Latest news with #stretching
The Independent
8 hours ago
- Health
- The Independent
Five stretches you should be doing every day according to a flexibility expert
If you want to add some mood-boosting movement into your day but, for whatever reason, you don't always manage to get a workout in, you don't necessarily need to commit to a long run or sweaty HIIT session. Stretching can be a welcome alternative, helping soothe sore muscles and providing a welcome break from the stresses of a busy schedule. Everyone can benefit from stretching, and the good news is that it's easy to do. If you're wondering where to start, try this seven-minute routine from flexibility expert Tom Merrick – better known to his one million YouTube subscribers as the Bodyweight Warrior. 'For most people, the biggest benefit they're going to get from [stretching to develop] flexibility is that feeling of losing restriction and gaining freedom to be able to move, even if that's just bending over to pick up something or play with the kids,' he says. Below, Merrick has shared five stretches he does every day and recommends for everyone to ease tight hips, improve shoulder health and improve flexibility in knees, hips and ankles. The five stretches you should be doing every day 1. The 90/90 'The 90/90 is one of my favourite general stretches for the hips,' Merrick says. 'It hits every single angle you're going to require, covering both internal and external rotation of the joint, with the focus of bringing more movement and more awareness into the hips.' He says that most people he sees are 'very locked up around the hips'. As a result, 'their back then ends up doing a lot of the movement for them'. 'Also, if you're sitting a lot in the day, you're going to get some compression and tightness of the glutes, and they then have an impact on other lower body positions like the squat,' Merrick adds. 'If we get more movement into the hips, I've found that's one of the best ways to help people feel more free and move better.' How to do it Sit upright with your right thigh perpendicular to your torso and your left thigh directly out in front of you. Your knees should both form a right angle, and your hands can be placed on the ground behind you for support. From here, lift both knees so they point at the ceiling, then allow them to fall in the opposite direction so your left thigh is perpendicular to your torso and your right thigh is extended in front of you. Continue to transition between these two positions, holding each side for a few deep breaths, for 90 seconds to two minutes. In this video, Merrick demonstrates some methods you can use to elevate this stretch or target specific muscles and movements. 2. The couch stretch This is another stretch that targets the hip flexors – the muscles around the pelvis, responsible for bringing your knees towards your chest – as well as the quadriceps on the front of the thigh. 'If you're doing sports like running and cycling, or you're doing a lot of sitting, it can cause this tightening up of the quad and hip flexors,' Merrick says. 'The nature of these activities means you're encouraging that flexed forward, tightened position [of the hips]. The couch stretch provides more of an extended position – the opposite experience to the stuff you would normally do day to day. 'It's also a really nice one because a lot of hip stretches won't include knee flexion [bending], which is going to stretch our rectus femoris – part of the quad muscle.' How to do it Place your left knee on the floor against a wall so your shin extends vertically upwards. Step your right foot forward so you're in a lunge position, with your left thigh and torso forming a straight line. Think about tucking your hips by squeezing your glutes (buttock muscles), and trying to pull your rear knee forward to contract the hip flexors. Place your hands on the floor inside your right foot, beneath your shoulders, for support. Hold this position for 60 to 90 seconds on each side. You can deepen this stretch by moving your torso more upright. Merrick says the couch stretch can be scaled to suit most fitness levels too. If you're new to flexibility training, you can start by keeping your hands on the floor for support and leaning forward over your front leg. As your flexibility increases, you can sit more upright to increase extension at the hip and flexion of the knee. 3. The squat This one might sound more like a strength-building exercise than a stretch, but Merrick says being able to hold a solid squat position 'demonstrates a reasonable flexibility at several joints including the ankle, knee and hips'. 'This is a fundamental human position, and it's a useful one to be able to get into,' he adds. 'If you're going to do any form of resistance training, you're probably going to come across a squat, and if you have kids or want to pick something up from the ground, you're going to want to be able to access this low position.' How to do it Stand with your feet roughly hip-width apart and your toes pointed slightly outwards. Keeping your chest up and your spine long, sink your hips down into a deep squat position. If you find yourself falling backwards, or you're unable to keep your chest up and your spine long in the bottom of the squat, hold onto a sturdy anchor point in front of you for extra support. Hold this position for 60 to 120 seconds, or watch Merricks' video for some variations to try. Most people will find they fall backwards when they try to get into a deep squat position, Merrick says. This is due to a lack of flexibility at either the ankles or hips, which forces the spine to round and more weight to be placed towards the back of the squat. To remedy this, he recommends practising sitting in a deep squat position while holding a sturdy anchor point in front of you, focusing on keeping your chest up and maintaining good positions. 'This comes down to the SAID [specific adaptation to imposed demand] principle,' says Merrick. 'If you want to get better at X, do X more, so find a way you can sit in a squat comfortably, then you can spend some time wiggling about, moving, and trying to get a good stretch.' 4. The hang Like the squat before it, Merrick says the hang covers a lot of bases. It can aid overhead flexibility for improved shoulder health, stretch a range of muscles around the shoulder joint including the latissimus dorsi in the back and pectorals in the chest, and it provides decompression of the spine too. 'During the day we might get a lot of compression in the spine just from being on our feet, moving around, sitting down,' he explains. 'Hanging allows gravity to pull that spine down and lengthen it.' How to do it Grab a pull-up bar with an overhand grip and your hands roughly shoulder-width apart. Take your feet off the ground to support your weight through your grip. Think about pulling your chest in to create a straighter body position. Hold this position for 30 to 60 seconds. If you are unable to support your bodyweight, use a lower pull-up bar and keep your feet on the ground to support some of your weight. Slowly reduce the weight taken by your feet over time to progress this move. Hanging can also develop your grip strength, which has been identified as an 'indispensable biomarker' for older adults in a review published in the Clinical Interventions in Aging journal. This is because it indicates good generalised strength, bone density and other important health markers. 'We know that grip strength is a really important factor, one for sports but also for longevity,' Merrick says. 'From hanging, we're going to naturally build some strength in the grip – being able to hang for between 30 and 60 seconds would be a good target for most people.' 5. The elephant walk into pike hold The hamstrings are the large muscles that run down the back of the thigh. In his time working with people to improve their flexibility, Merrick says tightness in this area is one of the main things that hampers clients' freedom of movement. 'If you want to work on more advanced flexibility, the hamstrings are almost like a key. If you unlock them, it lets the hips tilt and move more freely, which then is going to make you feel more flexible in general for things like squatting. So stretching the hamstrings in one form or another is great.' He says the elephant walk, where you reach towards the ground and straighten one leg at a time to stretch your hamstrings and shift your hips, is his favourite position for achieving this. How to do it Stand upright with a slight bend in your knees, then reach your hands towards the ground in front of you. With your hands on the ground for support, straighten your left leg while keeping your right knee slightly bent. Hold this position for a second, then switch sides. Continue to do this for 60 seconds, then straighten both legs and try to place your hands on the back of your lower legs, using them to pull you deeper into the stretch. Hold this position for 30 to 60 seconds. Should you try stretching? Stretching shouldn't be your only form of exercise – strength training and raising your heart rate with some form of cardio are key ingredients when cooking up a fit, functional body. But stretching can be a great way to enjoy a more relaxed form of movement while enjoying the many benefits listed above. 'It's universal, everyone can benefit from stretching,' Merrick says. 'The benefits really come down to the application. If you lift weights or do most other sports, the ability to put your arms overhead and squat down are two pretty crucial elements.' 'And we're all going to have to pick something off the floor at some point, so you would want to be able to touch the floor at the bare minimum – ideally, you would be able to get your palms down with straight legs. If you can do those three then you're going to have more than adequate flexibility to take anything that life throws at you.'
CTV News
16-06-2025
- Health
- CTV News
14 Of Our Favourite Tools for Post-Workout Recovery and Flexibility
Help your body heal from hard workouts with products from Sports Medica, The Cold Pod, and more. Exercising regularly is great for your overall health. It can enhance your self-image and support the many unseen health benefits that help you feel great, too. However, it's not always enough to simply hit the gym, lift some weights, and get in a little cardio, then be done with it. Your post-workout recovery and stretches are just as important as the workout itself, as they can help reduce post-exercise soreness, minimize the risk of injury, and maximize your efforts. All in all, healing practices like stretching, massaging, and icing should be non-negotiable. And if you're looking to enhance your recovery routine, we're here to help with some of the best products you can find online. Here are a few of our favourite tools for post-workout recovery and flexibility: This Canadian Brand Makes Natural Deodorant That Actually Keeps Stink At Bay Level Up Your Running Routine With These 17 Game-Changing Finds This Is the Only Plant-Based Protein Powder I Actually Enjoy — And It's Canadian Disclaimer: The prices displayed are accurate at the time of publication. We'll do our best to keep them as up-to-date as possible, but you may see slight changes.
Yahoo
15-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Doing This 1-Minute Move Every Day Can Undo Hours of Sitting, Trainer Says
Doing This 1-Minute Move Every Day Can Undo Hours of Sitting, Trainer Says originally appeared on Men's Fitness. Your hips, shoulders, and back are begging you to stretch, especially if you sit all day. Jeff Cavaliere, C.S.C.S., is known for sharing practical routines that help athletes and everyday people move and feel better. One of his go-to recommendations is a simple full-body stretch—kneeling door splats—that you can do daily to maintain mobility and counteract the effects of sitting too much. According to the CDC, an estimated 20.9 percent of U.S. adults—over 51 million people—experienced chronic pain in 2021. Around 6.9 percent reported high-impact chronic pain that significantly restricted their daily activities. Stretching may not necessarily be the solution to chronic pain. But, as Gary Liguori, senior editor of the American College of Sports Medicine's 2021 exercise guidelines, shared with the American Heart Association, never stretching can lead to decreased range of motion over perform the full-body stretch, start in a kneeling lunge position. Place your hands at chest level on either side of a doorway, then lean forward through the doorway. Keep your elbows pointed down as you hold the position. This externally rotates your shoulders while also targeting your chest and hips. "You're trying to pinch your shoulder blades together. Now you've got more hip flexion, so you're getting deeper into your hips," Cavaliere says. You'll feel it in your shoulders, chest, and especially your hip flexors—particularly if you're tight in those areas. Hold the stretch for 30 seconds on one leg, then switch to the other. Perform the stretch daily for best This 1-Minute Move Every Day Can Undo Hours of Sitting, Trainer Says first appeared on Men's Fitness on Jun 13, 2025 This story was originally reported by Men's Fitness on Jun 13, 2025, where it first appeared.
Health Line
09-06-2025
- Health
- Health Line
5-Minute Daily Stretching Routine
Flexibility is an important part of fitness and overall health. Daily activities can be much more challenging without the ability to bend over, twist, or squat! By incorporating a stretching program into your daily routine, you can increase your flexibility and range of motion. You can also improve performance in sports and daily tasks. Stretching may help prevent injury and decrease pain associated with muscle tightness. Try this five-minute exercise routine today to prepare for the busy day ahead or to relax after work. 1. Runner's stretch This stretch is great for the lower body, especially the hamstrings and hip flexors. Tight hamstrings are often the culprits of low back pain. They may be worse in people who sit for extended periods of time. Equipment needed: none Muscles worked: hamstrings, hip flexors, low back, calves Stand with your feet hip-width apart. Step back with your left leg and place both of your hands on the ground on either side of your right foot, about shoulder-width apart. Kneel down on one knee. Lower your hips until you feel a stretch in the front of your left hip and leg. Hold for 30 seconds. Slowly straighten your front leg, keeping your hands planted on the floor. Don't worry if you can't get your leg completely straight. Hold for 30 seconds. Repeat on the other side. 2. Forward fold This stretch is the ultimate full body stretch. It's ideal for office workers who spend too much time sitting at a computer. This will stretch the legs and hamstrings. It's also a chest and shoulder opening exercise. Equipment needed: none Muscles worked: hamstrings, shoulders, low back Stand with your feet hip-width apart, toes pointing forward. Keeping a flat back, bend at the waist, shifting your hips backward and weight in your heels until you feel a stretch down the back of your legs. As you bend forward, let gravity pull your arms above your head, keeping your arms straight. Go only as far as your shoulder flexibility allows. Hold this position for 30 seconds. Let gravity pull your head and trunk down. Reach your hands toward the ground. Repeat. 3. Seated back twist Spinal twists are a great release exercise: They can help improve back pain and increase mobility. If you have any disk or spinal problems that may worsen with twisting, skip this exercise. Equipment needed: none Muscles worked: erector spinae, glutes, low back Sit on the floor, legs crossed with your left leg on top. Cross your left leg further over your right leg, placing your foot on the ground by your right knee so that your left knee is pointing upward. Gently twist your shoulders toward the left, pushing against your left leg for leverage. Only go as far as it feels comfortable for you. Hold position for 30 seconds. Repeat on the other side. 4. Bound angle This hip opening stretch is effective for both men and women. It helps decrease tension in the hips and muscles on the inside of the thighs. Equipment needed: none Muscles worked: adductors, hip flexors, glutes Sit on the floor, back straight. Keep the soles of the feet touching. Place your hands on your feet and lengthen through the spine. Feel as if there is a string pulling your head to the ceiling and shift your weight forward off your tailbone. Using your arms to assist, lean forward with a flat back, bringing your head toward your feet. Only go as far as is comfortable for you. Hold position for 30 seconds. 5. Chest stretch in doorway Tightness in the chest and shoulders is often found in people with poor posture. This may lead to bigger problems later in life. Doing daily chest-opening stretches may help prevent tightness and promote proper posture and better breathing. Equipment needed: doorway Muscles worked: chest, anterior deltoid, biceps Stand in the middle of an open door. Place your forearms on each side of the doorframe, if possible. If the doorway is too wide, do one arm at a time. Gently lean forward into the doorway until you feel a stretch through the front of the chest and shoulders. Only go as far as is comfortable for you. Hold position for 30 seconds. I tried it! I followed this stretching routine for two weeks before starting my work day. I used to do yoga and stretch more frequently, but lately, I have been walking in the city and weightlifting for my exercise, and forgetting to stretch before or after. By adding stretching for 2 weeks, I noticed: My hips started to feel less tight and more relaxed My calves became less tense, though they're still somewhat tight My flexibility increased slightly Try adding 5 minutes of stretching to your daily routine and see how it feels!
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Physical therapy center coming to Bridgewater strip mall
BRIDGEWATER – A physical therapy facility is expected to open in June at The Bridgewater Shoppes. Stretch Recovery Lounge has leased 1,370 square feet at the Prince Rodgers Avenue shopping center, Bussel Realty Corp. announced. Stretch Recovery Lounge is an assisted stretching and athletic recovery facility with multiple locations in New Jersey and one in New York City. It offers one-on-one assisted stretching sessions to help relieve pain, stiffness, and mobility issues, and also provides compression therapy for recovery. More: Hot yoga studio coming to Route 22 shopping center in Bridgewater 'We are excited to assist Stretch Recovery Lounge open their sixth New Jersey location,' stated Chandler Vanderbeek with Bussel Realty Corp. 'The Bridgewater Shoppes will be a great opportunity to gain exposure in Somerset County as they continue to expand their footprint throughout New Jersey.' Stretch joins Kumon, Great Lengths, The UPS Store, Edible Arrangements, and Rita's among the shopping center's retailers. Brad Wadlow is a staff writer for This article originally appeared on Stretch Recovery Lounge coming to Bridgewater NJ strip mall
