Chest Stretches for Better Posture | SilverSneakers

There are many benefits of maintaining strong posture including improved energy and ease of breathing. Ultimately good posture can lessen the risk of back and neck pain. One important way to improve posture is by stretching the chest muscles. Here are some of my favorite stretches which open the front body and help improve your posture. So to enjoy these stretches we will be in a seated position. So find yourself seated on your chair. Once you're there walk your hips back a tiny bit and then I really want you to focus on posture. So scoot your hips forward for just a tiny bit. Plant your feet securely on the floor. Lift your chest up nice and tall. Now just roll your shoulders back and down. As you find yourself seated in the chair already you feel your strong core engaged. Both hands draw to the center of your body keeping your shoulders released back and down. Let's start with just a nice chest opening. Open palms all the way beside you. Feel your front body open. Shoulder stretching, chest muscles stretching and just breathe here. Let's come back to a little dynamic movement with this. So as you inhale palms open to the front and as you exhale gently draw hands back to center. You take your time. If your movement doesn't perfectly align with mine that's okay. Inhale open and as you exhale draw hands back to center. We'll do this a couple more times. Inhale open. Maybe this time opening a little bit wider into the stretch. Next time you inhale and open we'll stay here with an exhalation. Again elbows are released down. Hands just feel relaxed. Nice easy breathing as you feel the stretch all along the front body. Make sure you lift tall all the way through the top of your head. Breathing here. Let's take one more slow inhale and as you exhale can you wrap your shoulder blades around your spine just a little bit deeper. Very nice. Release hands all the way to the tops of your thighs. Now we'll come into a nice opening again for the front body just with a little variation. So before we do anything just draw hands to the tops of your thighs. Add a slight rounding with your upper body. So this is a modified cat pose. As you open up through a modified cow pose you're going to feel maybe a slight back bend happening. Elbows draw straight back. Let's try that again. We'll move through slowly. Very gentle rounding in your upper back and then open up into cow pose. We can always add breathing with this movement. So as you round into cat we'll exhale and as you inhale open into cow. Elbows draw straight back. Try it again. Rounding as you exhale into cat. Open inhaling as you come into cow. Now we'll stay here. Lengthen through your cervical spine so your neck feels nice and long. Hold here and breathe. Elbows just draw back. We'll hold this for one more slow inhalation. Slow exhalation and then gently release hands beside you. Now just let your hands just swing naturally beside you. If you need to reset your posture now's the time to do so. Gently hands reach to the front and then reach towards the back of the room. So just feeling this movement just check in with how this feels on your shoulders. Feels pretty good. You maybe can take that movement a little bit larger. Press hands back. Let's do this a couple more times. Nice. Just pay attention to your breathing. Next time hands are back add a gentle grip or just hold on to your chair wherever your arms fall. Maybe widen your stance a little bit if that feels more stable to you. Find length again all the way through the crown of your head. Chin lifts slightly and you are breathing holding this nice stretch in chest expansion. In fact just pay attention. Listen to your breathing. Does it feel a little more easy? A little more natural for you? One more nice deep breath. Inhale. As you exhale wrap your shoulder blades again around your spine just a little deeper. Nice. Release hands beside you. Draw hands to the tops of your thighs. Now this next one is one of my favorites. Slide right hand forward as left hand comes back along your thigh. Stop for a minute and just take note of how you are feeling in this gentle twist. Release back to center and let's do the same thing left hand forward right elbow back. If you feel your posture being adjusted or modified make sure you reset and let's try it again. Now as you come into this gentle twist lead with the shoulder that is where your elbow is drawing back. That's where you'll open up so lead with that shoulder as you open up into the twist. Nice. Next time your right elbow is back let's just hold there. Shoulders stays released back and down. Relax your hands on your thighs. Avoid pressing or adding. Just let your hands become light. As you unwind back to center roll shoulders back and down. This time left elbow draws back and we'll just hold here for a moment opening up through left shoulder. Relax your shoulder blades down your back. Breathe here. Take one more slow inhale one more slow exhale and then as you unwind to center just roll shoulders sit nice and tall. Thanks so much for joining me. Don't forget to visit SilverSneakers.com to see if you're for this wonderful SilverSneakers benefit.