My friend Bob Thomas recently told me about a Japanese form of exercise called "Makoho" or "Makko-ho" which consists of four stretching exercises designed to rejuvenate the legs, align the hips and spine, stimulate blood flow, "sensitize the nervous system," and increase flexibiltiy.
Because you only need to do each exercise one time, holding it for about a minute, the whole set can be completed in about five minutes. I have found this to be an excellent routine to do just before going to bed. And it really helps me relax so I can quickly go to sleep.
I'm not quite flexible enough to do Makoho to the fullest extent but I'm fairly sure I'm still getting the benefit and I've already seen some progress. The secret seems to be to relax, breath deeply and just let you body weight take you deeper into the stretches.
Here's a great animation that will show you how: Makoho
Dave Bunnell, who is ELDR's Editor-in-Chief, is also a Wellness Coach. You can read more about this at My-Wellness-Coach.com.