PECS, BICEPS, TRICEPS & SHOULDER STRETCHES
PEC STRETCH
1st part – Arm high up the doorway, leaning into the doorway. One leg bent as in a lunge position, will be the opposite leg to the arm being stretched.
This stretches one part of the fibres of the pecs. It should be felt at the outer part of the pecs closer to the armpit.
2nd part – Elbow bent in line with the shoulder, lean into the doorway. One leg bent as in a lunge position, will be the opposite leg to the arm being stretched. This stretch should be felt evenly at the pec and at the back of shoulder, potentially giving a neural stretch as well to the fingers as the nerve that travels down through the tricep is stretched as well.
You will feel the rhomboids in the back of shoulder. The rhomboids work very hard to keep us in good posture. They become under strain when the pectoral muscles are tight pulling the shoulders forward.
BICEPS STRETCH
Standing straight, lean into your hand pushing away from the wall. You should feel a stretch in the belly of the bicep.
To further stretch the bicep keep your thumb facing upwards (as demonstrated) and continue pushing away from the wall.
NEURAL STRETCH
This stretch is a great stretch to stretch the nerves. We do not always focus on nerve stretching but combined with muscle stretching they are very effective.
Place the hand facing downwards against the wall, lean into your hand pushing away from the wall as far as your body will allow. When comfortable either maintain this position or turn the neck left and right to further stretch the nerve.
TRICEPS STRETCH
Elbow bent, lift arm behind your head to stretch the underside of the arm. This stretch will also be felt under the armpit. Our triceps are neglected quite a lot but can be a part of other issues such as golfers elbow so stretching this is necessary.
SHOULDER STRETCH
Arm across body. Lock with the opposite arm to stretch.
FOREARMS, WRISTS, FINGERS STRETCHES
Our forearms are very often neglected. They can cause tingling in the lower limbs of the arm, at times the pain is referred from another area.
Long term tightness of these areas can lead to issues such as carpal tunnel syndrome where surgery can be prevented if the triggers or tension spots are released through manual therapy.
FOREARM STRETCH (EXTENORS)
For this first exercise you can either sit at table, lean on a cushion on your lap while watching tv or lean on your leg. You can use some linament or cream to enable your elbow to move with more ease.
Use your elbow to slide down the forearm until you feel a tension spot, sit on it and wait for the pain to subside. To release the tension you can slowly rock back and forth to release it quicker.
FOREARM STRETCH (FLEXORS)
This stretch is for the fleshy flexors, the underside of the arm. There are just as many triggers or tensional spots on the underside of the forearm.
One of which is the Palmaris which when tight restricts blood flow to the wrists and hand.
This stretch is an active release stretch as you need to open and close your hand to feel the tensional spot in the muscle.
WRIST STRETCH
For this exercise you can either sit at table, lean on a cushion on your lap while watching tv or lean on your leg.
The point you need to locate for this stretch lies between where the wrist meets the start of the hand. If you have trouble locating the tight spot, palpate around, you will find the spot, within seconds the pins and needles will start. Hold until the tension releases.
FINGER STRETCH
First part of this stretch is to separate the fingers, maintain the stretch. The key here is to keep the fingers separated and actively stretching.
The second part to this stretch is to place the fingers on a table or bench, keep the fingers elevated, press into the fingers. You will find your fingers are tight.