Move With Us Through Upper Body Mobility
We present to you the first of our Move With Us series. This week's series will be focusing on upper body mobility. Whether you’re a desk worker, doing manual labour, sitting on the couch or looking for some simple stretches to follow, this series will help to get your upper back moving better.
Roll out your mat or take a seat on the floor and lets get started..
Thoracic Rotation
Our aim is to encourage more movement through your mid to upper back
Sit cross legged on the floor and cross your arms across your chest
Gently twist around to one side, back to the center and twist around to the other side
Repeat slowly and continuously 3 times each side or as many as you feel are needed
Mermaid Stretch
Our aim is to encourage more movement through your mid back in a side bending position and open up through your ribs
Place one hand down by your side, bending into that elbow while your other arm is going to come up and over, reaching over your head
Come back to the center and swap over to the other side. Make sure you are lengthening through your spine as you reach up and over
As you move through each side try and keep your weight even between your sit bones and hips
Repeat slowly and continuously 3 times each side or as many as you feel are needed
Book openers
Our aim is to open up through your chest and help with shoulder mobility
Lie on your side with your knees bent to a 90 degree angle, place a pillow under your head for more support if you’d like
Place both arms out in front of you with your palms facing each other
Drag your top arm up to your chest, open up toward the ceiling allowing your upper body to rotate and slowly extending your arm out straight
Bring your arm back to the start position
Make sure your hips stay facing forward and your knees stay together pointing forward
Repeat slowly and continuously 4 times and then roll over and repeat on the other side or as many times your body needs
Clock
Our aim is to keep the back of your hand on the mat/floor the whole time to assist with improving your mid back and shoulder mobility
Lying on your side straighten out your bottom leg, then tuck your top heel under your bottom leg to encourage your bent knee to stay in contact with the floor
Place both arms out in front of you with your top arm palm facing up towards the ceiling
Move your top arm up and over your head, keeping the back of your hand on the mat/floor all the way down towards your hip and coming all the way back up
Imagine your arm is like the hand of a clock
It’s ok if your hand leaves the floor at any time, as you increase your mobility you will be able to keep it in contact witht the floor for longer
Repeat slowly and continuously 4 times and then roll over and repeat on the other side or as many times your body needs
We hope you are feeling more mobile through your upper body after Moving With Us today! If you have any questions or need any advice on any of these exercises, please don't hesitate to reach out and chat to us.
Remember that you shouldn’t feel pain during any of these exercises. If they are painful for you, consider avoiding that exercise or decreasing the intensity. We are always here to help if needed.
If you’re after some more advice or are in need of some hands on help, we’d love to see you at Collective Motion! Collective Motion offers Osteopathy and Pilates and is conveniently located to service our Bentleigh community as well as its surrounding suburbs including Bentleigh East, McKinnon, Ormond, Glenhuntly, Murrumbeena, Carnegie, Oakleigh, Gardenvale, Brighton East and Hampton East. Click below to book an appointment and let us help you get moving again.
