1. Get Up off the Floor
Testing your structural floor mobility without relying on external bracing. Practices focus on standard ground-transition restorations and hip freedom.
Built to Move
"Mobility" is a kind of wonky term that refers to something quite beautiful: the harmonious convergence of all the elements that allow you to move freely and effortlessly through space and life.
// Basic Info
The book is written by Kelly Starrett and Juliet Starrett, who were top-notch athletes and excellent trainers now. I discovered their book again from an episode of a podcast, again by Tim Ferriss. Unlike that episode which made me feel lost in the terminologies, I found this book clear and easy to follow (except that it would be better if they could provide a video showing exactly how to do the exercises instead of just illustrations).
// Introduction
This book looks into ten vital signs closely related to our health and provides practical, easy-to-follow daily practices. I skimmed through most of the whys and focused on the hows. The habits provide an excellent structural template for physical maintenance, emphasizing functional longevity over raw performance metric tracking.
// The Ten Essential Habits
2. Breathe Easy
Focuses on unbracing the diaphragm and extending nasal pathways to regulate the internal nervous system baseline.
3. Extend Your Hips
Counteracting the constant shortening of hip flexors caused by long, stationary working hours behind desks.
4. Walk Tall
The foundational layer of low-intensity steady-state movement. Crucial for joint lubrication and systematic cardiovascular clearance.
5. Look After Your Shoulders
Restoring proper upper-extremity overhead range of motion and systematic thoracic extension.
6. Fuel Your Body
Recommendation: Pay attention to protein and micronutrient intake to optimize muscular structural repair and soft-tissue integrity.
7. Squat
Recommendation: Don't be afraid to squat and bend deeply over the knees.
Engage in different mobilization exercises:
- Sit-Stands
- Deep Squat Hang-outs (3 times/week)
- Tabata Squats: 8 sets, 20 seconds of exercise with 10-second rest
8. Find Your Balance
Recommendation: Find different ways to do balance training in daily life.
Engage in different mobilization exercises:
9. Create a Movement-Rich Environment
Recommendation: Try to set up standing stations and fidget during sitting. Designing workspaces that encourage subtle, perpetual movement changes throughout the day.
10. Sleep
Prioritizing consistent down-regulation windows and dark, cold sleeping conditions to optimize physical tissue rebuilding timelines.