Jessica‘s stretching routine is exactly what the title says–short and sweet. She gives you a total body stretch in just 16:30 minutes. Today I used this workout to finish off one of Linda Wooldridge‘s Barlates total body mat strength routines. Linda did stretch me out afterward, but I have been doing a lot of Barlates workouts this week and every muscle in my body is sore. So I needed some deep stretching that hit more muscle groups (and held them longer), plus I needed something gentler than what Linda delivers. This flexibility routine was perfect and exactly what my body needed. The length was right, too.
You need no equipment for this routine except a mat if you have a hard floor. The workout begins with deep breaths then side stretches. Next is some back stretches (cat and cow but while hinged forward w/ hands on knees). Forward fold. Calf/hip flexor stretch in split stance w/ a side bend. Fold forward into pyramid stretch. Inner thigh side stretch that transitions into a low lunge. Lower one hand to floor and turn torso toward front leg while reaching arm to ceiling. Return to low lunge and arch spine, opening chest. Get on hands and knees and thread the needle. Child’s pose. Come up to kneeling and lower bottom to heels and lean back, hands on mat behind you, stretching quads. Cobra stretch. Sit cross-leg and do a side stretch followed by a spine twist. Still cross-leg, fold torso forward. Butterfly stretch. Stretch one leg out straight in front of you and the other is bent so the sole of your foot is against your inner thigh, clasp your hands behind you and stretch chest while leaning forward over extended leg; hold this pose then release hands and grab your foot, deepening the stretch. Come into a low wide crouch, bottom as close to floor as possible and heels on floor if possible. Straighten legs so you are in forward fold. Ends with a deep breath.
For more info on JessicaSmithTV and other (free) streaming workouts I’ve sampled and reviewed, check out my Streaming page.
One thought on “JessicaSmithTV: Short & Sweet Stretch”