Stretching Tips for Your Holidays
STRETCHES & TIPS FOR YOUR HOLIDAYS
City Physiotherapy & Sports Injury Clinic Adelaide
Long periods of standing at Christmas functions & parties, cooking up a storm in the kitchen, bent over wrapping presents or hours shopping for the perfect gift can all give you back pain, neck pain, headaches or sore muscles and joints. City Physiotherapy has a few easy tips and to help keep your body in check and ready to celebrate.
STRETCH BEFORE YOU COOK
If you have decided to cook a holiday feast then you ’ll probably be spending hours on your feet, leaning over the kitchen counter, chopping, peeling, stirring and giving your back, shoulders, neck and arms a workout.
Doing some stretching pre – and during your cooking time will help you. Stretching out your lower limbs – calves, hamstrings, quad ’s as well as your arms, neck and back will go a long way in preventing aches and pains. One of my favorites is the chest doorway stretch as well as shoulder rolls which can help relieve neck and upper body tightness and headaches.
FEET COME FIRST
A great way to help keep your feet from getting sore is to roll your feet with a ball. Stand and roll the ball back and forwards over your foot to loosen up your plantar fascia, foot joints and soft tissues. Rolling will stimulate & improve blood circulation in your feet.
We often make poor choices in footwear when it comes to party time. When you spend long hours on your feet either in the kitchen or at a celebration or function ensure you chose comfort as well as style or you ’re guaranteed to have sore feet and most likely back pain too.
STOP FOR SHORT BREAKS
Stopping to sit down for short breaks of even a minute or two can go a long way to relieve tension in your back, legs and arms. When you stand for long periods of time, your core muscles need to be switched on at all times. If your core muscles aren ’t working at full capacity at all times, your pelvis will tilt slightly forwards, giving you a sway back and putting a lot more tension on your spine and back muscles.
Letting them take a breather, even for a minute, can help offload any tension titling your pelvis backwards – your muscles will get oxygenated if they are allowed to rest and your spinal discs will have less constant load going through them – you will be good to go another round in the kitchen or party again. Even if there aren ’t any chairs to sit on, try and find a bar stool to perch on as this will work just as well.
STAY HYDRATED
Celebrations, cooking or cleaning your house ready for the holidays can all be dehydrating. If you are drinking alcohol try and alternate each drink with water. Becoming dehydrated is a guaranteed way of making you feel tired and run down.
Here are a few simple stretches to get through your holidays !
STANDING CALF – GASTROCNEMIUS
Stand with your arms straight in
front of you
Place one leg forward, foot flat
on the floor, knee bent.
Extend the opposite leg straight
back, placing your heel flat on
the floor. Do not bend your back
knee.
Lean forwards until you feel
the stretch in your calf of your
straight leg.
Breathe and hold for 30 seconds
– change sides and repeat.
STANDING CALF STRETCH – SOLEUS
Now slightly bend your back knee and push your heel into the floor.
You should feel the stretch in your lower calf muscle around your Achilles tendon.
Breathe and hold for 30 seconds – change sides and repeat.
QUADRICEPS STRETCH
Stand ing on one leg, hold your other foot
and pull your leg backwards by bending your knee.
Tuck in your pelvis and pull your foot
inwards towards your Gluteals.
Make sure your knee is pointing to the
ground in line with the other knee and in line with
your hip.
Hold for 30 seconds whilst breathing.
DOORWAY ARM & CHEST STRETCH
Stand in a doorway, hold the door frame and gently lean forward.
You should feel a stretch in your chest and arms.
Breathe deeply
Hold the stretch for 30 seconds.
Enjoy your holidays 🙂
BACK TO BLOG
If you know your injury or ailment, search or select from the dropdown list to the right. Alternatively click on the quick link buttons below to find out more.
Do you have nagging lower back pain? Are you injury prone, feel stiff, tight or suffer backache and back pains?
Reduce your pain & inflammation with advanced neuromuscular trigger point dry needling treatment. Dry Needling treatment is highly effective.
Massage Therapy in Adelaide | 30 Mins $66 | 60 Mins $99 | Leaving your muscles feeling relaxed.
Hands on Physio | Treating your tight muscles, irritated nerves, and pain.
Professional Sports Physio expertise for all ages & levels of ability from social sports to elite level sports.
Helping you relieve the pain of Headache and Migraine and understand the cause
An individually tailored approach to therapeutic exercise classes & dynamic core exercise with qualified Physiotherapists.
Physiotherapy treatment and therapeutic exercise classes can help during pregnancy and after giving birth.
Follow us to stay connected and keep up to date with the latest physiotherapy, health & wellbeing tips from City Physiotherapy Adelaide.
See more on Instagram cityphysiotherapy