Exercises and stretches that you should be practicing

A good posture is a key for a tall, slim and confident look and we all know it, unfortunately having many hours sitting in front of PC can truly affect it and what’s worse can even cause you pain. The way to fix it is by doing physical exercises but not only that, but also stretching, so here are some great advice for exercises and stretches you should be doing 3 times per week to improve on your body.

Let’s start with the body groups:

Chest and Back

Exercise: Dead hang (alternatively hanging at pull-up bar)

Grip an overhead bar or rings and hang with feet suspended from the floor with arms extended. Hold for 8-12 minutes. Keep the shoulder blades down and chest up to fully engage the back muscles.
Maintain a shoulder width grip, anything wider and the difficulty of the exercise will increase. Feel the stretch. (Great exercise as base for more difficult exercises – like pull-ups).

Stretch: Standing chest stretch

Place your forearm on a corner wall, elbow 90°. Lean forward till you feel the stretch in your chest, hold 30 secs and than switch sides.

Quads and Hamstrings

Exercise: Barbell deadlift 

Squat down so your thighs are parallel to the floor. With straight arms and abs tight, pick up a barbell (overhand grip) and stand straight. Lower and repeat 10-12 times.

Stretch: Quad stretch

Start in a standing position and rise your right foot behind you (holding it up with your right hand) until your knee is in line with your hips. Hold for 30 secs and switch sides.

(I did this stretch as part of my Journey To Splits challenge), really makes you flexible. 

Some additional nice quad stretches you can see at Popsugar‘s article about it.

 

Glutes and Hips Flexors

Exercise: Glute Bridge

Lie on the back, knees bent with feet flat on the floor. Raise your hips towards the ceiling; pause than lower. That’s one rep. Do 12-15. Engage your core and squeeze your glutes.

 

Stretch: Hip stretch

Kneel with one foot on the floor in front of you. Push your hips forward to feel a stretch in your rear hip flexor and hold for 30 secs than swap sides.Do it slowly.

(Again picture from the Journey to Splits challenge.)

So guys, this my recommendations for this lovely workout Wednesday! Don’t skip your training, follow your program and diet and stay focused!

Tonight – HIIT time for me. What is your training for today?