2020 has turned everything so completely upside-down. We all really want to get back to some normalcy and happiness. With most of us working from home and working out at home I wanted to share some ideas about making a space to stretch and building a home gym for cheap. Stretching keeps our muscle flexible, strong and healthy and that need all of that to maintain a range of motion in our joints. With regular stretching it keeps your muscle long, lean and flexible. We want to try to maintain all of this as we age.  With that being said I have listed my favorite things to use to help me stretch and they are really cheap!

So a few things I seem to not be able to live without is the foam roller. The foam roller is something I use every day. It helps with mobility, flexibility, better circulation, stress reduction and helps with soreness. Again I use the foam roller very often.

The next thing is the PVC pipe. I use this a lot for all upper back, shoulder mobility and even my hamstrings! We do put a lot of pressure on the shoulders. Anytime we do pushups, planks or even pull ups. The PVC pipe is a great way to open the shoulders up and if you sit in front of the computer all day your shoulders are most likely get tight from a results of not moving them for hours.  If you don’t have a PVC pipe other things I use are a band or even a broomstick.

Next on my list is the stretch out strap. It’s a great way to get a deeper stretch for your hamstrings and also getting your IT bands which are hard to stretch on our own. It’s also great for quads, calves and hip flexors. I really like the stretch out strap because I can get deeper into the stretch.

I really really love my resistance band. These small bands provide so much strength. They are great from glutes, knees and hips. It’s a great for strengthening muscles and also really cheap. They come in 4 colors including yellow, green, blue and black. Black has the most resistance.

When it comes to stretching taking it slow at first, especially if you very tight. Don’t force anything that becomes painful. If you have any questions about stretching always feel free to ask Dr. Cait or ask while you are in Active Care!

 

  • Chelsea