AMANDA STERCZYK - AUTHOR
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BLog

Back to Basics: Essentrics® Alphabet Sequence

5/16/2016

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It’s back to basics with a primer on the Essentrics® Alphabet Sequence. A quick internet search reveals loads of therapy videos using the alphabet as an exercise to relieve foot and ankle pain, improve ankle mobility and strengthen the corresponding muscles. In these videos, the patient is typically lying down to complete the exercise. So what makes the Essentrics Alphabet Sequence unique?
Essentrics is a full-body program designed to rebalance the entire body through simultaneous stretching and strengthening.  When we do the alphabet, we’re focused on rebalancing the hip and leg, and strengthening the leg muscles. It’s a balance exercise - you’re working the standing leg as much as the leg drawing the letters. Essentially, half of the benefits are to the standing leg.

Essentrics is a also techniques-based fitness program, and these techniques are present in the Alphabet Sequence. The leg is being rotated within the joint, which improves mobility and range of motion in the often-too-tight hip joint. The leg is pulled out during the sequence - aka an eccentric contraction - which strengthens those leg muscles in the lengthened position. 
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The exercise can be varied, depending on the focus of a workout: a gentler version with fewer letters drawn before switching legs is recommended for older participants, and anyone with balance or mobility issues. With some of my young-at-heart populations, I'll have them hang on to a chair for safety. Being on one leg is still working balance reflexes for them, without the risk of falling. 
For a more intense, strengthening sequence, participants go through the alphabet twice: first with their foot pointed, then with their foot flexed. Talk about building muscle endurance!


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And by isolating the leg and keeping the hips stable, the alphabet becomes a core strengthener as well. No need for sit ups with these types of exercises!
Want to focus more on your quads? Sit on the floor and do the alphabet as part of a quad raiser sequence. Talk about strengthening for the quads!
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Changing the speed at which you draw the letters can also train your body in different ways - slower movement works the slow twitch muscle fibres. (1) This is great for endurance and energy, as the slow twitch fibres contain the mitochondria, the power sources for your cells. (2) For power and speed, draw the letters faster to activate the fast twitch muscle fibres.
Now, it’s your turn to try the Essentrics Alphabet Sequence:
Try some quad raisers (but add the alphabet!):
References:
  1. https://www.acefitness.org/blog/5714/slow-twitch-vs-fast-twitch-muscle-fibers
  2. For more info on mitochondria, read the December 2015 blog post: http://www.essentricswithamanda.com/blog/feed-your-body-and-your-brain-with-essentrics-plies
Image sources: 
Amanda Sterczyk & Pixabay.com - copyright-free images

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    Amanda Sterczyk is an international author,  Certified Personal Trainer (ACSM), an Exercise is Medicine Canada (EIMC) Fitness Professional, and a Certified Essentrics® Instructor. 

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Land Acknowledgement

I live and work on the traditional and unceded Algonquin Anishinaabe territory. Algonquin people have lived in the Ottawa Valley for at least 8,000 years before the Europeans arrived in North America, and are the customary keepers and defenders of the Ottawa River Watershed and its tributaries. From coast to coast to coast, I acknowledge the ancestral and unceded territory of all the Inuit, Métis, and First Nations people who call this land home. 

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​The advice and recommendations provided by Amanda Sterczyk - Author are not medical guidelines but are for educational purposes only. You must consult your physician prior to starting any exercise program.
 
​©2024 Amanda Sterczyk
  • About
    • Meet Amanda
    • Testimonials
    • Events
  • Books
    • Foundations of Balance & Fall Prevention: Series
    • Workplace Wellness Through Physical Activity: Series
    • The Aging Parents Book: Gentle Exercise for Seniors Over 80
    • Balance Exercises for Fall Prevention
    • Ejercicios de Equilibrio para Prevenir Caídas
    • Chair Exercises for Fall Prevention
    • Shawna's Outreach
    • Pace Yourself: Exercising After COVID-19
    • Move More, Your Life Depends On It
    • I Can See Your Underwear
    • Selfried and the Secrets
    • Audiobook: Balance Exercises for Fall Prevention
    • Bulk Orders
  • The Move More Institute™
    • 3 Days to Better Balance
    • Balance 2.0
    • Get Off Your Butt!
    • Add Movement at Work
    • Move More! Coaching for Behaviour Change
    • Move More with Amanda
    • Free Videos
  • Blog
  • Media
    • Print
    • Video
    • Audio
  • Contact