Modern life isn’t kind to our posture: hours spent sitting, hunched over a laptop or scrolling the cell phone, behind the wheel of a car or slouched in front of a TV can leave us feeling tight and stiff—especially in the hips and spine.
While a sedentary lifestyle might be unavoidable for some—with bills to pay and mouths to feed—just a few stretches can make a big difference.
If you often end your day feeling like a crumpled piece of paper, try taking ten minutes to run through these mobility-boosting moves.
Yoga teacher Amy Landry has chosen five postures that target areas that suffer the most from prolonged sitting—your spine, hips and feet.
Suitable for all experience levels including beginners, the poses are most effective when held for around a minute each. Do them after a day of sitting and see how your body responds.
Toe sit
“How the feet function impacts the entire body,” says Landry. “Creating mobility in the foot arches and the metatarsals/tarsals is critical for greater ease and lower-body function.”
- From your hands and knees, walk your hands back towards your knees until you're sitting on your heels.
- Tuck your toes under so the soles of your feet are flexed.
- Shift your weight onto the balls of your feet (not just your toes) to deepen the stretch.
- Hold for one minute, then return to the starting position.
Lateral spinal stretch
“Lateral spine movement is often overlooked. Moving the spine sideways [stretches] the entire sideline of the body,” says Landry.
- Stand feet together or hip-width apart, arms by your sides.
- Reach your arms overhead, pressing your palms together.
- Gently bend your body to one side, without twisting forward or backward.
- Feel the stretch along your side (oblique muscles).
- Hold for a minute or as long as it’s comfortable, then return to center.
- Repeat on the other side.
Warrior one
“This standing posture creates both mobility and strength in the hip,” says Landry. “Over time, this can result in freedom of movement and overall stability—essential for mobility.”
- Stand feet together or hip-width apart, arms by your sides.
- Step one foot back, turning your toes slightly outward.
- Bend your front knee to roughly a 90° angle and shift your weight onto your rear foot.
- Keeping your hips square with the front of your mat, place your hands on your hips or raise them overhead.
- Hold for one minute, then switch sides.
Cobra
“A gentle backbend performed lying on your abdomen, cobra pose helps to release tension across the chest, front of shoulders and neck, which can easily accumulate in our sedentary lifestyles,” says Landry. “It also targets the entire spine, countering hours of sitting.”
- Lie on your front, arms by your sides and legs and feet slightly apart.
- Place your hands palms down on the mat, level with your shoulders.
- Keeping your elbows close to your torso, press through your hands to gently lift your head and shoulders, vertebrae by vertebrae.
- Engage your back, press your feet and legs into the floor and feel the opening in your chest. Keep your shoulders down away from your ears.
- Only lift as high as is comfortable.
- Hold for a minute, then lower down with control.
Seated spinal twist
“This simple spinal twist addresses any muscular imbalances from repetitive seated postures.” says Landry. “Not only does this rotation mobilize the entire body, it can support digestion too. Avoid performing this pose on a full stomach or during the first trimester of pregnancy.”
- Sit on the floor cross-legged.
- Bring your hand to the opposite knee and the fingertips of your other hand on the mat behind you.
- As you exhale, twist your torso and gaze over your shoulder.
- Hold for a minute, then return to the center and repeat on the other side.
How often should you do full-body, deep stretching?
“In a perfect world, daily stretching would be wonderful,” says Landry. “But you will quickly see the benefit of stretching just two or three times per week.
“The beauty of these postures is that they can be easily woven into your day and sometimes even performed while doing other things.”
If you want a slightly longer routine, try these 10 yoga stretches for beginners.
