Balanced Bartender
Stay healthy, Bar Meisters
Living a balanced life is very important for us as bartenders. In order to have a long, successful and healthy career behind the stick you need to take care of yourself mentally as well as physically. We are dedicated to you the bartender and want you to be your best!

Amie Ward
SUMMER WORK OUT SERIES
Cutting to the Core
When you hear the term “strong core,” what image comes to mind? For most people, it is likely a visual of a person doing crunches and having “6-pack abs.” In reality, the core is far more complex, and includes not only the abdominals, but also the muscles of the back, glutes, and upper legs. Our core muscles control the movement in our spine and hips, are essential for healthy and pain free movement. Not only does a strong core protect the spine, but it also improves our posture, balance, and stability. This is imperative for working bartenders, who are constantly at-risk for musculoskeletal injuries given the nature of our jobs. Poor bar design, slippery working conditions, marathon-length shifts, and having limited time to care for our bodies are just a few of the reasons why this hard-working population is at risk. Below are a few of my favorite core exercises that do not require any equipment and do a fantastic job of helping build the mobility and stability our bodies need to take on intense bartending shifts.
Spiderman Lunge
My favorite warm up exercise! Spiderman Lunges allow for the entire body to stretch, while mobilizing the ankle, knee, hip, shoulder, and thoracic spine joints at the same time. To start, get into a tall plank position, with your hands underneath of your shoulders, feet outstretched, and core engaged. To engage your core, think about pulling your belly button towards your spine. Holding this plank, bring your right foot to the outside of your right hand in a deep lunge. Lift your right hand up and bring your right elbow to your right foot for a quick touch, and then rotate your torso open towards the right side. Let your right-hand reach high towards the ceiling and hold that stretch for 3-5 seconds. Bring your right hand back to the ground to the tall plank, return your right foot back next to your left foot, and repeat on the left side. Complete these alternating stretches for 60 seconds.
Bird Dog
The Bird Dog is an excellent exercise to train the body to stabilize our lower back. To begin, start in a quadruped position with hands and knees on an exercise mat. Hands should be directly under shoulders, knees under hips, and feet hips-width apart with toes curled under. The goal is to extend opposing arms and legs at the same time, while maintaining an engaged core and neutral spine. Try to avoid over-arching or sagging of the lower back. Slowly push your left foot back while extending the left hip until it is at, or near parallel, to the floor. Think about squeezing your left glute to extend the hip. Ensure you keep both hips parallel to the floor. At the same time, keep your head relaxed and extend your right arm until it is near or parallel to the floor and flush to your ear. Do not hyperextend either the shoulder or hip during this movement. Maintaining that neutral spine, return your left leg and right arm to starting position, and repeat with right leg and left arm. Complete 20 alternating repetitions, taking time to correct and reset your form along the way.
Side Plank
The side plank is great for strengthening the oblique abdominal muscles, which are responsible for supporting trunk rotation. To begin, place an exercise mat on the floor and lie on your right side with left leg lying directly over your right. Bend your knees and place your right forearm on the floor to support your upper body. Your right elbow should be positioned directly under your shoulder. Align your head with your spine and keep your hips and lower knee in contact with the exercise mat. Engaging your core muscles, lift your hips off the mat while maintaining mat contact with your knees. Hold this position for 15 seconds on each side to start, working your way up to 30, 45, and 60 seconds. To increase the intensity of the exercise, extend your legs from the bent knee position, making a long straight line from the soles of your feet to your head. Contracting your core once again, push through the edges of your feet and lift your hips off the ground.
Spiderman Lunge
My favorite warm up exercise! Spiderman Lunges allow for the entire body to stretch, while mobilizing the ankle, knee, hip, shoulder, and thoracic spine joints at the same time. To start, get into a tall plank position, with your hands underneath of your shoulders, feet outstretched, and core engaged. To engage your core, think about pulling your belly button towards your spine. Holding this plank, bring your right foot to the outside of your right hand in a deep lunge. Lift your right hand up and bring your right elbow to your right foot for a quick touch, and then rotate your torso open towards the right side. Let your right-hand reach high towards the ceiling and hold that stretch for 3-5 seconds. Bring your right hand back to the ground to the tall plank, return your right foot back next to your left foot, and repeat on the left side. Complete these alternating stretches for 60 seconds.
Bird Dog
The Bird Dog is an excellent exercise to train the body to stabilize our lower back. To begin, start in a quadruped position with hands and knees on an exercise mat. Hands should be directly under shoulders, knees under hips, and feet hips-width apart with toes curled under. The goal is to extend opposing arms and legs at the same time, while maintaining an engaged core and neutral spine. Try to avoid over-arching or sagging of the lower back. Slowly push your left foot back while extending the left hip until it is at, or near parallel, to the floor. Think about squeezing your left glute to extend the hip. Ensure you keep both hips parallel to the floor. At the same time, keep your head relaxed and extend your right arm until it is near or parallel to the floor and flush to your ear. Do not hyperextend either the shoulder or hip during this movement. Maintaining that neutral spine, return your left leg and right arm to starting position, and repeat with right leg and left arm. Complete 20 alternating repetitions, taking time to correct and reset your form along the way.
Side Plank
The side plank is great for strengthening the oblique abdominal muscles, which are responsible for supporting trunk rotation. To begin, place an exercise mat on the floor and lie on your right side with left leg lying directly over your right. Bend your knees and place your right forearm on the floor to support your upper body. Your right elbow should be positioned directly under your shoulder. Align your head with your spine and keep your hips and lower knee in contact with the exercise mat. Engaging your core muscles, lift your hips off the mat while maintaining mat contact with your knees. Hold this position for 15 seconds on each side to start, working your way up to 30, 45, and 60 seconds. To increase the intensity of the exercise, extend your legs from the bent knee position, making a long straight line from the soles of your feet to your head. Contracting your core once again, push through the edges of your feet and lift your hips off the ground.
Glute Bridge
Strong glutes are essential for providing stabilization to the entire body. This exercise activates our glutes and hamstrings while stretching the hip flexors, which are often overactive and tight.
Using a comfortable exercise mat, lie on your back with knees bent, and feet flat on the floor. Relax your arms by your side with palms on the floor and fingertips pointing towards your feet. Line your heels up to your fingertips, which should place them directly underneath of your knees. With a relaxed head, and slowly push through heels to raise your hips off the ground. Your knees, hips, and shoulders should be in a straight line. Hold the top position for three seconds and slowly lower. Complete 3 sets of 15 repetitions. To increase the difficulty, complete the same exercise using one foot at a time, while hugging your opposite knee to the chest. You may want to decrease this to 10 repetitions on each side.
Hip Abduction
You can thank Jane Fonda for this glorious exercise! Hip abduction is a killer move that helps to strengthen the muscles that allow us to stand, walk, and rotate our hips. Weakness in these muscles are key contributors to ankle and knee pain experienced when working behind the bar. To start, lay on the right side of your body and use your right forearm to prop your body up lightly, with left arm relaxed over top of right. Right elbow should be directly under your right shoulder. Stretch your legs out and try to make a long straight line from the soles of your feet to your head. If you need to outstretch entirely without propping yourself up on your forearm, that is totally fine! Relax your right foot and flex your left, then rotate the left foot slightly so your toes are angled towards the ground and heel is angled to the ceiling. Raise your left foot until you feel a comfortable stretch, and lower the same foot back to the ground, controlled and without letting that foot touch the ground. Complete this movement for 30 seconds before switching sides and repeat three times on each side.

Please meet Amie Ward, a decorated bartender, industry veteran, and known as The Healthtender—an ACE Certified Health Coach with a B.S. and M.A. in Kinesiology from the University of Maryland College Park. She has been outspoken on health and wellness in the service industry, traveling across the United States to educate bartenders on how to care for themselves physically, mentally, emotionally, socially, and spiritually. Amie recently moved to Chicago and loves to connect with the hospitality community in healthy ways to promote longevity in the industry. In her spare time, you can find Amie bartending at Neon Wilderness, pulling trucks and competing in Strongwoman competitions, and climbing obstacles at Spartan Races.
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