Get Some Top Tips From A Contortionist!
Ever feel that some of your routines are limited from your over all lack of flexibility. Often once I’ve gotten into my routine I begin to loosen up but there is typically a less than best result due too my lack of activity at work or first thing in the morning if I do my routine soon after waking. Additionally some of the moves or routines I do that are more in the dance genre are comically clumsy if for no other reason than my restricted agility
Read This & Get Twisted…
So maybe you don’t have the desire to do a crazy backbend, but you do wish you were able to touch your toes. Jonathan breaks down five ways anyone can become a little more flexible.
Make everything a stretch
Even daily chores and actions can be an opportunity to stretch. “Catch moments throughout your day when you can steal five seconds or two deep breaths to find a lengthening,” he says. “From tying your shoes to doing the laundry, engage your core, extend one inch further.” These subtle daily movements may not seem like much, but over time, they can help make you progressively more flexible and bring you more in tune with your body.
Squat often
Squatting is not only great for toning your legs — it’s actually one of the best ways to improve your flexibility. “The squat fires up the hip flexors, which are tight for most people because they sit a lot,” Jonathan explains. Tight hip flexors make it hard to bend and touch your toes. “Squatting is the target, or bull’s eye, of where to attack to get the hip flexors open, and will make everything from crossing your legs to tying your shoes feel easier and better.”
Every hour, take a one-minute break for a front bend
While Jonathan is able to do handstands and full-on splits, it’s perpetual slight movements in major muscle groups that will make touching your toes much easier. “A front bend stretches and lengthens your hamstrings, neck, and back — all things that tend to be tight and prevent us [from] bending over easily,” he adds. Do this move enough times, “and you’ll be able to tie your shoes without bending your knees.“
Practice “Buddup-Buddown”
While this move might sound like something out of a children’s cartoon, Jonathan says this move stretches and strengthens your lower back, paraspinal muscles, and multifidus muscle, and improves your lower back flexibility. “It’s a small engaged exercise that packs a wallop,” he says.
Stand up regularly from your chair
Unfortunately, many of us are forced to sit at a desk all day, leading to tight hip flexors that prevent us from bending forward or backward easily. “Think about picking up a laundry basket or your kids from the floor; each of those moves requires frontward mobility and a lot of us use our lower backs, leading to injury,” says Jonathan. “Open strong hip flexors are the key to any sort of flexibility, and you can begin to open them by simply standing with targeted core engagement.”
