Stretch Routine

Hi, this is Tricia with Live Free Massage. Now, if you sit down a lot during the day,then follow this video as I show you a quick routine on how to stretch those important muscles that could be causing you pain. Now, every person has a different pain pattern, so if you have pain stretching any of these muscles, then go ahead and remove that stretch from the routine. Let’s get started.

The first stretch is for your back muscles as well as the glutes and hamstrings. Bend over and touch your toes. Then bend backwards to open up your front and get some mobility in your spine. Side-bend to both sides with your arm overhead, to stretch those side muscles. Now on to your neck. Grab your wrist behind your back and pull to create a wing. Then bring your ear to your shoulder on the winged side. Look up for ten seconds, and then down for ten seconds. This stretches the muscles in the back and the front of the neck. Repeat to the other side. Now, let’s stretch the chest. These muscles can get commonly tight, so find a doorway and put your arm against the wall at 45 degrees, then step forward to stretch. Then move your arm up to 90 degrees and then again up, to 110 degrees. Repeat for each arm. This stretches all the different muscles of
the chest.
Next, we want to stretch the hip flexors that get shortened from sitting and can cause back pain. So get into a lunge position and keeping your pelvis tucked, and your back straight, lean forward. Repeat on the other leg. Finally, take a seat and stretch those hip muscles that can cause pain and possibly pinch the sciatic nerve. Cross your leg, and keeping your back straight, lean forward. Repeat on the other hip. That’s it guys. I recommend doing this video every day and as much as needed.
Thanks and I’ll see you next time.

Review of Rad Roller

Hi, it’s Tricia from Live Free Massage, and today I want to talk to you about my favorite massage tool, the RAD Roller. It’s my favorite massage tool that I recommend to all my clients. It’s versatile, and it’s able to get deep into the areas that you need. Now, this one is blue and it’s a medium firmness. They have a green one that’s softer, and a black one that’s harder. But if you’re sensitive to foam rollers, I would recommend using the green one at first. So, let’s get started.

The first way I use my RAD Roller is for your spinal muscles. These are the muscles that run up and down your spine, all along your back. These muscles can get tight and cause pain and even your spine to misalign. And if you’re starting to get that hunchback posture, this is a good one for you.
You lie down on your back and put the space between the two balls over your spine. Each ball should rest on the side of the spine, directly over the muscles, like this picture shows. Then pull your shirt tight so it doesn’t get tangled when you start to roll. Move the roller slowly down your back. If you feel a tender spot, stop, relax, and breathe until it feels better. This may take a minute or two. Then continue to move down to the low-back area, where you stop.
The next area I want to show you is for your chest muscles. Now these muscles, if they get tight, they can pull your shoulders forward and down, and it can cause your back to overstretch and get painful, where a lot of people get some soreness. So what you want to do is you want to stretch these muscles to relieve the upper back area that you feel the pain in.
Find a corner wall and put the ball lengthwise against the wall and against your upper chest. Put an amount of pressure on the ball that you’re comfortable with. This area can be surprisingly tender. Then slowly move your arm out and above your head, and back down. Keep working this area from the sternum out to your shoulder. Again, if you find a tender spot, hold it until it feels better.
The last area I want to show you is the upper shoulders. I use the tool on this area quite a bit since I tend to hold much stress here.
Go against a corner wall, and you want to bend over like you’re in a football lineman position. Then put the ball lengthwise against the wall and the top of your shoulder. Work this whole area, stopping on tender spots. You can also slowly turn your head in different directions to release more effectively.
That’s it guys, I hope you get one of these tools and it helps you with your daily tension like it’s helped me. I’ll see you next time.