also did a tough strength training workout yesterday, and I'm feeling a little sore. So some of this, I'm feeling that soreness, but I know I. I'm going to feel better as I get through this workout. So let's take our feet nice and wide. We're just going to shift our weight. So opening up in the hips right through here. You don't have to get super deep. If you want to reach one down and one up. You can right here. And just side to side. And then can we step through it? Can you step out? Shift your weight and reach up. Step out and reach up. Up. You don't. Again, you don't have to get super low. I know maybe you're like me and you got that heavy strength yesterday or your cardio or whatever it is. Bringing it up. One more. And can we take it here? We're going to bring those arms straight up. So again, being aware of your shoulders, especially if you have some mobility issues or limitations or tightness. We're going to do eyes wise and T's, So watch me. We're coming up straight for an eye, bringing it down, out for a Y, bringing it down and then out for a T. So feeling that I can already feel my type. So join me here. Feet are shoulder width apart or hip distance apart. And the goal is to come here without coming here, right? Without arching your back. So we're bringing it up, but trying to increase that shoulder mobility. The Y, T one more like this. And I can already feel which side. Usually there's one side that's a little harder. For me, it's my right. All right, can you keep that same motion? And we'll add a hinge to it. So watch me here. I'm gonna hinge, drive my hips to the back. Straight up with the eye. Take it down. Why, Auntie? Yes, Take it up. Get out and T. Bringing it up. Out and one more. Driving them up, out and here. So now that we've got our arms out, let's go flat. Flat back down, and then scoop, round up through your back. So at your own pace. Taking it flat and rounding it up here and all the way through. Two more and one more. And let's rest our hands right on the top of our legs, on the top of our thighs. So a nice flat back. You can have your feet a little wider. If that feels better for you. You can balance on the wall. And that cat cow that we sometimes do on the mat, we're going to take it standing. So rounding through in the cat and then into the cat. Sorry, whichever. Was I right? Cat and cow and through. We're going to also do this on the mat, but this is a great option if you need a little stretch break throughout your day. You can also put your hands on top of a desk, a chair, the countertop, but to really roll through and right here. So from here, we're just going to do some little tap back. So I'm going to be at the edge of my mat and tap it back. So I'm opening up the knees and the hips. I'm reaching my arms out in front right here. And if you're able, we're going to get a little lower and we're going to reach those arms up. You don't have to get as low as I did, but here, right here, If you want to keep it right where we are, just reaching in front that works, too. Okay, so we're gonna, if you're able, drop all the way down on that knee. So if you need to find something to roll up your mat or put a pillow, or if you need to keep this standing, you can always keep this standing as well. You may just want a little bit of balance, but here's what we got here. We're here, and I want you to tilt the hips forward just a bit, whether you're standing or kneeling, to get that little hip flexor stretch just like that. And then we're going to take that front leg out just a bit. We're going to bring the hands here. So if you're standing, you're just going to lean into that. You're obviously not going all the way to the ground. And then you can stay there. Or if you want, take that back foot up, turn towards that front knee, reach, and then we're gonna go down and up. So it's a version of that world's greatest stretch. So you can be here, right? Or if you're standing, just want you to reach and reach almost like you're turning into it from the standing. And if you're able to drop the knee, drop the knee. Two more, wherever you are, and here. And then we're back down to that kneeling position. So from here, I want you to take that arm on the kneeling leg. Let's just do a few little arm circles. And again, maybe your shoulders are tight, but just doing the best you can. Again, you can take this standing or you can sit on the edge of a chair and have your knees in this position, if that is helpful. Now you're going to have that front hand opposite that front knee. And I'm going to open out away from my body here. So don't let the balance throw you off. You can again, of course, just use one. But if you can open here. And then we're going to take that arm here, open across. Apologies for being facing back, but here, almost like a little bow and arrow. And then if that feels good, you can open all the way up here to here. Let's get two more. One more. Bring those hands forward again and go ahead and walk your feet in. So either you're here, you're just hinging here for that nice flat back. Don't worry, it's not a yoga workout, so you don't have to be in any position but straightening the legs for a little stretch. So if you need to grab onto the wall, you can. If you can take it to the floor, take it to the floor. Feel that stretch. Then slowly come all the way up. Let's take that other foot forward. So remember, we're going to take it down to that knee. So if you need to adjust, if you're kneeling on a pillow or rolling up the mat, whatever it is for you, we're here. And if you're staying here, you can. Or you can drop that knee. You can twist into it if you're able. We're going to drop it all the way down. Open up some space with that front leg. Tuck the pelvis, tilt the hips forward just a bit so you don't have to lean super far forward this way. We're just coming here. We're going to take our hand here, reach it up, right? And then if you want, extending it up, down and up. So it's that world's greatest stretch. Whatever version of this is good for you. If you don't want to extend all the way up. If you want to take it from standing and just get a little drop and a little rotation. That works too. Here? Yes. And right here. So we're gonna hold this down again. And again, the kneeling side, you're going to take that arm and just do some arm circles to the back. You can be standing as well. Just have a nice, good stance, wherever that is. And then reverse your direction here. And then can you take it in front? You're here. Can you open out here? Right, so one side may be a little tighter. For me, it's this way. Maybe it's because I'm facing you guys, but I don't have as much torso mobility or shoulder mobility. This one doesn't want to open out as much, so find where that is and taking it across. And again, you can do this from a standing split stance as well. Pulling across like the bow and arrow. And then if that feels good, take it here. Open it here. Yes. Right. Open. Reach. We're gonna go ahead and extend up on that leg. So again, you can come here. You don't have to be straight legs. You can have your hands here. You can have a flat back, whatever feels good for. And then slowly come up out of that. I want you to make your way over to a wall. If you have a wall that you can use. And we're going to do some arm slides. We're also going to take this down on the mat. So if you don't have a wall to use, you can just go up and over or whatever range of motion is good for you. If you have a wall here, and I want you to step back into it. You don't necessarily have to have your heels on it, but we want to make sure that we're not arching the back, flaring the ribs, and we want to be kind of back into the wall. And then we're going to take those arms up, so it's a little arm slide. So it's okay if you're not making contact with the wall the entire time, but your goal is to stay as close to it as possible. Because it's very common that we get pulled forward a bit. Right. And that this is hard to do. That's why this is helpful on the mat as well as on the floor. If you can't come all the way up, bring them to here. See if this is feeling good for you. And then here. And remember, we're encouraging mobility and movement, but we also want it to feel like a little bit of a stretch as well. Right? And breathe. One more and bringing it down. All right, team, so shake those out. Now we're going to turn. I'm going to turn away from you, but I'm going to show you here. I want you to put your hands on the wall, and we're just going to come up on the toe and press the heel down. So it's a little calf stretch, right? But as you press the heel down, I want you to push into the wall, push away from the wall to increase that stretch. Super common for many of us, whether or not we're in a certain age range or not that we get some plantar fasciitis or some ankle incision stability. So this calf stretching is really helpful with that. So from here, hands on the wall, foot in front, and make sure you have nice, good space. And then we're going to lift up on the toe, press that heel down, press into the wall, and we're going to make it more of an active stretch. Press up on the toe and press down. And if you need to adjust to be a little bit further away so you can really push into the wall, go for it one more time. Take it up and drop it down. And I want you just to hold this here. So again, if you need to adjust, should feel a nice, good stretch through the back. Remembering this stretch, because again, our calves do a lot of work, and all of our lower body work and all of our cardio work, right? And then let's switch that. So switch your legs. And again, we're lifting. We're going to hold, we're going to do some short, active stretching, and then we're going to take it a little more of a hold. So here. Nice, good space. Lift up on the toe, press down, push into the wall as you push the heel down as if you're trying to move the wall. Right. Lift up on that toe, drop it down and push. And one more. Lift up on the toe, drop it down and push. This is also going to give you a good wrist stretch sometimes. I know it's hard to be in that plank position on our hands if it bothers your wrist, but this is a good stretch for that. Without having all of your body weight, you're just pushing into it and relax. Right. Now that we've got add that roll through those wrists. Feeling that. And I want you to go ahead and meet me down on the mat. So we're going to come into a seated position. If this is not right for you, you can sit on the edge of a chair or a bench. Woo. My glutes are sore from yesterday. I love it. All right, so we're in this position. This is what we call 9090. So this is a 9090 hip switch. Sometimes it's called a shin box, but essentially 90 degrees with both. And then we're going to rotate. So again, if you need to sit on the edge of a chair, you can still rotate those legs. So we're here to here. Ooh. And this is extra hard for me today because my glutes are sore. That's all right. We're rolling with it. And you can do what I'm doing where you can brace with your hands or with your fingertips and then turn your body as much as feels comfortable for you. I love this mobility work. Again, even if you're sitting on the edge of a chair, because it's just super helpful to get the work through both sides of the hips. Right. One is stretching one way, one is stretching the other way. If you feel you can do it here without fingers to the mat, that works too. Get one more each side. And last one. So we're going to hold this here, turning your body into it. And you can either just hold the stretch because remember, we're getting mobility and flexibility, or if you're comfortable with it, if you're able, you can turn your body into more of a pigeon stretch. Now, I know that's not accessible for everybody. It's a tough stretch to get into, so feel free just to hold your 9090 where it is. But if you want that hip stretch, you can even shift your weight a tad if you need to pull that knee up or pull that foot up, Breathing into that, And then roll those knees to the other side. So again, you can just be here, just be holding it. You can even turn your torso more to get more of that back stretch. Or if you're able, turning into the pigeon. Either option is fine. We're going to get the stretch both ways. From here, we're going to come back to a seated position, toes in front. And again, you can also do this sitting on the edge of a chair, letting your knees drop to the side. Now, I want you to take this with a nice flat back so you're sitting up nice and tall. You're going to hinge forward, Trying to keep that spine straight. Feel that stretch, especially in the low back, letting your chest come forward. We're going to bring it here. Let's come onto all four. So hands and knees. So we're here. And again, if you need something to put underneath your knees, if that bothers your knees or underneath your wrist, a towel, a blanket, a pillow, any of that, or holding dumbbells, something like that. But from here, I want us to roll through that cat cow again. So we're lifting up, really rounding in the spine, letting that head and neck release into that and then roll through and really without pain, but trying to work through all of the spine. So a lot of us have more movement in that upper spine or cervical spine, thoracic spine. Sometimes we get a little tight. This is me in my lower lumbar spine. Maybe you're the opposite. Maybe you're tighter in the shoulders and the neck, but you have more movement below. But. Right. But we're really trying to work all the way through. And you can use your breath for support. Then we're going to take our feet wider and we're going to sit back into the child's pose. But we're to going reach one arm under. So little stretch here. And we're just going to alternate from all fours to reach under, bring it up and reach it under, And bring it up and reach. And back to here. And one more thing, if you can, we're going to extend that leg out. So this is not right for you. You can have your hands on a bench or a chair, or again, you can even be doing this in a position to from a standing position, you can just extend one leg out. But if you can, we're going to be here. We're going to take that top arm. We're going to open up to the sky and we're going to reach elbow down. So elbow to the floor or reaching under. So we want open it up. So a lot of things happening here. We're getting this stretch of that hip, of that inner thigh. We're getting the stretch through the spine, and then we're getting mobility through the spine and the shoulder. You can reach that arm up if you want. And here we go. And reach. And one more down and reach. So hold the reach at the top. And then slowly put your hands down. Sit back into the child's pose. So wherever the child's pose is for you, reach those arms in front, hips to the back. Press the shoulders down. Let your head and your neck relax into them. Right through here. And coming up, we're going to come up other side. So I'm going to turn a bit so you can see. So if you can extend that other leg out and it can be out to the side, it can be a little bit behind, whatever feels good for you. But to open up through here, then we're going to take that top arm, I'm going to cross it down and reach it up. So mobility through the shoulders, the torso, the spine, flexibility through the spine, the hips and the legs right here to get here. And breathe. And down. Let's hold this one all the way up. And then one more time, let's sit back. Child's pose. So hang out in this child's pose as long as you want. Press those shoulders down again. You can reach the arms long, you can set the elbows down. Whatever feels good for you. And then very carefully, we're going to roll onto our back. Just a couple more minutes. We are almost done. So rolling onto your back and then once you get in that position, just gentle knee pull. So I love this. We get a little back release. You can grab underneath the leg. So knee pull as the knees come into your chest. But I don't want you to grab on the knee. I either want you to grab underneath the leg or on top of the shin. Right. You're taking it here and pulling it in. Whatever gives you more range of motion is comfortable for you. But you really get that stretch right and here. Yes. And we're going to keep these feet here. I want you to take your arms out here. So in that goal post position, if that's not comfortable for you, you can just keep them down. But if you can, we're going to flip up into the gold post. So 90 degrees. 90 degrees and then palms come down. So again, shoulder mobility. But if that doesn't feel good for you, just find a stretch. Just laying flat on your back, that does. Now we'll get one more. And from here, let's do those arm slides. So similar to what we did on the mat. You're going to slide it up, you're going to bring it down, and this is when keep going. You can really tell one of them. For me, it's my right does not want to stay on the mat. Right. It is tight. My left one is a lot more relaxed, and it can stay making contact with the mat. So you're trying to get the reach right, the sliding up, but you're also trying to keep those shoulders back. Again, I know it's challenging. Do the best you can. And one more. Let's take those arms out to the side, let your knees drop to the side and look away from the way your knees are pointing. And just knees and hips open book. You're just going one side into the other one side and then the other and breathe. And then let's keep our knees to one side. We're going to open up again like we did. You can pull across like a bow and arrow. Keep the knees in place. You can just reach across, or you can open wide. Take it up. And reach up. One more. Hold that stretch for just a count or two, looking away from the knees, and then open the knees to that other side. Knees are going to stay dropped. You're going to take that top arm across. And again you pull through just like we did on the mat. Like a bow and arrow or straight arms. I'm not going to go all the way because I'm laying on my microphone, but you know what to do. And here to here. So coming down flat on your mat, we're going to finish here. I want you just to relax your shoulders, release your. Your jaw and your head and your neck. We tend to hold a lot of tension there. Even at the end of a mobility workout. Maybe your hips feel open, your shoulders are feeling good, but you're feeling the stress here. So relax the draw the jaw and let your shoulders pull down and into the mat. And I just want you to spend the next 30 seconds or so just starting at the top of your body and just taking inventory. Trying to feel like everything is sinking into the mat, just like our bodies are water or sand, but just relaxing into that. This is something that you can be thinking about. When we try to go to sleep at night. I know I tend to go to sleep with a lot of tension, and I'll catch myself clenching my jaw or tight in my shoulders, but trying to just let our body relax. We're not holding that tension all the way down to the the hips, to the knees, to the ankles. And you can stay here as long as you need. But let's get one big, deep breath in. You don't have to do the arms, but I will inhale and exhale. You did it. That was your full body mobility and flexibility for menopause workout. Great job, everybody.