There are a few things that change as we age: our metabolism tends to slow, we play favourites with kitchen utensils, our clothes get more practical (apologies if you're set to be pensioner in sequins and heels – you're a legend).
One celeb taking care of herself as she moves through her thirties is former WH cover star, Gemma Atkinson.
In a new Insta post she shared that, like we all should, she’s adapted her workout regime to suit her age. Her new non-negosh? Stretching.
“Sunday stretch,” she captioned a photo of herself doing the splits. “Concentration face in full force. Being supple is part of my plan. Esp as I get older.
“I actually find stretching so therapeutic. Sundays are my cardio and core days and I always have 15 mins stretch before.” Wise words, Gem.
We’re forever touting the benefits of stretching both pre and post workout, but there’s even more weight to being a bendy wendy as we age. It comes down to both the collagen and water content we have in our bodies: think of it like our skin, in the same way that wrinkles set up camp as part of our complexion due to a lack of both collagen and water, the muscle and tendon tissue we have surrounding our joints starts to lose elasticity, too. The result is that we’re less flexible and mobile, and stretching is the key to maintaining your full range of motion.
What Atkinson’s post also proves, is that while we might need to take on different workout approaches as we go through life, we’re still capable of big things – she’s doing the splits, for heaven’s sake. “It took a few months, you just have to be consistent with your stretch routine,” she shared in the comments section.
It’s exactly this kind of mindset that means she also smashes out circuit, resistance and weight-lifting PBs on the reg.
In a past post she wrote: “At the start it feels impossible, it feels extremely painful and you feel stupid even trying. BUT! You put those feelings aside because you realise your worth.
“Do not give up. Do not doubt!”
Read up on the essential stretches to main a strong physique here.
