Level up your Ab Training with Shoulder Taps

As a fitness enthusiast and personal trainer, I've noticed that many women struggle with tightness in two key areas: the chest and shoulders, leading to poor posture, and the hips. Today, I want to share four daily exercises that can help stretch and strengthen these areas, leaving you feeling amazing.

Let's start with a simple chair exercise to address the chest and shoulders. As the transcript notes, "We want to keep our shoulders in this position the whole time with the shoulder blades pinched together feeling those muscles on the back sides of the shoulders." This exercise involves sitting on the edge of a chair, placing your hands behind you, and lifting your hips while keeping your shoulder blades engaged. It's a great way to stretch the chest and strengthen the muscles that support good posture.

Next, we move on to the "chair down dog." This exercise is fantastic for opening up the shoulders and chest. The key here is to focus on external rotation of the shoulders to protect them during the stretch. As mentioned in the transcript, "You can turn your thumbs toward the sky or even turn your palms upward like this. That'll help you externally rotate the shoulders and protect them more as you do the stretch."

After working on the upper body, it's time to focus on the hips. The third exercise is a simple squat stretch using a chair for support. This move is excellent for opening up the hips and can be done throughout the day. The transcript advises, "Place your hands on the chair behind you, slowly scoot your butt off the chair, use your arms for support and start to drop into a squat."

The final exercise in this routine is the straddle stretch. This move really targets the hips and groin area. As described in the transcript, "You're going to want to adjust yourself so that you're not leaning backwards like this. You're going to want to be all the way up on your sit bones, or I like to think about it, are you feel like you're sitting on the tops of your hamstrings."

What I love about this routine is its simplicity and effectiveness. In just four minutes, you can reset your posture, loosen your shoulders and chest, and open up your hips. It's a quick and easy way to combat the tightness that comes from our modern, sedentary lifestyles.

Remember, consistency is key when it comes to improving flexibility and posture. Try to incorporate these exercises into your daily routine. You might be surprised at how much better you feel after just a few days of regular practice.

For those looking to take their recovery routine to the next level, there are plenty of additional stretches and exercises you can explore. As mentioned in the transcript, "If you want a full follow-along recovery routine complete with stretches for your entire body, well, watch this video right here."

In conclusion

These four exercises offer a simple yet effective way to address common areas of tightness in women's bodies. By dedicating just a few minutes each day to this routine, you can improve your posture, increase your flexibility, and feel more comfortable in your body overall. Give it a try and see how much better you feel!