Seated Stretches For The Spine & Hips

In this gentle stretching practice, you'll release tension through the spine, shoulders, ribs, hips, adductors, and hamstrings while using slow, mindful breathing to help calm the nervous system. The movements are simple and accessible, with a focus on body awareness and creating more ease throughout the body. You may notice improvements in flexibility, mobility, posture, and your ability to relax. If sitting cross-legged on the floor is uncomfortable, place a firm cushion underneath your sit bones to elevate your hips and make the positions more comfortable.

Transcript

Sitting up straight. Cross-leggeds? And we're going to begin warming up the spine and shoulders. Bring your arms out to a cactus position. Opening the chest, Chin tilting up. To the ceiling. Take an inhale here. And as you exhale, Curl your spine forwards and bring the hands in front of your face. Inhale. Arms up and out to cactus. Exhale, Bring them forwards, Curling the spine over. Inhale, Open. Exhale, Close. Inhale, Open. Exhale, Close. Last one. Inhale to open. Exhale, Close. Roll your spine. Back up to its neutral position. Body feeling completely centered. Place. The hand down to the side. Making sure to keep this shoulder down away from the ear. And bring the other arm. Up and over. Stretching to the side. Keeping both sit bones. Firmly on the ground. And look up. Underneath the arm to the ceiling. And breathe. With each breath. Feel the fascia stretch over your open ribs. And come back to center. Float the arm all the way down. Placing it out to the side. Push the shoulder down. Away from the ear. And bring the other hand up. Overhead. Focusing on gluing your sit bones to the ground. Maximizing the stretch through the ribs. Holding the breath. Down into the diaphragm. Feeling the lower ribs move with each breath. And Come back to centre. Float the arm back down. Crust? One foot. Over. To the opposite side. Of the other knee. Get comfortable in this position. Aiming to get both sit bones. Down. Firm. On the floor, Keeping the spine straight. Feel that stretch. Through the glute and the hip on top. Take the opposite arm to the top knee. Cross it over. And look behind you. Full spinal twist. Opening the fascia through the neck and front of the chest. Deep breaths. Make them long and slow. Calming the nervous system. Whilst we hold the position. And release the arm. Twisting back. To center. And from here. . . Uncross. The top leg. Use your hands to bring it out to the side. Take some time. To get acquainted with this position. Focusing on the sit bones. Keeping the weight even between them. And now placing your hand on top of your shin. Bring the other arm up and over. And we're going to side stretch. All the way. And you can bend the. . . Elbow of this supporting arm. Allowing that shoulder to drop away from the ear. Looking up at the ceiling. Stretching through the ribs. And the adapters at the same time. And breathe. Always coming back to the breath. And come back up to your center. Float the arm down. And notice how already it feels more comfortable. To sit in this position. Let's change legs. Bending the other knee in. And then cross. The other leg on top. Keeping the spine straight. Breathe and sit. And if you wish. You can add in the twist. Open up your chest. Keeping the spine straight. Only moving to where is comfortable. Feel your belly expand with every breath. Let go of any bracing or breath holding. Even if the position is uncomfortable. We can use these deep slow breaths. To signal to the nervous system. That your body is safe. And it's okay to unwind. And return. Back to your center. Once again, Focusing. On gluing your sit barns. Down to the surface. And now. Take that top leg out to the side. Keeping the other. Foot bent in front of the groin. And again, Sit here. Focus on pulling this sit bone down. Into the ground. Keeping the spine straight. And place the hand on the shin. Side stretching up and over. Head up to the ceiling. Supporting shoulder dropped down away from the ear. Focusing on the sensation in the ribs and the adductors. Feel the ribs expand with every breath. Breathe. And float the arm back down. Again, Feeling the change in the sensation. Just sitting in this position. And let's work on releasing the hamstrings. Take a seated position. With the knees bent. Bring your chest. To the quad. Hug underneath the hamstrings. And keeping the spine as straight as possible. Slowly shuffle your feet forward. Gluing your chest to your quads. And once you hit to position. Of tension in the hamstrings. Pause. Breathe. Feel your belly expand into your legs. Let your breath melt away any tension. Most important thing is that your chest stays glued to the quads. Flattening the spine as much as possible. Get comfortable with the discomfort. And now release. Release the arms. Use your hands to push yourself back up. To a seated position. And wave the feet back and forth. Relax through the legs. Let your body lean back.