I was over at my mother-in-law’s a few months ago, and she had just received her PBS donation gift in the mail—a copy of the “Aging Backwards” video, which is part of a stretching series known as Essentrics by Miranda Esmonde-White.

Miranda is one fit 66 year old! (Holy crap!) This older, adorable former ballerina could work your ass into the ground any day of the week, regardless of your age and fitness level. And because she is one of my fitness role models, I’m paying close attention to her instruction about movement—clearly she is doing something right.

That evening we all did one of her workouts and really enjoyed it. Once we got home, my wife ordered one of her DVDs. It’s a series of four mini workouts that are about 15 minutes long and target different parts of the body. Fifteen minutes isn’t too daunting, and I don’t even have to change, which lowers the Activation Energy, so am more likely to do it.

One of the mini workouts targets posture. Climbers have terrible posture! We all walk around hunched over because our backs are overbuilt. By the end of the first workout I was already standing straighter, and now I’m more aware of my posture than I’ve ever been.

Miranda is charming and friendly in her videos. (She is Canadian, after all.) Her program is great for any age or fitness level, for the elderly and the elite, whether you are overbuilt or atrophied from disuse. In Essentrics, you are relaxed and always moving, which lengthens and strengthens the muscles. This is different from traditional stretching programs that hold stretches for a long time and can result in shortened muscles (she has a great explanation of the physiology in her book, Ageing Backwards).

Whether you want to improve your posture, start a stretching program, have more energy, look amazing, feel great, be great, or be like Miranda (the wife and I certainly do), I strongly recommend checking out her older lady/elite athlete workouts. Try some samples here

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