If you want to incorporate mood-boosting exercise into your daily routine, but for some reason it’s not always possible, you don’t necessarily have to tackle long runs or sweaty HIIT sessions. Stretching is a great alternative, helping to ease sore muscles and take the stress out of a busy schedule. Best of all, stretching can be beneficial for anyone, and it’s easy to do.
If you’re not sure where to start, try this seven-minute routine from flexibility expert Tom Merrick, who has 1 million subscribers on YouTube saying: Bodyweight Warrior?
“For most people, the biggest benefit is [stretching to develop] Flexibility is the feeling of being unrestricted and able to move freely, even if it’s just bending down to pick something up or playing with your kids,” he says.
Below, Merrick shares five stretches he does every day and recommends for everyone to loosen up tight lower back muscles, improve shoulder health, and increase flexibility in the knees, hips, and ankles.
5 stretches you should do every day
1. 90/90
“The 90/90 is one of my favorite hip stretches,” says Merrick, “It focuses on increasing hip movement and awareness, and covers both internal and external rotation of the joint, covering all the angles you need.”
Most people he sees “have tightness around the hips,” he says, and as a result, “the back carries a lot of the movement.”
“Also, sitting all day can compress and tighten your glutes, which can affect lower body postures like squats,” Merrick adds. “I believe improving hip mobility is one of the best ways to improve your mobility and allow you to move more freely.”
manner
- Sit upright with your right thigh perpendicular to your torso and your left thigh straight out in front of you, your knees at a right angle, and your hands on the ground behind you for support.
- From here, lift both knees up toward the ceiling, then tilt them the other way so that your left thigh is perpendicular to your torso and your right thigh is stretched forward.
- Continue to transition between these two positions, holding each side for 90 seconds to two minutes while taking several deep breaths.
- In the video above, Merrick demonstrates some methods you can use to intensify this stretch or target specific muscles or movements.
2. Sofa stretch
This is another stretch that targets your hip flexors (the muscles around your hips that help pull your knees towards your chest) and the quadriceps muscles on the front of your thighs.
“Sports like running, cycling, and spending long periods of time sitting can lead to tight quadriceps and hip flexors,” says Merrick.
“The nature of these activities encourages slouched, tense postures. [of the hips]Couch Stretch offers a more stretched position, which is the opposite experience to what you would normally do on a daily basis.
“A lot of hip stretches don’t involve knee flexion, so this is a really good one. [bending]This stretches the rectus femoris, which is part of the quadriceps.”
manner
- Place your left knee on the floor against the wall so that your shin is stretched vertically upwards.
- Step forward with your right foot into a lunge, bringing your left thigh in line with your torso, squeezing your glutes and tucking your hips in, drawing your back knee forward, contracting your hip flexors.
- For support, place your hands on the floor on the inside of your right foot, underneath your shoulders.
- Hold this position for 60 to 90 seconds on each side.
- You can deepen this stretch by keeping your torso more upright.
Merrick says the Couch Stretch can be adapted to suit most fitness levels. If you’re new to flexibility training, start by placing your hands on the floor for support and leaning over your front legs. As your flexibility improves, you can sit upright and increase hip extension and knee flexion.
3. Squats
While this may sound more like a strength exercise than a stretching exercise, being able to maintain a strong squat position “indicates that you have decent flexibility in several joints, including your ankles, knees and hips,” says Merrick.
“This is a fundamental human position and it’s useful to be able to get into,” he adds. “If you do any form of strength training, you’ll probably come across squats, and if you have kids or want to pick something up off the ground, you’ll want to be able to get into this low position.”
manner
- Stand with your feet hip-width apart and your toes pointed slightly outward.
- Keeping your chest up and your spine straight, lower your hips into a deep squat.
- If you find yourself falling backwards or can’t keep your chest up and spine long at the bottom of the squat, grab a sturdy anchor point in front of you for extra support.
- Hold this position for 60-120 seconds, or watch Merricks’ video to try variations.
According to Merrick, most people fall backwards when trying to squat deeply because they lack flexibility in either their ankles or hips, which causes the spine to round and weight to shift to the back of the squat.
To improve this, she suggests practicing sitting in a deep squat with a firm anchor point in front of you, focusing on keeping your chest lifted and maintaining good posture.
“This comes down to S.A.I.D. [specific adaptation to imposed demand] Follow the principle: ‘If you want to get better at X, do more of X,'” says Merrick. “So find a way to squat and sit comfortably, then take the time to move, move, and stretch properly.”
read more: Why squats are a training staple, according to expert coaches
4. Hang
Hanging, like the squat before it, has many benefits, says Merrick: It improves shoulder health by increasing overhead flexibility, stretches various muscles around the shoulder joint, including the lats and pectoral muscles in the back, and also decompresses the spine.
“During the day, standing, moving around, and even just sitting puts a lot of pressure on your spine,” he explains. “When you hang, gravity pulls your spine down, stretching it.”
manner
- Grasp the pull-up bar with an overhand grip, hands shoulder-width apart.
- Lift your feet off the ground and support your weight on your grips.
- Remember to pull your chest in and make your body more upright.
- Hold this position for 30 to 60 seconds.
- If you can’t support your own weight, use a low pull-up bar and place your feet on the ground to support some of your weight.
- To progress with this movement, gradually reduce the weight on your feet over time.
Hanging also improves grip strength, which was identified in a review published in the medical journal as a “crucial biomarker” for older adults. Clinical Interventions for Aging Journal, because it shows good overall muscle strength, bone density, and other important health indicators.
“We know that grip strength is extremely important not just for sports but for longevity,” Merrick says. “Hanging naturally develops grip strength, and for most people, the goal is to be able to hang for 30 to 60 seconds.”
5. Elephant in a pike hold
The hamstrings are the large muscles that run down the back of the thigh, and Merrick, who has worked with patients to improve their flexibility, says tightness in this area is one of the main culprits that prevents patients from moving freely.
“If you’re looking to develop higher levels of flexibility, your hamstrings are like a lock. When you unlock them, you can tilt your hips and move more freely, which makes you feel more flexible in movements like squats. So any form of stretching of the hamstrings is beneficial.”
He says his favourite position to achieve this is the elephant walk, in which you reach down toward the ground and then straighten one leg at a time to stretch your hamstrings and activate your hips.
manner
- Stand upright with your knees slightly bent and your arms extended towards the ground in front of you.
- Place both hands on the ground for support and extend your left leg, keeping your right knee slightly bent.
- Hold this position for a second and then switch to the other side.
- Continue this for 60 seconds, then straighten your legs and place your hands on the backs of your lower legs for a deeper stretch.
- Hold this position for 30 to 60 seconds.
How about giving stretching a try?
Stretching isn’t the only type of exercise you should do — strength training and some form of aerobic activity to get your heart rate up are important components of a healthy, functional body — but stretching is a great way to enjoy a more relaxed form of exercise while still reaping many of the benefits listed above.
“Stretching is universal and everyone can benefit from it,” says Merrick, “but it really depends on how you do it. When it comes to weightlifting or most other sports, the ability to lift your arms overhead and squat down are two very important components.”
“And because we all have to pick something up off the floor at some point, you want to be able to touch the floor at the very least. Ideally, you’ll be able to lower your hands palms down with straight legs. If you can do those three things, you’ll be flexible enough to handle whatever challenges life throws at you.”
read more: 10 Best Foam Rollers to Relieve Sore Muscles. Tried and Tested
