Helen Mirren’s secret to stay in shape? Forget the hours spent in the gym. At 79, the actress, famous for her flawless elegance, has a good habit.
Helen Mirren says: “No need for expensive equipment or complex exercises to maintain your body“It recommends a program developed in the 1950s by Dr. Bill Orban for Royal Canadian aviation, specially designed to improve strength, flexibility and cardiovascular health. It emphasizes that this program is accessible to everyone, even to beginners , specifying: “I have never exceeded the second level, but it’s enough to stay in shape. “
The program, known as XBX (for “ten basic exercises”), is distinguished by its modular structure and its fixed duration. It includes simple exercises such as leg elevations, flexions and stretching. Each movement targets a specific part of the body, whether it is to strengthen the abs, improve flexibility or work endurance.
At level 1, the program begins with a 2 -minute race on site, consisting in raising your knees at moderate height while swinging your arms. Then, we go on with arm flexions. On his knees, hands on the ground, slightly more apart than the width of the shoulders, we fold our arms to lower the chest to the ground, then return to the starting position, repeating 5 times. The third exercise is the trunk statement: lying on the back, knees bent, hands behind the head, the upper body is raised towards the knees then returned to the elongated position, repeated 10 times. For the leg raising, lying on the back, arms along the body, we lift the legs stretched at 45 degrees, before descending them gently, with 5 repetitions. The bridge follows: always lying down, feet on the ground and knees bent, we slowly lift the hips until we align knees, hips and shoulders, repeating 5 times.
The lateral flexions, standing and slightly apart, allow you to work the waist: you slowly tilt the torso from one side then on the other, 5 times on each side. Then, we make a stretch of the back by leaning forward to touch the toes, before going up slowly, 5 repetitions. The knees’ flexions are being standing, the feet set off with the width of the shoulders, bending the knees as if to sit on an imaginary chair, repeated 10 times. The lateral stretches consist in turning the torso from left to right, arms spread at the height of the shoulders, with 5 repetitions on each side. Finally, we finish with 2 minutes of relaxation, lying on our backs or standing, to release all the muscles by breathing deep.
The program lasts 12 minutes and can be adapted by increasing rehearsals or the level of difficulty as the body adapts. Helen Mirren shows that a simple and regular routine is enough to maintain its shape and vitality. A timeless method proving that with basic movements, carried out over a short duration, one can obtain real benefits for your body. Motivating!