Spinal Rotation Exercise

This first exercise in my Top 3 Home Exercises Routine, is geared towards everyone spending long hours sitting at home. Whether you are someone who is now working from an ergonomically imperfect home office, or if you’ve been glued to the couch binge watching a third Netflix series this week, this exercise is for you. The goal of this exercise is to keep mobility in your entire spine, shoulder blades, and shoulder joints.

Image 1 - Start Position

Begin by lying on your side with hips and knees bent. Maintain a neutral spine and position your arms in front of you at right angles to your body (image 1).

From here you want to keep your hip stacked on top of each other as you lift your top arm up and across your body towards the opposite side of the mat. Let your eyes track your moving hand to allow your neck to move with your mid-back to your end position (image 2).

Image 2 - Finish Position

Repeat this movement slowly 10 times in one direction followed by 10 times in the opposite direction to get the best effect.

Trick Movements to Watch For: Movement of the Pelvis

Your top hip might want to roll back during this exercise. To get the full effect of the spinal rotation, you will want to focus on keeping your hips stacked.

*Safety Warning

When performing the exercises outlines above it is normal to feel stretching and a gentle warmth / burning sensation in desired muscles. If these exercises are causing sharp joint pain it is likely that the movement pattern is wrong and this exercise will not be good for your body. Please do not push through any sharp joint pain. If you are feeling sharp joint pain with any of the exercises listed above please consult with your Physiotherapist or exercise coach before continuing to work on this exercise.