Yoga Strap Shoulder Stretches

Video Transcript

"Another technique for opening the shoulders is also using a yoga strip. If you don t own a yoga strip you can also use belts, men s ties, a tie from a robe, anything that has some resistance. So what you?re going to do is find a comfortable sited position. I prefer to use a block or you can sit back on your heels. After spending too much time sitting on your heels it may become uncomfortable, so you may find that it is easier to put a block underneath your sits bones. So you take the strips, hold it just a little bit wider than shoulder length apart, have a nice grip on it. On the inhale lift the arms up and as you get toward the back here you may find a little bit of tightness. So you can let your hands open up down the strip and for me I have to open pretty wide. And continue to let the arms come down very slowly behind you. Then take a nice breath. Then slowly lift it back and when you hit that tight spot, take a moment and just breathe. And then slowly bring the arms back down. Try not to rush through this and go as slow as you can and then as you increase the stretch and you want to increase the flexibility, you can bring the hands in closer. So the closer they are the harder this stretch will be. So slower bring it up and as you get to that tight spot you may need to open it out. You should feel a nice stretch along the chest pectorals muscles and then slowly bring it up and over. And this is just another great technique of using a strip to open the shoulders."