Standing Lateral Stretch

Description

How to Do Standing Lateral Stretch

1. 1
   Setup

   Stand tall with your feet hip-width apart, spine neutral, and arms relaxed at your sides.

2. 2
   Setup

   Raise your right arm overhead, extending it straight towards the ceiling, and place your left hand on your left hip for stability.

3. 3

   Inhale deeply, then as you exhale, gently bend your torso directly to your left side, reaching your right arm further over your head.

4. 4

   Keep your chest open and hips stable, feeling the stretch along the entire right side of your body, from your fingertips down through your latissimus dorsi and oblique.

5. 5

   Hold the stretch for the desired duration, breathing deeply, then slowly return to the starting position and repeat on the opposite side.

Tips

• Keep your chest open and avoid rotating your torso forward or backward to ensure the stretch targets the latissimus dorsi effectively.
• Initiate the stretch from your core, imagining your ribs moving away from your hips on the side being stretched.
• Breathe deeply throughout the stretch; inhale to prepare and exhale to deepen the stretch slightly and relax into it.
• For an intensified stretch, gently reach your overhead arm further to the side, maintaining a straight line from your hand to your hip.

Common Mistakes

• ×Rounding your back or twisting your torso reduces the target stretch; keep your chest open and ensure your body bends in a single, lateral plane.
• ×Bending forward instead of purely sideways shifts the stretch away from the lats; focus on a direct side bend, as if between two panes of glass.
• ×Shrugging the shoulder of the overhead arm can cause neck tension; actively relax your shoulder down and away from your ear.