Ditch that snooze switch and get your morning started right with our essential morning stretches: the best way to limber up for the day ahead is by performing our muscle stretches. Any stress from the day before will melt away, plus awkward sleeping positions are far less likely to result in aches and pains.
We’ll break down stretches focusing on different parts of the body, but before you even get out of bed, try this:
Extend your arms above your head and stretch out your legs with your toes pointed. You want to make your body as long as possible. Once you’re in this elongated position, inhale deeply and focus on your muscles stretching out.
At our Torbay chiropractic clinic, this is the first thing we recommend to anyone who’s feeling stressed and tense. When done every single morning, it can have an amazing effect on your physical and mental wellbeing.
Back, neck and shoulder stretches
A basic stretch will quickly begin to take care of any aches and pains in your neck, especially if you remember to do it every morning.
Start by bending your head over to one side and bringing it slightly forward, then slowly bringing your head down. You should feel the opposite side of your neck stretching out. Repeat this on the other side.
To stretch your shoulder…
bring one arm across your chest and use the opposite arm to hold it in place for around 30 seconds, then repeat with the other arm. Next, focus on your back: sit down on the floor, extend both legs out in front of you and try to reach your toes with your fingertips. Hold for around 30 seconds and this will really stretch out those muscles along your back.
Arm and leg stretches
To focus on your arms…
bring them both up over your head, bend your elbows and use one hand to push the other elbow so that your hand reaches down your back. Hold for 30 seconds and you should feel the effects along the backs of your upper arms.
Now it’s your legs’ turn…
start in a standing position and bend one knee, grabbing the left foot with the left hand to bring it up to your buttocks to stretch your quadriceps. Do this for each leg in turn, then move onto your hamstrings and calves. You can stretch these by starting in a standing position, bending at the waist and trying to reach your toes with your fingertips. It’s really important to keep your legs straight to get real benefits from this stretch.
Wrist and ankle stretches
The wrist and ankle joints are especially important areas for those who are prone to rheumatoid arthritis, so don’t scrimp on this last part of your stretching routine.
Sit or stand and rotate your ankles by pointing out your toes and drawing an invisible circle in the air. To focus on your wrists, hold your arms out straight and bend your hands back with your palms facing outwards. Bring your hands back as far as you can, then reverse the move by bringing them back down to make your palms face your body. To finish, make fists and rotate your wrists a few times clockwise and then anti-clockwise.
Welcome to your new routine!
If you perform these stretches religiously every morning, our chiropractic team guarantees you’ll soon feel the difference. But if your symptoms persist and you’re not sure if you’re getting the stretches right, call our team in Torbay to secure an appointment and get yourself on the road to full-body comfort once again.
Here at Torbay Chiropractic Clinic, we offer so much more than just chiropractic treatment. We have a fantastic team of professional who offer Shockwave Therapy (used for treating chronic tendonitis), LLLT – Low Level Laser Therapy and Physiotherapy care to alleviate muscular and mechanical pains.