WELLNESS
FEEL IT OUT A STRETCH FOR SPRING Tap into your body and make time for movement. Sara Ford, co-founder of Ely’s leading fitness and wellness studio Fresh, shares a pose to try at home
LIMBER UP Stretch your way to reduced tension in your lower back with a targeted psoas release
M uch like the beautiful plants that unfurl over the next few months, it’s time to unfurl our own bodies. Following a cosy winter of nesting – or huddling by the fire wrapped in blankets – it’s time we shed the extra layers and stretch up towards the sun to enjoy its warmth. One of the best ways to release tension and feel instantly more open is releasing the psoas muscle. It connects our upper body to the lower body, linking at the spine and the hips. It’s a huge contributor to our daily movement, but an area that is regularly neglected. When in a seated position, we are repeatedly shortening the psoas muscle, causing lower back pain, tight legs and poor posture. Here is my favourite stretch to feel a great release down the front of the hip area.
• Lay on your back with your hips slightly lifted on a yoga block, or cushions. Make sure you’re not feeling any discomfort in your lower back, move the block around if needed. • Bring one knee up, allowing your leg to rest in a right-angle position and gently hold your knee with your hand on the same side. Extend the other leg out straight. • Take a deep breath in – as you exhale draw your knee closer in towards you, allowing the knee joint to close and a stretch to begin along the front of the hip on the straight leg. Continue this for three slow breaths. • If you want to deepen the stretch, begin taking the knee further out to the side while still drawing it up (in the direction of your armpit). • Repeat on the other side. When finished, pop both feet down, raise your hips and slide the blocks out from beneath you. Then, straighten your legs and enjoy a few deep breaths with eyes closed before gently bringing yourself up to standing. Step-by-Step Guide
Try it in-person at the Flexitone Release class, exclusively at Fresh (in-studio and livestreamed), Tuesday and Friday at 8am
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