That peaceful moment when your coffee is brewing and your toast is browning is the perfect time to combat some of the work-from-home [1] joint pain or stiffness that comes with swapping your office chair for a sectional.
Before clocking in from the couch, get ahead of your tight shoulders and back with some morning stretches [2].
No brainpower is required, as you obviously haven't sipped your caffeine yet. Dani Singer, a NASM-certified personal trainer and CEO of Fit2Go [3], has the exact stretch sequence handled.
Just follow his step-by-step stretching instructions below.
Sit and Reach
When we're sitting all day, our hamstrings are constantly in a contracted position, leading to a tight lower back [5] and legs. Singer explained that this is what can make it feel difficult to bend down and pick things up.
- Sit on the floor with your left leg extended in front of you. Bend your right knee to the side and place your right foot against your left inner thigh.
- Take a deep breath in and then slowly let it out as you reach both hands toward your left toes and hold. If you can't reach your toes, grab your shin instead.
- Hold this position for 10 full breaths, taking five seconds for each exhale.
Doorway Stretch
The first step in fixing your posture — which can be negatively impacted by hunching over your computer — is loosening your tight chest, Singer noted.
- Stand in a doorway and place your right arm on the frame beside you. Keep the elbow bent at 90 degrees.
- Lean into the stretch by stepping forward through the doorway with your arm staying in place on the door frame. You should feel a nice stretch across your chest, as the wall pulls your torso into an upright posture.
- Hold for 10 full breaths, taking five seconds for each exhale.
- Switch sides and repeat.
Neck Release
According to Singer, our necks are constantly tight from hunching over our computers and phones, which can further lead to jaw pain and headaches [7]. Relieve some of that tension with this simple stretch.
- Tilt your head toward your right shoulder.
- Rotate your neck to the left to look up toward the ceiling.
- Gently pull your head further toward your right shoulder using your right hand.
- While maintaining that gentle pull, rotate your neck to look down toward the floor.
- Do five rotations, looking at the ceiling and then the floor. Breathe deeply and slowly while you move.
- Release and repeat on the other side.
Seated Figure 4
Your butt muscles are meant to be used daily. Thanks to chairs, we limit our own range of motion, leading to a tight and weak rear end. Singer added that this is a common cause of hip, back, and knee pain.
- Sit in a chair with your right ankle crossed over your left knee.
- Slowly push your right knee down toward the floor with your right hand.
- Hold for 10 full breaths, taking five seconds for each exhale.
- Repeat on the other side.
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