Arnold Schwarzenegger took to his Instagram account today to give everyone an important—and visually jarring—reminder about an often-neglected component of a healthy fitness regimen.
“Flexibility is just as important as weight training itself, so here we go,” he said, appearing to do a full split on his kitchen counter. “Suck it up, in with your arms, and then bend over slowly to the side,” Schwarzenegger added, slowly leaning over and reaching for his “right foot,” before repeating the move on the other side. Then, Arnold revealed the gag.
“Anyway,” he said, stepping away from what were—very clearly, if we’re being honest—a pair of fake legs. “I feel really flexible today, feeling really proud of myself.”
While it’s a solid joke for the 72-year-old former Mr. Olympia, however, it contains a kernel of truth: If you’re not regularly focusing on mobility, you aren’t doing your body any favors, especially if—like most of us—you’re spending hours of self-quarantine hunched over a laptop in an uncomfortable chair.
As physical therapist Rachel Tavel, PT, DPT, CSCS, previously told Men’s Health, “All this bad positioning can take a toll on our bodies and their alignment. Muscles that are supposed to be lengthened and shortened throughout the day stay short, making them tight and potentially limiting movement.”
Thankfully, Tavel has a prescription to help you fix that—a combination of simple stretches that target typical problem areas such as the neck, pecs, upper back, hamstrings, and calves. Unfortunately for you and Arnold, however, it won’t help you do the splits.
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