The second exercise is called the “Leg Worker”:

Stand tall in flat shoes or bare feet on the bottom of a step. Your feet have to parallel and hip-width apart. Hold on to the handrail. Place the balls of your feet on the step and the arches and the heels over the edge. You can also do this exercise on the floor, if you don’t have a step, but the stretch will be less. Breathe normally throughout and remain gently zipped. Bend both knees directly over your second toes, maintaining good posture. Do not tip forward or back. Lift both heels so that you are now on the balls of your feet. Keep your knees bent. Keep lengthening upwards, but don’t stick your bottom out! Slowly straighten your legs, but stay on the balls of your feet. Now lower your heels away from the top of your head until, if you are on a flat surface, they reach the floor, or, if you are on a step, they lower over the edge to stretch your calves. Repeat the sequence 10 times.

The   Wellicious team recommends two exercises that you can easily do at your officedesk to tone your body.

The first exercise is called “The Twister”:

Balance your weight evenly on your swivel office chair and lengthen your column.Hold the desk in front of you and lift your feet together off the floor. Breathe wideinto the rib cage. Breath out, zip gently, stay zipped. Keeping your upper body still and facing the front, rotate your lower body with the chair. Twist as far as you arecomfortable, as long as your upper body remains squarely facing forwards. Breath in then slowly, with control, twist back to the starting position. Repeat five times each way. Lengthening upwards through the spine.

Be Wellicious and change your life! Healthy living it’s not just about what you eat and how much you exercise. Modern life can be busy and stressful, and that can be just as much of an impediment to healthy living as a bad diet and lack of activity. Believe me…I know what I am talking about.

If you’re serious about healthy living, you need to examine how you deal with daily obstacles, as well as how often you take time to reflect and rest. Healthy living isn’t just an idea, it’s a lifestyle, and that means that the changes you make have to be committed and lasting.

Overhauling your diet and exercise regime are obviously the first step towards healthy living. The next is curbing destructive habits like smoking or alcohol abuse. But what most people don’t realise is that stress can be as harmful to your body and wellbeing as any other toxin.

Managing stress and getting adequate rest is crucial to wellness. You might want to explore soothing activities that release tensions and lower levels of adrenaline, such as massage, acupuncture, aromatherapy and hypnotherapy.

If you are serious about managing stress and creating and fostering the mind-body connection over the long term, you might want to take up training activities like yoga or Pilates.

Be Wellicious and you’ll see how your life will change!

You might associate Pilates machines with medieval torture machines but after a guided lesson you will be surprised of the amazing results you get…

If you don’t have a Pilates studio close to your place, try a class in the gym, it has similar effects. What you need is just a mat and motivation to get the nicest abs on the beach…

I do a mixture of Pilates, Hatha Yoga and Ashtanga Yoga, which I think is a very good combination to get it all: relaxation AND nicely shaped curves.

Here are my 10 reasons to do Pilates:

1. It flattens, tones, strengthens abdominal muscles (I call it “ab-envy”…)
2. You get longer and leaner muscles (not bulky!)
3. Your posture improves, the movements are more graceful (Think of a ballet dancer)
4. You’ll develop muscular control that helps you to reduce the risk of injury
5. It increases circulation (good bye cellulite…)
6. It stretches away tensions
7. It improves the youth and flexibility of your spine
8. You’ll heighten your concentration
9. You’ll breathe deeper
10. It boosts your self-esteem and energy (Pilates is work! There is a big accomplishment after a workout…)

Happy work-out & be wellicious

x Franziska