Friday, August 31, 2012

Monday Movement Moments


<p>My plan is to start blogging on Mondays about some sort of movement topic. In PNG, I have seen a ton of folks with chronic low back pain. I have never claimed back pain to be my specialty, but this simple little stretch can be helpful for some chronic low back pain conditions. The supine leg stretch involves lying on your back.  Take a rope or any type of strap, perhaps even a belt, place the mid-portion around the ball of the foot. Grab the sides of the rope with both hands keeping your shoulders and head relaxed on the floor. Lift the leg off the ground. Be sure to keep the elevated knee straight and the other leg flat on the ground. As the elevated leg comes farther away from the floor, you will begin to experience a stretch along the entire course of the hamstring muscle at the back of your thigh.  The goal would be to get the elevated leg approximately 90 degrees off the floor while keeping the knee straight and the other leg grounded.  All bodies are different so some may experience no challenge with your leg at a 90 degree position and may continue to pull the leg closer to the chest while others may struggle.  Find your challenge and hold at this position for 8 to10 breaths.  Repeat on the opposite leg.
This stretch has been an easy one to teach here in PNG. Due to the origin of the hamstrings on the pelvis, simply stretching these muscles can be beneficial in relieving some forms of low back pain. This stretch is also calming and can help increase hamstring flexibilty if practiced regularly. Enjoy!

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