intro
Our bodies are at their mechanical best when our joints are both stable and mobile. Strengthening muscles as we do in our workouts checks the stability box, but the other side of the coin, mobility, is often neglected.
Building a basic stretching routine is a great place to start. Good stretch habits better enable the joints of our body to move the way they ought to during exercise/activities, and, as an added bonus, it’s relaxing and feels good!
how does it work?
5 stretches before bed every night for one whole week
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
DONE!
NOTE: Feel free to stretch more than that, but if you’ve found it difficult to stick to a mobility program, consider giving this simple routine a shot.
SUGGESTED STRETCHES
You may already have stretches you like that you know work for you personally. If not, here are a few to get you going:
1) CALVES
2) FIGURE 4 (butt)
3) HALF-KNEELING (hip flexors)
4) DOORWAY (chest)
5) TRUNK ROTATION (back/core)
calves
how?
Find a step, a curb, or place a textbook with a towel over it next to a wall. It can be helpful to have something to hold onto for balance like the banister if you’re using stairs or a wall. Place the non stretching foot on the step or elevated a bit while placing the balls of the stretching foot on the step, letting your heel drop below the ledge just to the point of feeling a stretch in your calf
(not looking for pain - just a nice stretch).
Hold for 20-30 seconds and switch.
why?
Lack of ankle mobility (calves, soleus, Achilles tendon) is commonly a limiting factor in a person’s ability to perform a squatting motion properly. It’s probably not the first thing you think of when you think of your calves, but their ability to lengthen is essential in keeping our balance in the descent of a squat. Without adequate calf mobility, folks often tend to unnaturally achieve squat depth by, for example, rounding their backs to keep from falling over backwards. Another movement compensation could be that the exerciser’s heels lose contact with the ground as they squat down, dampening the power of the movement as well as, at worst, risking undue stress or injury to the knees.
figure 4
how?
Cross your leg over the opposite thigh in the shape of the number 4. Then squat down a bit until you feel the stretch in your butt. Do this without rounding your back - keep that spine neutral.
Hold for 20-30 seconds and switch.
why?
The Figure 4 stretches the glutes as well as the piriformis muscle. We ask a lot of the glutes in our workouts, so it only makes sense to help lengthen and relieve excessive tightness through stretching. This muscle group is also known for significantly interacting with the sciatic nerve, so keeping the area supple is a great daily practice.
half-kneeling
how?
Get into a half-kneeling position, kinda like you’re about to tie your shoes, but maintian sound posture by keeping your chest up and lengthening from the top of your head. Now, imagine that your pelvis is a bucket of water. Engage and contract your abs and your butt a bit in order to tuck your tailbone and tilt your pelvis back so that you’re somewhat “pouring the water from the bucket behind you”. At this point, you may already be feeling a hip flexor stretch on the side of the knee that is down. If you need more, maintaining this posterior pelvic tilt, you can shift slowly and slightly forward.
Hold for 20-30 seconds and switch.
why?
This stretch addresses our hip flexors, which tend to get overly tight from extended periods of sitting, driving, and so on. Tight hip flexors effect our pelvic tilt, which in turn tends to negatively effect our back and posture. Therefore, stretching the hip flexors with regularity can be a super helpful thing!
doorway
how?
Stand about one arm-length away from a doorway (or wall) facing perpendicularly to the opening. Place your hand at around shoulder height on the doorframe, then slowly rotate away from the door. Observe that the center of your chest (sternum) in particular should be rotating away from the door.
Hold for 20-30 seconds and switch.
why?
This stretch helps open up the chest. Typing, driving, hunching over to look at our phones - these are all ways in which we bias our bodies toward tighter chest muscles and a posture with rounded shoulders. In addition to strengthening the postural, posterior muscles as we do in our workouts, it’s also real important to regularly lengthen those pectoral muscle fibers in our chest to counteract the negative influence of the aforementioned activities of daily life.
trunk rotation
how?
Laying on your back with legs straight and arms relaxed at your sides, bend one knee up so that your foot is flat on the ground. Inhaling, place the opposite hand on the outside of your thigh then exhale as you rotate and stretch your trunk, the raised knee now crossing your body toward the ground. Calmly breath normally for the duration of the stretch.
Hold for 20-30 and switch.
why?
Our bodies are incredibly dynamic - we are designed to move in all kinds of ways. Honoring this breadth of movement includes not only moving up, down, and side-to-side but also rotationally. The muscles of our trunk (core, back) that support and act on our vertebral column are designed to, among other things, both facilitate and restrict rotation. Rotational stretches help us maintain the range of motion of this easily overlooked function.
contact your trainers with any questions!
John: (626) 354-1395
Bri: (503) 805-5812
Captain: (626) 255-4652
We’re here to help!
good luck! :)