STRETCHES TO DO After a Full Day of Sitting

Ever have your hip pop and you think, oh, that didn’t sound great? You need some stretching in your life. Hip flexor exercises and stretches are necessary for increasing strength and mobility in your posterior region. After sitting all day, you need to remind yourself why it’s important to sometimes take a minute to do a little stretch or exercise so that your body is able to release any tension. I’m here to save the day with simple workouts for your hips. So the next time that your hip pops, remember, your hips don’t lie … just do the feel-good routine below.

The Routine: 
Assisted Standing Hip Extension
Standing Quad Stretch
Single-Leg Hip Flexor Stretch
Press Ups
Standing Side Body Stretch

 

The Move: Assisted Standing Hip Extension
How to: Stand with feet shoulder-width apart and place your hands on your tailbone. Gently push your hips forward and hold for 5-10 seconds before engaging your core and coming back to neutral. Perform this movement until you feel your hip flexors start to allow you to shift forward comfortably, or a maximum of 10 rounds of 10 seconds.

The Move: Standing Quad Stretch
How to: This exercise is best for your knees and hips! If you need support from a wall or bench, grab on, but make sure to stay upright. The most important step is to shift your hips into a neutral position and don’t bend at the hip. This really helps the rectus femoris open up as it has been shortened by being in a seated position all day.

The Move: Single-Leg Hip Flexor Stretch
How to: Start with one leg out in front and stack your back knee under your hip and shoulder to start. Rotate your pelvis to neutral to assure your hips and legs are getting the most out of this stretch and gently lift your arm in the air to open your front side body. Feel free to shift forward with your hip as you feel comfortable.

The Move: Press Ups
How to: This exercise is fantastic for lower back flexion and hip flexor opening. Since we are seated all day, our lower back tends to be rounded and our posture is usually pretty poor. Our hips also suffer as they are shortened and bent for long periods of time. Lie flat on your stomach with your hands beside your chest and exhale to press your chest up off the ground. Feel free to sink and raise around your shoulders to feel what helps you the most and make sure your glutes are relaxed. Lower back down and perform this for up to 2 minutes, lowering every 10-15 seconds and breathing deeply.

The Move: Standing Side Body Stretch
How to: Because you are standing or sitting all day, your frontal motion does not get exercises, and you may be tight in this plane of motion. Stretching your hips and obliques is so beneficial for injury prevention and spine health too. Cross one leg behind the other and lean away from the leg that is in the back by lifting your arm beside your head and allowing your hip to shift to that side. Reach your arm over and place your other hand on your hip to support this push. Switch legs and don’t forget to come back to neutral in between.

 

From Poosh