Downward-Facing Dog & Plank
To begin the session, start in a downward-facing dog position. Stretch out your toes, ankles, and feet, and focus on your breathing.
Then, drive your right leg up, tilt to the side, flex the foot, open up the hip, then bring it back down to the floor, re-centering. Do the same on the left-hand side.
After completing the stretch on the left side, use your core to move from downward dog to a solid plank position three times.
Low Lunge
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Moving into a nice flow, bring that right leg up, then drive the right knee towards the nose, and step down into low lunge position. Drop the left knee, drop the toes, and shift your weight back flexing your right foot for a right hamstring stretch.
Take your time to really breathe into the back of your right leg, feeling the hamstring open. Then, shift your weight forward, so your right knee is bent, and open the left hip flexor.
Chest & Pyramid
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Next, we're going to focus on the chest. Staying in this position with the lower body, you're going to inhale and stretch your arms above your head, then bring your elbows to each side, stretching the chest. Inhale and exhale to open.
Bring your hands back down onto the floor and pop up into pyramid position. This will stretch the back of both legs. Try to keep your legs straight. If you need to bend your knees slightly, you can do that as well.
Make your way back into a plank, push into downward dog, and do the stretch routine on the other side.
Crescent Lunge & Spinal Twist
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Next flow, raise the right leg again, and step it all the way through to low lunge again. Then, breathe up into crescent lunge and bring hands down to heart center. Inhale big and exhale twist towards front leg. If you can, look up to ceiling for a deeper spinal twist. Every time you inhale, try to lengthen the spine. Every time you exhale, try to twist a little deeper.
After about three breaths, move back into center, bring the hands down, and plank into downward dog to complete on the other side.
We hope this five-minute stretch routine will help you relax before or after a long day at work, and help you release some pent-up stress, too!
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Note: Individuals should always speak to their physician before starting a new exercise program, especially if they have pre-existing injuries or physical conditions, and should only perform physical activity they feel capable of doing.
