Milo Bryant is a performance coach as well as an experienced journalist. He’s also in his 50s—and his book Unstoppable After 40 gives you the roadmap to do more than merely remain active as you "mature." Milo trains hard and recovers even better so he can do what he wants, when he wants. Get ready to use his methods to become unstoppable. This isn’t your dad’s middle age.
SIT UP. Yeah, you reading this—we see you craning your neck over that screen. Pull back those shoulders and straighten that spine. Stop that hunching. Fix your posture.
Sound like your mother? Sorry, not sorry. But most people are spending too much time slouching at your desks, behind the wheel, on the couch, wherever, hunching over while looking down at their phones. The older you get, the more sloppy posture affects your spine and, eventually, your quality of life—thanks to the health complications that come about from tech neck and bad posture. You need to be intentional about doing exercises to counteract that slump.
Thankfully, you don't necessarily need complicated routines to do this. Exercises such as the Superman hold aren’t challenging to do. Maintaining consistency in doing them is the chore. While everyday life bends the thoracic (upper torso) spine forward, the Superman Hold does the reverse and opens the thoracic spine.
Persistent poor posture, particularly this forward bending of the spine, can lead to an imbalance of the muscles on the front of your body, mainly the chest muscles and the muscles in your neck and back. A condition called Upper Crossed Syndrome, which can show up as pain in the back of the neck and in the spine between the shoulder blades, could occur in the absence of proper physical engagement.
Doing the Superman hold twice a week (two sets of 10 reps a set) will go a long way toward counteracting your poor posture. The exercise is also a valuable bodyweight back movement, giving you an opportunity to balance out your quick pushup-based workouts you turn to when you're in a pinch. We'll stop nagging you once you add this movement to your repertoire.
How to Do the Superman Hold
- Lie facedown on a flat, firm surface with your arms extended in front of you, legs extended behind you.
- Squeeze your glutes, raise your legs a few inches off the ground, and tighten your back muscles, raising your arms a few inches off the ground, as if flying like Superman.
- Hold for 5 seconds. Repeat 10 times.
Best Coaching Cues for the Superman Hold
● Keep your head in line with the rest of the body. There is no need to “look” ahead of you. Your nose should be pointing to the ground.
● Engage the core, glutes, and back muscles before thinking about lifting the legs and torso off the ground.
● Don’t forget to breathe throughout this movement. Take in a breath before energy exertion. Slowly exhale while doing the movement. Repeat.
Helpful Tip for the Superman Hold
Fellas, make sure your “family inheritance” is out of the way before doing this exercise. You should aim to get the belly button and the thighs off the floor while stabilizing (putting the most pressure) on the lower abdomen.
Milo Bryant, CSCS, is a California-based trainer and an award-winning journalist.
