Chair hip opener

You all know I am big on getting up during the day and moving around/stretching. I work from home now and am lucky that I can take conference calls while I stretch, but most do not have that type of freedom.

Here’s a great hip stretch you can do while sitting in your office chair. Sitting for 8 hours a day can inhibit and weaken the hip flexors and the hips, glutes, and hamstrings can all become tight. Over time, this can result in some unwanted pelvic tilt and low back pain.

Here’s how you can perform this stretch in your own office or cubicle:
1. Sit on the edge of your chair with a neutral spine. For those of you who are prone to anterior pelvic tilt, you’ll want to tilt your hips forward a bit here.

2. With your hips neutral, slowly lean over until you feel a nice stretching sensation in your hip. Don’t push this further than your flexibility will allow. And don’t forget to breathe!

3. Hold for about 1 minute and then switch to the other side. The goal will be to lengthen the amount of time you can hold the stretch.

4. If you’re really supple and flexible, you can reach your arm down towards the floor as shown in picture 3 to intensify the stretch.

Happy hips = happy back. Enjoy!