{"id":97383,"date":"2014-04-11T12:17:08","date_gmt":"2014-04-11T17:17:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dietsinreview.com\/diet_column\/?p=97383"},"modified":"2014-04-11T12:25:03","modified_gmt":"2014-04-11T17:25:03","slug":"rise-and-shine-stretch-series-with-suzanne-bowen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dietsinreview.com\/diet_column\/04\/rise-and-shine-stretch-series-with-suzanne-bowen\/","title":{"rendered":"Rise and Shine Stretch Series with Suzanne Bowen"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Suzanne Bowen<\/em><\/p>\n

There’s no better way to ease into your day than by stretching first thing in the morning. Wake up your body and brain with this 9-move sequence, designed to be done while you’re still in your PJs!<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Side<\/a><\/p>\n

Side Bend Reach
\n<\/strong>Standing at a bed or other support, bring right leg in front of and across left. \u00a0Shift into the right hip and reach right arm up and over head. \u00a0Hold and take 2-3 deep inhales and exhales. \u00a0Repeat on left.<\/p>\n

***Stretches outer leg, hip, waist and shoulder<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Chest<\/a><\/p>\n

Chest Twist
\n<\/strong>Holding a wall or window ledge with left arm, step forward with left leg and turn entire body to the right especially at the hips. \u00a0Hold stretch for 4-6 deep breaths increasing stretch with the pivot at the hips.<\/p>\n

***Stretches chest, front shoulder and front of arms. \u00a0Repeat on the right.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Upper<\/a><\/p>\n

Upper Back Reach
\n<\/strong>Standing in hip\u2019s distance, clasp hands and round upper back keeping arms straight and active.\u00a0Hold stretch for 2-3 deep breaths.<\/p>\n

***Stretches upper back and back shoulders.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Back<\/a><\/p>\n

Back of Leg Stretch
\n<\/strong>Holding on to a support, bring back leg up onto a step or bench, increasing height as flexibility increases. \u00a0Keep legs hips distance and parallel and keep back leg straight with back foot flexed. \u00a0If you need to increase stretch, hinge at the hips keeping the back completely straight. \u00a0Take 4-6 deep breaths. Repeat other side.<\/p>\n

***Troubleshoot: \u00a0If you have trouble keeping leg straight, lift back up and\/or lower leg.
\n***Stretches entire back of the leg.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Standing<\/a><\/p>\n

Standing Quad Stretch
\n<\/strong>Holding support, soften back knee and from a hips distance stance, bring front foot to front hand. Point front knee straight down to the floor and draw pelvis underneath you while keeping spine tall and crown of the head reaching to the ceiling. \u00a0Take 4-6 deep breaths. \u00a0Repeat other side.<\/p>\n

***Stretches front of leg and top of foot.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Figure<\/a><\/p>\n

Figure Four Hip Stretch
\n<\/strong>Lift front leg onto a bed or handrail. \u00a0Square off hips and make sure front knee is outside of front shoulder. \u00a0Keeping tailbone untucked, hinge forward at the hips. \u00a0Breathe 4-6 deep breaths then change sides.<\/p>\n

***If hips are tight, modify by bringing front leg onto back thigh and sitting back like you\u2019re sitting in a chair.
\n***Stretches hips and outer thigh.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00a0\"Standing<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Standing Forward Bend
\n<\/strong>Standing in hips distance, hinge forward at the hips while keeping your knees soft. \u00a0Allow your upper body to hang over your legs and clasp elbows. \u00a0Hang and breathe 2-3 deep breaths while you gently shake your head \u201cno” and even more gently nod your head \u201cyes.\u201d \u00a0Release arms and change arm positions so that the opposite arm is on top. Take 2-3 more deep breaths in. \u00a0To come up, pull in abs and gently round up one vertebra at a time.<\/p>\n

***Troubleshoot: \u00a0If your lower back or backs of legs are tight, forward bends can be very difficult. \u00a0Rather than hanging your upper weight forward, hold onto a support like a bed or chair and little by little increase the range of motion with each day.
\n***Releases Lower Back<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Wide<\/a><\/p>\n

Wide Knee Child\u2019s Pose
\n<\/strong>On a mat, bed or other soft surface, bring your knees slightly apart and hips to heels and reach out actively through your upper body and arms. \u00a0Stretching through your arms as far as you can, release any tension and relax, breathing deeply up to one minute.<\/p>\n

***Make this more comfortable by placing a small towel or pillow under your forehead or bend arms and place head on forearms.
\n***Releases lower back and shoulders.<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Supine<\/a><\/p>\n

Supine Rest Pose<\/strong>
\nLie face up and bend knees. \u00a0Relax any tension in your face and neck starting at the crown of the head and moving to eyes, jaw and shoulders. \u00a0Allow arms to externally rotate (elbows face ceiling) and fingers to curl up. \u00a0Begin breathing not into your belly or upper chest, but breathe into your lower ribcage as if you are trying to fill up lower ribs in all directions. \u00a0Breathe in for as long as you breathe out. \u00a0Become aware of your breath. \u00a0Try to make sure your lower spine does not press into the floor\/mat. \u00a0Remain here as long as you would like but for no less than 3 minutes.<\/p>\n

***Reduces stress by encouraging thoughtful breathing and relaxation.<\/p>\n

________<\/p>\n

Suzanne Bowen is fitness instructor and star of several workout DVDs including the recently released Barre Amped<\/a><\/strong> series. Find out more about Suzanne and her workouts on her website<\/a><\/strong> or her Facebook<\/a> <\/strong>page.<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Also Read: \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Gorgeous Core<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Stretching is Essential for Runners<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Sneaky Ways to Squeeze in Stretching<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Suzanne Bowen There’s no better way to ease into your day than by stretching first thing in the morning. Wake up your body and brain with this 9-move sequence, designed to be done while you’re still in your PJs! … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3687,93,58],"tags":[9610,8869,1924,6179],"class_list":["post-97383","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-adult-health","category-mens-health","category-womens-health","tag-saturday-morning-drills","tag-stretch","tag-stretching","tag-suzanne-bowen"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dietsinreview.com\/diet_column\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97383","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dietsinreview.com\/diet_column\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dietsinreview.com\/diet_column\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dietsinreview.com\/diet_column\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dietsinreview.com\/diet_column\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=97383"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/dietsinreview.com\/diet_column\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97383\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":97387,"href":"https:\/\/dietsinreview.com\/diet_column\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97383\/revisions\/97387"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dietsinreview.com\/diet_column\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=97383"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dietsinreview.com\/diet_column\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=97383"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dietsinreview.com\/diet_column\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=97383"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}