Esquerre Athletic Coaching: This post might be a bit of a stretch

Stretching is vital for any athlete and should be done if not every day at least after every workout. Stretching keeps your muscles from staying too tight which can lead to injury. There are tons of stretches and ways to stretch but here are a couple of tried and true ones that I consistently do and have always made me feel much better after I do them.

Touch your toes

This stretch is great for your hamstrings, glutes and lower back. If you can't reach your toes then you can place your hands lightly on your shins. Go as far as you can till you feel a slight tug, then stop and breathe. Keep your knees straight and your heels planted flat on the ground. It's ok if your back is rounded. Hold for about ten seconds, then slowly roll your up to standing, take a moment to breathe then slowly roll down again and hold for ten more seconds. In all of your stretches you should be breathing along with the stretch and the movement of your body.

Open leg stretch

This is a slight modification on the toe touch stretch. Instead of your legs being close together you spread them out. This can give you a deep stretch in your glutes and your lower back. You may be able to feel this stretch in your inner thigh as well. Keep you knees straight and your heels planted on the ground. You can put your hands on the ground or put them behind your back for a deeper stretch. You can also shift your upper body to the right and left to get a deeper stretch in each leg. Make sure you keep breathing.

Sitting hamstring stretch

I like this stretch because it's slightly modified from the stretch where both of your feet are out in front of you. You bend one leg with the foot touching the outer knee of your other foot. Bend at the waist and try to keep your back as straight as you can. The photo below has a forward view of this stretch.

The goal is to keep your straight leg as straight as you can, your back straight, your bent leg pushing down to the ground and your chest upward, not flat on your leg. If you can't reach your toes you can have your hands touch your shins. Check the picture right above this one and see a modification for your hands. This stretch focuses on your hamstrings, inner thigh and back. Make sure you do both sides.

Lying leg stretch

Lie with your back flat on the ground and bring one leg up in the air. Grab the back of your leg and slowly bring your leg toward your body till you feel a sight tug then hold and breathe. Your leg should stay straight and try to flex your foot. If you can't flex your foot initially you can point it but alternate between pointing and flexing your foot. For a deeper stretch you can count to ten and slowly keep pulling your leg toward your body. Make sure when you pull your leg that the movement is slow and controlled and your knee stays straight. Then when you feel the deep stretch in your hamstrings release your leg to a straight position with your foot facing upward, take a slight pause and repeat. You can do that four to six times on each side. As always make sure you keep breathing.

Lying glute stretch

After you do the lying leg stretch you can do this one. Bring one leg up straight up in the air with the other leg bent. Cross your straight leg over your bent leg and place your foot just above your knee. Slowly bring your bent leg up towards your body and grab the back of your bent leg. If you look at the lying leg stretch it's easy to see how you can transition to this one. The lying glute stretch hits various parts of my legs, not just my glutes. I'm able to stretch my inner and outer thigh and my hamstrings. Make sure you do both sides and don't forget to breathe.

Quadricep stretch

For this stretch you'll want to start sitting up and bend one leg back then bend the other leg in front of you. Slowly lie back till you feel a slight tug then hold it and breathe. Make sure your upper body is straight and both of your knees should be as close to, if not touching, the floor. Your chest should be up and not caved in. If you can't get all the way back to your elbows then you can modify it and lean back with your arms straight behind you like the picture below. *Smiling is optional

Even with the modification your knees should still be trying to reach the ground and your legs should be as flat as possible.Your chest should still be up and keep breathing. Place your legs where they feel comfortable. Don't try and bend your legs so much that when you recline back that your knees start to point upwards. If your knees start to move up, readjust your legs by moving your feet outward a bit more then try and recline again. The goal is to feel the stretch in your quad muscles. You can hold this stretch for about ten seconds then go back to your sitting position, take a moment and slowly recline back. You can do four to six on each side.