Photo (above) by Dylan Gillis, Photo (below) Lola Capps
Stretching. For most of us it is a love hate relationship. We know we should do it but often the practice of stretching just gets left out due to many reasons. The two reasons I hear often is: 1) No time 2) Not sure what to do.
My goal with this post is NOT to give you the details of anatomy or give you a yoga workout. The goal is to get you stretching without having to use the 2 reasons above as excuses. You can literally do these anywhere. You could do 2 of them in the shower!! These photos are to show the position.
These are 6 stretches that can be done at any flexibility level. These can take you 6 minutes or 24 minutes. You decide how much time you want to spend. The basic recommendation is to hold a stretch 20-30 seconds, Rest 10-20 seconds and repeat 2-4 times.
Butterfly Sit Assisted - You can do this on pillows or rolled up towel/blanket. The goal is to get the knees to drop down. This will open the inner hip area. Keep spine long. Start with sitting straight and then gently lean forward to get more of a stretch.
Front Stretched Legs Assisted - Bend from the hips. Stretch out and reach towards the feet. If you feel your shoulders and back rounding that is a sign that you have gone far enough. This can also be done without assistance from pillows.
Butterfly Sit - Without pillows sit on ground and let knees drop. Lean forward from hips to get more of a stretch.
Lizard Pose Stretch - From a kneeling position bring the right leg forward. Hands shoulder width apart. Place right hand inside of foot. Let the knee drop/open.
Bottom Down Deep Squat - This should only be done if you can keep your feet flat on the ground. Elbows inside of knees gently maintaining pressure against knee/leg to open the hips.
Downward Dog - Hands and knees flat on the ground. Buttocks up in the air. Head down look towards your feet. Shoulders relaxed. Bend your knees if you are not able to keep them straight. Bicycle the feet.
Happy hip stretching!
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