Full Body Stretches (Without Getting On The Floor)

When it comes to exercise, do you love getting down on the floor? No?

If you don’t, then mobility coach Alisa Zuravskaja has just the thing for you:

Stick to this

This routine uses a dowel rod (or broomstick) to unlock your hips, spine, and shoulders. We’ll be doing warm-up, mobility, and active stretching. Here’s what it looks like, step-by-step:

• Warm up:
  • Hold the dowel overhead and lower it to meet your lifted knee, alternating sides.
  • Put the dowel across your upper back, and rotate your torso from side to side with your hips facing forwards.
  • With the dowel behind you, make controlled torso circles forwards and backwards to loosen your mid-back.
  • If you take your time and prioritize good form, you should feel the difference (in a good way!) before proceeding to the exercises below.
• Good morning: with the dowel behind your head, hinge forwards from your hips while keeping your spine long and chest open, then return upright.
• Hamstring sweep: with a wide stance and soft knees, hinge at your hips and sweep your chest in a smooth arc from one side to the other, stretching your hamstrings and engaging your core.
• Shoulder mobility: hold the dowel in one hand and rotate it behind your back to the other hand, passing it around your body slowly and with good, steady control.
• Wrist stretch: hold the dowel in front with both hands; twist your wrists one way, then the other, feeling the stretch through your wrists, shoulders, and arms.
• Lateral squat & twist: hold the dowel at hip level, shift into a side squat, twist your torso towards your bent leg, lean forwards slightly, and reach the dowel towards the floor.
• Forward fold: with the dowel behind your back, hinge forwards from your hips, fold your torso towards the floor as your arms lift up and over your head, then return to standing.
• Side bends: with one end of the dowel on the floor, and the other arm overhead reaching to the side, bend through your torso to stretch your the side of your body.
• Spine rotation (lift and twist): hold the dowel in front with wide arms, lift one arm and rotate your torso towards that side, stretching your shoulder, chest, and upper back.
• Spine rotation (parallel hold): with the dowel held straight at hip level, lift it to shoulder height as you rotate your torso to one side, keeping the dowel parallel to the floor, then return to center.
• Hips, glutes & balance: using the dowel for support, lift your knee, hinge forwards from your hips, extend your back leg while lowering your chest, then return to the start to do the other side.
• Hip abduction & curtsy lunge: using the dowel for balance again, lift your leg out to the side, then step it diagonally behind you into a curtsy lunge, returning to standing before repeating.
• Sumo squat: with a wide stance with toes slightly out, hold the dowel and lift your arms parallel to the floor, lowering into a squat while keeping your chest tall, stretching and strengthening your inner thighs and groin as you do.
• Full body stretch: with the dowel overhead and your arms straight, reach upwards as you inhale, then exhale as you fold forwards, relaxing your back; repeat with gentle side-to-side swaying.

For more detail plus visual demonstrations that make it much easier than it might sound, enjoy:

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Want to learn more?

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Take care!