MONDAY MOVE
An Amazing-Feeling Move That Strengthens the Back, Core, Glutes, and Shoulders
You’ll be so glad you tried this
I was not an active kid — always picked last for dodgeball teams, terribly uncoordinated, self-conscious about my knobbly knees in gym shorts. In eighth grade, I broke my pinkie finger playing kickball (figure that one out). But in my twenties, a pathetic-sounding reason arose to kickstart me into a regular exercise routine: I kept throwing out my back. A weird stretch after too much time on the couch, a sudden turn of the head, even a sneeze could do it. I got a gym membership (heavily subsidized by my employer, thankfully), met with a trainer for a few sessions to get started, and thanks to a weight-training regimen heavy on the rows, my back started to act right.
Of course, I have to maintain it, and in these inactive pandemic times, it’s more important than ever that I keep my entire posterior chain — the muscles on the back of the body — in tip-top shape. One of my favorite moves that helps accomplish this is the bird-dog.
The basic gist of the move is that you’re raising opposite arm and leg in an all-fours position, and it requires excellent core stability to keep you steady, engages the postural muscles on your back, and challenges both the shoulder girdle…
