flexibility training

Yoga Flow: 50-Min – Full Body Mobility, Strength, Stretch & Release

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Hello Everyone!

I hope you are ready for a lovely full body yoga flow. We are combining strength, mobility and stretching in this yoga sequence. I’ve been teaching yoga for more than a decade now, and it still gives me such a wonderful sense of happiness and calm.

During today’s flow, try to remain focused on the present moment. If you find your mind wandering to other things try to direct yourself back to the breath or the physical sensations you are feeling in the body. Practicing our focus during yoga, also extends to the ability to focus off the mat.

Yoga is best done with bare feet. It helps you ground yourself, but also decreases how much you slide on the mat. I often wear socks, because my toes get very cold. I have a condition called Raynaud’s that can decrease blood flow to the extremities, so I often wear socks during yoga to avoid those symptoms.

Wearing socks during yoga to keep my feet warm.

I filmed this flow as a Live video for member’s of MelissaBenderFitness.com. It was a trial run for incorporating more live workouts. It went well, so it’s definitely something I will be repeating in the future. It’s also Day 5 in the Fit At Home workout series. Today’s workout is a 20-Minute Full Body HIIT with Jesse.

Food Intolerances and the Anti-Inflammatory Diet:

Lately, I have been struggling with a lot of swelling and bloating. I believe that I am suffering with some food intolerances. My plan to address this is to cut out dairy products and keep a small journal recording how I am feeling physically. I think that keeping a log that shows a direct link between inflammation, pain and bloating will help me break that pattern. When you’re not really sure what’s causing the issue it’s easier to play loosey-goosey with eating things that don’t make you feel well. The swelling that I am dealing with isn’t just abdominal, but also extends to my hands, legs and feet.

Dairy allergies can cause edema, and so can too much salt in the diet (too little salt is also a problem, it’s about balance). I know that I can’t drink milk, and that whey proteins cause swelling in my body, so I believe that continuing to have other forms of dairy is my issue. I also have a preference for savory foods, so sodium may also be a contributing factor that I need to pay attention to.

When I dealt with this in the past, shortly after having my son and dealing with gallbladder issues, I started incorporating techniques from the Anti-Inflammatory Diet and noticed all of the swelling and weight fluctuations basically disappeared.

Moderation:

This week, I am working with my yoga students on moderation and right use of energy. We are focused on becoming aware of the ways in which we use our energy, and if we are directing too much or too little energy to specific areas of our lives. I invite you to do some self reflection on how you are using your energy.

I hope that you enjoy today’s flow and find it useful. I felt amazing when I completed this sequence.

Have fun today,

Melissa

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The Yoga Flow:

Beginner Stretch: Seated and Standing Stretches for Flexibility

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Hi Everyone!

Today’s video is a Beginner Stretching for increased flexibility. This routine combines seated and standing stretches. The only equipment you need is a chair. This is a simple stretching program that will promote health and flexibility.

During any flexibility program you should feel a stretching sensation in the targeted muscles. You may be uncomfortable at times. Stretching shouldn’t hurt. One of the main goals of stretching is injury prevention. Move slowly in your stretches. Do not bounce.

In this video I hold each stretch for 30-seconds. You can extend the amount of time you spend in the stretch to 60-seconds as you become familiar with each exercise. This routine utilizes several single side stretches, because it helps decrease the chance of compensatory movement patterns. When you stretch both sides of the body, often your stronger side (we all have one) will dominate the exercise. We want to target each muscle group as efficiently as possible.

I included a photo tutorial with exercise descriptions below. I encourage you to watch the video for further description of each exercise.

Stay tuned, we have new workouts headed your way!

See you soon,

Melissa

PS You can find me on Social Media: @BenderFitness and on Facebook: @MelissaBenderFitness and Jesse is on Instagram: @BenderCrosby1

PPS If you want to help support BenderFitness so we can get a babysitter (so we can film more often), new camera, new equipment & make our site more sustainable your donation is greatly appreciated: https://www.patreon.com/BenderFitness

  1. Standing Forward Fold
  2. Staggered Forward Fold-Right
  3. Staggered Forward Fold-Left
  4. Quadricep Stretch-Right
  5. Quadricep Stretch-Left
  6. Seated IT Stretch (Modified Pigeon Pose)-Right
  7. Seated IT Stretch (Modified Pigeon Pose)-Left
  8. Shoulder Squeeze
  9. Eagle Arms-Right
  10. Eagle Arms-Left
  11. Side Reach-Right
  12. Side Reach-Left
  13. Gentle Twist-Right
  14. Gentle Twist-Left
  15. Seated Camel

Forward Fold. Primary Focus: Keep your back flat and hips reaching backward. You should feel a stretch in the back of the legs. Only go as far as you can while keeping your back flat.

Staggered Forward Fold: Keep your back flat. Form is the same as for the Forward Fold, with the exception of foot placement.

Quad Stretch: Focus on stretching the hip flexors and the front of the thigh. Keep the hips tucked toward your rib cage to maximize the stretch. Avoid compensatory movements.

IT/Hip Stretch (Modified Pigeon Pose): Keep your back flat and lean forward slightly to intensify the stretch. Keep your foot flexed, and do not push directly on your knee.

Shoulder Squeeze. Squeeze your shoulders together toward your spine. This stretches the front of the shoulders, while strengthening your back. This exercise helps counteract the postural pitfalls of spending time at a desk/computer.

Eagle Arms: Shoulder/Back stretch. Be sure to repeat this stretch on both sides. Avoid lifting the shoulders toward your ears.

Stretch the opposite arm by changing which elbow is on top.

Side Stretch. Shoulders stay stacked as you lean to the side. Feel the stretch on the outside of your abdomen as you create length in your midsection.

Seated Camel Stretch: Focus on lengthening the front of the abdomen, and lifting from the low back as you stretch back. Simultaneously lift your heart toward the ceiling.

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Yoga Flow Workout: Lean Stretch Fat Burn

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Hi Everyone!

It’s been a busy week, with some tough workouts. It’s time to stretch it out with a Yoga Flow. So far this week our workout schedule has been:

Sunday: I did an 8-Mile Run Outside.

Monday: 15 Minute Flab-u-less Arm Workout with Cardio Fat Burn

Tuesday: 15 Minute Cardio HIIT All Over Fat Burn Workout & Thigh Sculpt

Wednesday: 15 Minute Sculpted Body Home Workout with Dumbbells

Thursday: Today is a Yoga Flow.

This flow is short, about 20 minutes, but it can be repeated. Yoga is all about balance, so this workout helps tone and strengthen your entire body. Maintaining flexibility in your muscles and joints helps relieve pain and prevent injury.

yoga flow pic

Here are some other Yoga Flows you might enjoy: Yoga Flows. Have fun with today’s workout! Yesterday we had a celebration dinner for my sister finishing her last ever college course, and tonight we are going to the newest Star Wars movie premiere. Friday is Jesse’s birthday, but we are planning on filming this weekend. It has been crazy hectic lately, which I will be writing more about, but there ARE new workouts headed your way! We just haven’t had time to film them yet!

As always, you can find me on Instagram & Twitter: @BenderFitness and on Facebook: www.facebook.com/MelissaBenderFitness.

See you soon!
Melissa

 

 

 

Stretches to Improve Flexibility for Splits (with Photos and Video)

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Hi Everyone!

Are you ready to work on your flexibility for splits? You’ve come to the right place! My stretching video is below. 

One of my goals this year is to be able to do a split. Splits require flexibility in the hip flexors, hamstrings and back. They are called Monkey Pose in Yoga. This pose can help alleviate sciatic pain. 

Additionally, hip flexibility and alignment is beneficial in all of your workouts. When your hips are properly aligned pressure is distributed evenly throughout your body. The pressure distribution through your hips impacts knee and back alignment during all exercise. 

I shared some pictures of my progress, and got a lot of questions about stretches that you can do to help progress toward doing a split. I filmed a video of a stretching routine you can do to help improve your flexibility for splits. Remember to always warm-up first! You don’t want to static stretch cold muscles. 

Do not force any stretches. Do not bounce in any stretches. Listen to your body and go at your own pace. Consult your doctor with any concerns or medical issues, and check with them to see if it’s okay to participate in these stretches. 

Hopefully soon I will have my full split! Feel free to tag me in your photos on Instagram (@BenderFitness) or Facebook! 

I hope you’re enjoying the Lean Muscle Building Workouts thus far. A big part of building lean muscle is rest and maintaining flexibility. Building muscle won’t do you any good if you lose flexibility and lose functional abilities or get injured. Rest days are when your muscles repair and gain strength. 

Melissa

PS You can check in with your progress  on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. #BenderFitness or @BenderFitness 
Just Starting Out. Notice Upper Body Position in relation to Hips. 

Able to Lift the Chest over the Hips a bit more. 

Getting Better

Almost There


*Warm-Up
Dynamic Leg Swings

1. Forward Fold
2. Runner’s Lunge (right)
3. Nose to Knee (right)
4. Runner’s Lunge (left)
5. Nose to Knee (left)
6. Pigeon (right)
7. Pigeon Fold (right)
8. Pigeon Stretch (right)
9. Pigeon (left)
10. Pigeon Fold (left)
11. Pigeon Stretch (left)
12. Down Dog
13. Cat/Cow
14. Leg Wall Stretch (right)
15. Leg Wall Stretch (left)
16. Saddle Wall Stretch
17. Split (right)
18. Split (left)
19. Split (center) 

Leg Swings

Forward Fold

Runners Lunge with Stretch Back

Nose to Knee

Pigeon

Pigeon Fold

Pigeon Stretch

Down Dog

Cow Pose

Cat Pose

Leg Wall Stretch (right)

Saddle Wall Stretch

Split

Center Split


Yoga Flow Workout: Lean Stretch Fat Burn

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Hi Everyone!

This is workout #27 of my HIIT the New Year Hard Workout Challenge! I asked on my facebook page what everyone wanted to see more of, and many people requested more yoga videos. 

This flow is short, about 20 minutes, but it can be repeated. Yoga is all about balance, so this workout helps tone and strengthen your entire body. Maintaining flexibility in your muscles and joints helps relieve pain and prevent injury. 

I am a firm believer in the benefits of yoga. I have presented (with three other talented researchers) at the Pennsylvania Occupational Therapy Association conference on the use of yoga to improve self regulation skills in children. Our presentation was also accepted to be presented at the American Occupational Therapy Association conference. I have also presented on the use of yoga to prevent falls, and improve balance in the elderly. Yoga has benefits across the lifespan. 

I still have a new boot camp workout to share with you all. I am hoping to get it posted this evening. I ran out of time yesterday. I am off to work, but I will see you later!

Melissa

Facebook, Instagram or Twitter


HIIT the New Year Hard: Workout 14: 30 Minute Yoga, Pilates, Fitness Fusion Workout

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Hi Everyone!

Today is Day 14 of my HIIT the New Year Hard Workout Challenge. Today’s workout is a 30 Minute Yoga/Pilates/Fitness Fusion. The video is below. 

I filmed this workout this summer. I am taking the night off because I am exhausted and I can tell my body needs a rest. I will be back with a new workout tomorrow night. I teach Boot Camp and Yoga classes on Tuesday/Thursday nights at a University. It is my first week back for the semester (plus my regular full-time job as an Occupational Therapist) so I need a bit of extra rest to allow my body to re-adjust to the schedule. 

This workout style is great because it is challenging and it promotes both muscular strength and flexibility. This is a great full body workout that requires no equipment. 

Maintaining and improving flexibility and strength is important to injury prevention and muscular balance. People who are very flexible at times have difficulty holding positions like plank due to decreased strength in the muscles that support strong posture. People who focus only on strength often do so at the expense of flexibility and lost range of motion. 
Having a balance of both strength and flexibility will promote health and proper biomechanics, which will help you to maintain a healthy body. 
I haven’t been doing as much yoga/stretching as I used to, and I have lost a lot of my flexibility. I want to re-incorporate yoga and meditation into my routine. I will write about the benefits of meditation (which are numerous!) If you have any questions please post them in the comments below or on Facebook. 

I love taking my workout outdoors. There is something rejuvenating about being surrounded by nature. It is winter here now, so it will be a while before I do any outside yoga again. 

I hope you enjoy today’s workout!
Melissa

PS You can find me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest. Jesse has also been posting sneak peek workouts moves/tutorials on his Instagram page. 

I am hosting a 30 Day Bonus Move Workout Challenge on my Instagram Page. You can find me: @BenderFitness 

20 Minute Yoga Flow & Stretch

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Hi Everyone!

Happy New Year’s Eve! I am still fighting off a cold so I took yesterday off. I want to be in tip-top shape for my HIIT the New Year Hard Fitness Challenges! I will be sharing new workouts and completing the challenge with you. For an idea of what the workouts will be like you can check out my Original DietBet Challenge Workouts: Here!

It is not to late to sign up for the challenge: www.dietbet.com/BenderFitness. You can join up to two weeks in, but I recommend starting as early as possible for the most time to hit your goal. Weigh-in starts tomorrow, and the game officially starts on January 3rd. 

This workout is a yoga flow and stretch. It’s quick (20 Minutes), but it felt great to do some yoga. 

With yoga (and any exercise) it’s very important to listen to your body. You want to challenge yourself, but you never want to bounce in any poses (for example trying to touch your toes: reach as far as you can, but don’t bounce up and down to stretch further). 

Also, your balance can vary from one side of your body to the other. I have better balance standing on my right foot than my left. Everyone is different. Challenge yourself. 

I included an inversion in this routine. In the video I talk about supporting the pose through your arms. You do not want to put pressure through your head. If you don’t have the strength to do this yet keep building up to it. 

If you have uncontrolled or poorly controlled high blood pressure, neck problems (herniated disks, etc), or glaucoma skip the headstand. 

Health is more important than attempting to do a yoga pose or exercise. 🙂

Enjoy the workout!
Melissa



Diet Bet Challenge: Day 19: 30 Minute Yoga Flow

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Hi Everyone,

Today is Day 19 of the DietBet Challenge. Are you ready to stretch out all of that hard work you have done this week? 

Your body is going to love this yoga flow! I worked up a great sweat, and challenged the muscles throughout my body. 

I incorporated movements with a lot of positive health benefits. The twisting movements enhance intestinal/digestive healthy and spinal suppleness/flexibility. Increased flexibility of the spine, and alignment means that your brain is able to transmit signals to your body more accurately. 

I also incorporated Plow pose which is linked to thyroid health and reduction of cellulite. It also improves drainage of the lymphatic system. 

Those are just a few of the benefits of this particular yoga flow. 🙂 

I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! Gambit makes a guest appearance in the end of the video. 

Melissa


Diet Bet Challenge: Day 5: Yoga Stretch and Recover

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Hi Everyone!

Welcome to Day 5 of the DietBet Challenge! It’s a yoga day! Time to stretch out all of those muscles and get rid of any soreness and lactic acid build up in your body. 

It’s been a great week of workouts so far. Stretching can actually improve your body’s ability to recover and build lean muscle. Yoga has also been shown to improve your awareness of your bodies hunger signals, and is linked to decreased appetite and more mindful eating. 

Yoga also lowers your stress and cortisol production. Higher Cortisol levels have been linked to increased belly fat, and difficulty losing weight. 

Don’t forget to check-in on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter once you have completed your workout! If you still want to join the challenge it’s not to late: www.dietbet.com/BenderFitness

I hope you enjoy the workout today!
Melissa

Traditional Sun Salutation (Surya Namaskar) and Fitness Fusion Variation: How-To

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Hi Everyone!

For tonight’s workout I kept it very simple and did 10 Sun Salutations. 

Sun Salutations are composed of 9 basic yoga postures. 

  • Mountain Pose (Tadasana)
  • Upward Salute (Urdhva Hastasana)
  • Standing Forward bend (Uttanasana)
  • Warrior I/Lunge
  • Plank Pose
  • Chaturanga Dandasana (Four-Limbed Staff Pose)
  • Upward Facing Dog (Urdhva Mukha Svanasana)
  • Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana)
  • Chair Pose (Utkatasna)
These poses will give you a full body workout. You will bring your body and spine through a full range of motion that will help improve your flexibility, circulation, and even digestion. 

Anytime you are practicing yoga (or any exercise) you will reap the most benefits by focusing on each pose you engage in. Improving your mind body connection actually improves the physical and mental benefits you get from exercise. 

The video below is the first video I ever posted on my blog. As you can see the website has actually changed names since then! 

For those of you looking for an extra challenge I also posted my Sun Salutation/Fitness Fusion workout, which combines Sun Salutations with weighted exercises. (I stuck to the traditional version tonight). 


I am planning on posting new workouts all week. I am filming a new workout tomorrow evening as soon as I get home. I am re-focusing on my health and fitness, and getting my energy level back up to where it used to be. 🙂 

I started out this weekend by running a 5K on Saturday, Yoga tonight (Sunday), and getting back to sharing more workouts this week. 

Enjoy! I will see you tomorrow!
Melissa

PS You can also find me on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. 

Traditional Sun Salutation: 

Sun Salutation: Fitness Fusion: Power Yoga

Yoga, Pilates, Bender Fitness: Workout Fusion

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Hi Everyone!

Today’s workout is a 30 Minute Yoga/Pilates/Fitness Fusion. The video is below. 

This workout style is great because it is challenging and it promotes both muscular strength and flexibility. This is a great full body workout that requires no equipment. 

Maintaining and improving flexibility and strength is important to injury prevention and muscular balance. People who are very flexible at times have difficulty holding positions like plank due to decreased strength in the muscles that support strong posture. People who focus only on strength often do so at the expense of flexibility and lost range of motion. 
Having a balance of both strength and flexibility will promote health and proper biomechanics, which will help you to maintain a healthy body. 
I haven’t been doing as much yoga/stretching as I used to, and I have lost a lot of my flexibility. I want to re-incorporate yoga and meditation into my routine. I will write about the benefits of meditation (which are numerous!) If you have any questions please post them in the comments below or on Facebook. 

I love taking my workout outdoors. There is something rejuvenating about being surrounded by nature. 

I hope you enjoy today’s workout!
Melissa

PS You can find me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest. Jesse has also been posting sneak peek workouts moves/tutorials on his Instagram page. 

Yoga Flow: Strength and Stretch: 20 Minute Sequence

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Hi Everyone!

Today’s workout is a Yoga Flow (the video is below). This is a great one to help improve your flexibility and build strength in your body at the same time. 

Several studies have shown that people who practice yoga regularly are more aware of their bodies hunger signals and are less likely to overeat. Also, yoga helps increase awareness of the body which improves execution of exercises and physical movements. 

I hope you guys enjoy this flow. I had fun filming it and it felt great to stretch. I really need to work on getting my flexibility back. I am going to create a basic flexibility stretch routine that can be done daily. 

I will be sharing my progress and Jesse’s progress with the stretching. Of course you are welcome to join us. 🙂 

Flexibility can help prevent biomechanics imbalances that cause injury, and it can help protect your muscles. Make a little bit of time to fit it into your schedule!

See you later with a new workout!
Melissa

PS I haven’t tried Flying Pigeon Pose in a long time so I decided to give it a whirl. It wasn’t the prettiest because I haven’t practiced in a long time, and my hip flexors have lost some flexibility. Here is the starting picture. Hopefully after I incorporate my stretching routine I will be able to flatten out my back, hold through the core, and lift the leg a little bit higher. 



30 Day Challenge: Day 5: Yoga Stretch and Recover

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Hi Everyone!

Welcome to Day 5 of the 30 Day Challenge! It’s a yoga day! Time to stretch out all of those muscles and get rid of any soreness and lactic acid build up in your body. 

In addition to this workout I taught a longer variation of my Day 2 Cardio HIIT workout. We added 30 seconds of jump roping or high knees in place of the 10 seconds of rest, and we repeated the workout twice (for a total of 40 minutes) plus warm-up and cool-down. I definitely needed the yoga after that! 

Don’t forget to check-in on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter once you have completed your workout! 

I hope you enjoy the workout today!
Melissa

30 Day Challenge: Day 17: Yoga Stretch and Recovery

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Hi Everyone!
This is Day 17 of the 30 Day Workout Challenge. 🙂

This is an active recovery workout to stretch out the entire body, get the blood flowing to any tight muscles, and help remove any lactic acid build up from your body. This yoga flow takes 20 minutes. 

Yoga is amazing, because when you finish a yoga flow your body has a different kind of energy than it does when you finish a high intensity workout. If you are trying both today compare how you feel after each one. Additionally, research has shown that yoga increases your body awareness and decreases over eating. The theory is that as you raise awareness of your body you are able to more accurately interpret hunger signals vs boredom. 

I also got in a 3 mile run, so I am attaching a HIIT Cardio Workout video as well.  

I hope you all enjoy the Day 17 workout! I am late getting this posted, so Day 18 will be posted this afternoon. 🙂

Melissa

PS Keep Checking In! Facebook, Instagram, Twitter. 

15 Minute High Intensity Home Cardio Workout

Strength and Stretch Yoga: 20 Minutes

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Hi Everyone!

Last night was a yoga night (the video of the flow is below). I have just over a week until my first half marathon, so I also got in some easy (comfortable pace) running miles. It is super hilly where I live so it can be challenging to get in an easy effort workout. Sometimes it’s just as important to slow down as it is to push hard. 

I really enjoyed this workout. It’s a great combination of stretching and strengthening. As with all workouts it’s important to push at your own pace/level of flexibility. It doesn’t matter if you can’t touch your toes (yet), what matters is that every time you do these exercises you recognize what your body is capable of and you respect that. If you respect your body it will return the favor and grow stronger and more capable. 🙂 

Stretches and yoga poses should not hurt. They should challenge you, and you should feel your muscles working, but never bounce in a pose or push a stretch further than you are able to. Flexibility comes with time and practice. It’s something that I really need to work on because I am not as flexible as I used to be, and it helps keep you safe and injury free. 

Enjoy the yoga flow!
Melissa





30 Minute Yoga Flow

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Hi Everyone,

Last night I wanted to get back to basics, and do a yoga flow. My body loved it! I worked up a great sweat, and challenged the muscles throughout my body. 

I incorporated movements with a lot of positive health benefits. The twisting movements enhance intestinal/digestive healthy and spinal suppleness/flexibility. Increased flexibility of the spine, and alignment means that your brain is able to transmit signals to your body more accurately. 

I also incorporated Plow pose which is linked to thyroid health and reduction of cellulite. It also improves drainage of the lymphatic system. 

Those are just a few of the benefits of this particular yoga flow. 🙂 

I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! Gambit makes a guest appearance in the end of the video. 

Melissa


Stretch and Lean Yoga Flow

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Hi Everyone,

My calves were very sore from my workout yesterday and Sunday. I also ran with the girls from the cross country team today, so I desperately needed some stretching and yoga. At some point I really want to film a good yoga flow workout and share it on here. It is very difficult because of the upload time associated with longer videos. I’m not saying this is a bad video, it is just short for a yoga flow (this 18 minute video took 2 1/2 hours to upload). 

This flow did feel great, and it really helped stretch some of the areas that have been tight from my runs lately. If you have time I would definitely recommend going through it two to three times. 

It is so important to maintain your flexibility, and to maximize your strength gains through proper stretching. 

I hope you guys enjoyed the stretch, and I will see you tomorrow with a new workout. 
Melissa