Our bodies are shaped by every movement we make and, in particular, by those we do repeatedly. Those who sit repeatedly have short hip flexors, those who play the piano have increased mobility and control in their fingers, those who run marathons have leg muscles that have adapted to endurance use.

Do you wake up in pain?  Where you ache in the morning is an indicator of the areas of your body which need more attention.  If you consider the combined effects of gravity and our daily activities--driving, computer time, lots of sitting, it would make sense that our alignment is most poor after a long day. 

Stretching the fingers and hands awakens and stimulates the muscles and nerves in the forearms--a body part which is often overlooked—and re-establishes a connection between our digits and their point of attachment to the axial skeleton via the shoulder girdle. Through gentle stretching, we are also stimulating laminar blood flow, a vital component of cardiovascular health.

One of my favorite things in life is rowing a raft through the Grand Canyon on the Colorado River. Until eight years ago, this was my job: Grand Canyon River Guide. Every year, from April through October, I took passengers on wilderness rafting trips through beautiful, remote desert far from the rest of the world.