HOW: Begin the exercise by getting yourself set up in good posture sitting upright looking straight ahead. Then perform clockwise large neck circles, begin the movement by dropping your chin down, then lower your right ear down towards your shoulder, then turn your chin towards your right shoulder. Do a full circle around, then repeat. For every circle you do clockwise, you should match it with equal counter-clockwise circles.

 

FEEL: This should feel like a gentle stretch in your head and neck region, it should feel relaxing with the goal of promoting pain-free movement. You can start small vs. big to get the hang of the movement, but the goal is to perform large circles as best as you can.

 

COMPENSATION: Maintain body position below your head and neck, only your head and neck should be moving.

HOW: Start by lying on your side with your knees bent and raised to hip height. Clasp your hands on top of each other. Slowly reach your top hand forward as far as you can. Then, slowly pull your hands back, across your chest, and drop to the opposite side.

 

FEEL: You should feel a nice gentle stretch through your mid-back region. You may also feel a little pec stretch in the front of your shoulder.

 

COMPENSATION: Make sure to keep your knees high. If your knees are not high enough, you will not get the stretch in your mid-back region.

HOW: Place your hands against the wall at about shoulder height. Hinge at your hips and bring your body forward, this will be a body on arm movement which will increase the amount of shoulder elevation you are working into. Be gentle and move within your comfort. Change the width of your arms for comfort.

 

FEEL: You should feel a stretch in the shoulders or the mid-back region.

 

COMPENSATIONS: Avoiding pushing into the wall with your arms, this is a relatively passive exercise meaning your arms shouldn’t be working during this stretch.

HOW: Begin the exercise by positioning yourself on your hands and knees in a quadruped position, shoulders stacked over hands and hips over knees. Perform a chin tuck and maintain that head/neck position the entire time. Then perform a push-up plus by keeping your elbows straight and pushing into the ground – separating your shoulder blades from one another and moving your chest away from the ground. Reverse the motion by letting your shoulder blades come together and your chest drop towards the ground. Repeat

 

FEEL: This should feel like a coordination exercise as you’re focused on maintaining head and neck position while simultaneously moving your shoulder blades. You may feel a gentle stretch from the bottom of your neck to the base of your skull. You may also feel your neck muscles working to maintain head position.

 

COMPENSATION: Do not move the rest of your body. Do not lose head/neck position as it should be parallel to the ground. Keep your elbows straight, just move from your shoulder blades.

HOW: Start by lying face down with your arms out to the side of your in the shape of a “W”. Tuck your chin slightly and lift your head off the ground while still looking down. Then lift just your upper back off the ground – not your lower back. While keeping your upper back off the ground, squeeze your shoulder blades to now lift your elbows and hands off the ground in a W formation. Lift up as high as you can towards the ceiling. You should initiate the motion from the shoulder blade, then allow the shoulder to follow up as high as you can. Hold for a few seconds and slowly return back to the starting position.

 

FEEL: You should feel the muscles in your upper back, neck and back of the shoulder blade area and shoulder region working with this exercise.

 

COMPENSATIONS: Avoid arching the low back, only lift your upper back. Try your hardest not to let your chest lower as you go through your reps on this exercise. Do not shrug the shoulder blades as you bring your arms overhead.

HOW: Get set-up on the ground sitting on your butt. Use a yoga block or other object and place it under your bottom if your low back is rounding too much. To perform the stretch, bring your feet in together towards your groin, hold your feet with both hands and pull your chest up to help straighten your back. Let your knees fall out down towards the ground, hold this position.

 

FEEL: You should feel a stretch on the inside of your thighs and in your groin.

 

COMPENSATION: Focus on keeping your chest up and not letting your low back round too much.

HOW: Begin in the quadruped position. Your hands on the ground underneath your shoulders and your knees on the ground under your hips. Starting with a flat back, create a hump in your back as much as you can by pretending you have a tail and you’re tucking that tail in between your legs. Continue that hump in your mid and upper back while looking down with your neck. From here, reverse it and pretend like you are sticking your tail out as you arch your low, mid, and upper back while you attempt to look up. 

 

FEEL: You should feel the muscles in your lower, middle, upper back working/stretching as you push away from the ground creating the hump in your back and arching it. 

 

COMPENSATION: Keep your elbows straight, don’t bend them as you arch your back. Don’t rock back and forth with your hips.

HOW: Begin by lying on your stomach with your elbows bent at your side and your palms down on the ground with your hands by your shoulders. From here, exhale as you push into the ground lifting your chest off of the ground while keeping your hips on the ground and body relaxed.  

 

FEEL: You should feel a stretch in your back. 

 

COMPENSATION: Let your arms do all of the work, keep your back and lower body relaxed.