Good Morning To All
Hi! Good morning to all. I just woke up and stretch my body. One of my favorite exercises in the morning is the so called thomas stretch. The starting position is you need to stand with your buttocks resting against a table or use the steeplechase pit at your local track. Pull one knee to your chest and slowly lie back onto the table, keeping the knee pulled into your chest. If you take a look at the stretching leg, it should be in line with, below the level of the table. If it is higher than that, this indicates tightness in your hip flexors. If, when you bend the leg, the thigh rises up, this indicates tightness in the quads, specifically the rectus femoris. Allow the stretching leg to hang off the table, gently pressing the knee downward without letting the back arch.
If possible ask someone to push down gently on the top of the knee. If you have helper, you can also try a PNF stretch technique called contrast and relax, where you to push your thigh up against their hand for five seconds and then relax, which should enable you to increase the stretch.
To strech the quadriceps the heel needs to go back toward the buttock. Get your helper to hold your knee in place and manually bring your heel backward. Remember, this strech should not cause pain, just tolerable discomfort.