Work it!: Towel overhead stretch

Tips from Victoria Pacheco, intern fitness specialist How to do it Start by holding a towel with both hands. Gently pull the towel outward so it's taut and slowly bring it up overhead to where you feel a stretch in your shoulders and upper back. Hold for 10 to 15 seconds, remembering to breathe. Do this one to two times. Benefits: The towel overhead stretch works the muscles of the chest, shoulders and upper back. Work It! features a new exercise each week with guidance from a fitness professional at the Fitness Center at University Hospitals Avon Health Center. This eight-week series was created by Victoria Pacheco, an intern fitness specialist who is a student in exercise science at Cleveland State University. Pacheco, who assists with delay the disease (for Parkinson's patients) and Rock Steady Boxing group exercise programs, selected these exercises to demonstrate the importance of upper body mobility, as well as muscular strength in daily living. "Upper body mobility is often neglected by older populations," she says. This mobility is critical for everyday tasks such moving and carrying things, lifting and reaching for items, and even showering and dressing for the day. The mobility rule is to execute exercises within a pain-free range of motion. If you feel pain, shorten the range of motion, and/or stop all together. For more information, call program manager Renee Barrett at (440) 988-6822.