20 Stretching Exercises For Beginners Showing You Exactly Which Muscles To Stretch
Everyone needs good stretching, whatever your lifestyle or fitness level.
Stretching improves circulation in the tissues, increases joint mobility,
and allows you to keep your muscles in tone.
In addition, regular stretching can help improve your flexibility, which
is an important fitness factor, as well as improve posture, reduce stress
and body aches and more.
To better understand which muscle groups are stretched during a
particular exercise, we has gathered for you a selection of pictures
showing the process of stretches.
Each exercise will take between 5 and 30 seconds, depending on your
fitness level.
Stretching exercises for beginners
Check these awesome illustrations!
1. Camel Pose
Muscles highlighted: Rectus Abdominus and External Obliques. This
stretch is best reserved for people who have good flexibility
already. Sit on your heels and place your hands behind you as you
push your hips up and forward. Avoiding putting too much pressure on
your lumbar spine. If you have neck problems do not drop your head
back.
2. Wide Forward Fold
Muscles highlighted: Adductors. This is a great exercise to open the
hips, and stretch the adductors and hamstrings. Start this stretch
with your knees bent, and spine straight. As your muscles begin to
release you can slowly straighten your legs, round out your back and
reach for your feet. Lightly pull on the bottom of the balls of
your feet to release the calf muscles as well. If you can not
reach your feet you can use a belt or towel. You can also perform this
stretch lying on your back with your feet going up the wall.
3. Frog Pose
Muscles Highlighted: Adductors. This is a deep groin stretch that can
place pressure on your knees so it’s helpful to be on a soft
surface. Start by resting on your hands and knees and slowly bring
your knees wider until you feel a good stretch in your groin muscles.
You will feel slight variations in the stretch as you actively push your
hips back and forward.
4. Wide Side Lunge Pose
Muscles Highlighted: Adductors. Start with both feet forward in a wide
stance with your legs as straight as possible. Slowly walk your
hands to your right foot while bending your right knee and rotating your
left toes up to the ceiling, sitting into your right hip. Keep
your right foot flat on the ground.
5. Butterfly Stretch
Muscles Highlighted: Adductors. Start in a seated position and bring
the soles of your feet together and sit tall through your sit bones.
Progress this stretch by placing pressure on your knees with your hands.
The closer your feet are to your body the more you will stretch your
groin muscles. Bring your feet farther from your hips and slowly
round your upper body to release your back muscles.
6. Forearm Extensor Stretch
Muscles Highlighted: Forearm Extensor. Start by packing your shoulder
down and back, then externally rotate the shoulder for the optimal
position to stretch the forearm muscle. Once in this position apply
pressure to your opposing hand to begin the stretch. You can
progress this stretch by touching the tips of your fingers together in a
tea cup shape.
7. Lateral Side Flexion of the Neck
Muscles Highlighted: Sternocleidomastoid “SCM”. Try to keep your neck
as long as possible while slowly dropping your ear to your shoulder,
making sure you are not collapsing your cervical spine. You can progress
this stretch by being seated on a chair and grabbing the bottom of the
seat. This will help you create consistent tension down the arm and neck
which will allow you to target the upper traps.
8. Neck Rotation Stretch
Muscles Highlighted: Sternocleidomastoid “SCM”. Start by slowly
rotating your neck, while keeping your chin slightly elevated to isolate
the SCM. If you would like to get a deeper stretch apply pressure
with the opposite hand from the direction that you are rotating.
9. Neck Extension Stretch
Muscles Highlighted: Sternocleidomastoid “SCM”. Start by placing your
hands on your hips, while keeping your spine long start to tilt your
head back, making sure you are not collapsing your cervical spine.
10. Lateral Side Flexion of the Neck with Hand Assistance
Muscles Highlighted: Sternocleidomastoid “SCM” and Upper
Trapezius. Try to keep your neck as long as possible while slowly
dropping your ear to your shoulder, making sure you are not collapsing
your cervical spine. You can progress this stretch by being seated on a
chair while grabbing the bottom of the seat. This will help you
create consistent tension down the arm and neck which will allow you to
target the upper traps.
11. Half Kneeling Quad / Hip Flexor Stretch
Muscles Highlighted: Psoas and Quadracep. Start in a half-kneeling
position. As you slowly bring your right hip forward you should begin to
feel a stretch in the front of your hip. Grab your back foot and squeeze
your back glute to increase the stretch on your Hip Flexors.
12. Forearm Extensor Stretch
Muscles Highlighted: Forearm Extensor. Start by packing your shoulder
down and back, then externally rotate the shoulder for the optimal
position to stretch the forearm muscle. Once in this position apply
pressure to your opposing hand to begin the stretch. You can
progress this stretch by touching the tips of your fingers together in
a tea cup shape.
13. Down Dog Variation at the Wall
Muscles Highlighted: Pectorals and Latissimus Dorsi. Position
yourself far enough from a wall or rack so that when you touch the
wall your body becomes parallel to the ground. Move into this
position by hinging at the hips and keeping your spine
straight. Once in position, push your chest forward creating a
slight arch in your upper back, stretching your lats and chest
muscles. If you have tight hamstrings try bending at the knees.
14. Assisted Chest Stretch Variation
Muscles Highlighted: Pectorals. Start by lying face down on the
floor with your palms facing down. As your partner pulls back on
your hands you will feel a deep stretch in your chest muscles. Avoid
this stretch if you have impingement of the shoulder.
15. Straight and oblique muscles.
Avoid doing this exercise if you regularly suffer from lower back
pain.
16. Straight, oblique and gluteal muscles.
This exercise is especially useful for relieving sciatica pain. Your
back should be pressed against the floor. Breathe smoothly and
deeply, increasing the strength of the stretch as you exhale.
17. Chest and latitude muscles.
Stand up away from the support and get a good rot. Tense up your
abs.
18. Chest muscles.
This exercise is for deep stretching of the chest muscles. You
can’t do without the help of a partner here. It is not recommended
for people who have survived a broken or dislocated collarbone.
19. Upper trapezius muscle.
Keep your spine straight, trying not to sag sideways. Tilt your head
slightly toward the shoulder opposite the one you are stretching.
20. Rhomboid and upper trapezius muscles.
In addition to stretching the muscles, this exercise is extremely
useful for relaxing the thoracic spine.
When you do stretching exercises, you should not feel tension or
pressure in your joints. You should concentrate on your breathing
and stretch as hard as you can, gradually increasing your effort.
You can do muscle stretching in the morning as an alternative to
exercise.
Don’t forget to share and tell your friends about a great
way to keep your muscles in tone!
