LATERAL BENDS…  the exercises in physie always have a lateral bend in there somewhere and if you are tight up the side of your body, you will find it very hard to keep your hips perfectly still when doing a lateral bend.

So how best can we stretch for lateral bends… without cheating?  Try sitting on the floor.

Start with a simple stretch  by placing your forearm on the floor at your side. You might find that the opposite knee tends to lift up, so keep it pressed down towards the floor. Because you are sitting, you can’t move your hips, so cheating is impossible and you will get maxiumum stretch up your side.

To increase the stretch, grasp your opposite knee and let your body hang in the lateral.  You can use your hand to keep that knee down.  Remember to do both sides and always breathe deeply and relax while stretching.

Happy lateralling!