How To Stretch For Back Pain 2: Cat Cow Stretch
- December 3, 2007
- 2,934 Views
Produced by
Howcast Media
Directed by
Kevin Hall
Voice-Over Artist
Ryan Hunter
Production Designer
Karin Olsen
Music
Edison Music Corp
Art Director
Dew Gueramian
Picture a cow in a pasture or a sleeping cat—could their lives be any more relaxed? Since stress aggravates back pain, take a cue from these animals and practice this relaxing yoga-inspired stretch.
You Will Need
- Comfortable clothes
- A floor
Step 1: Get on hands & knees
Get down on your hands and knees. Your hands should be pointing forward and aligned underneath your shoulders, and your knees should be aligned underneath your hips.
Step 2: Inhale & arch back
Inhale, and slowly arch your back over a count of 5, dropping your belly towards the floor and raising your head, chest, and tailbone up.
Don’t overuse your lower back muscles; let gravity do most of the work.
Step 3: Hold stretch
Hold the stretch for 3 seconds.
Step 4: Exhale & round back
Exhale, and slowly round your back over a count of 5, dropping your head and tailbone down and pulling your belly inwards
Step 5: Hold stretch
Hold the stretch for 3 seconds.
To vary the stretch, rotate your midsection in a clockwise circle as you arch up and then down. Repeat 5-8 times and then rotate counter-clockwise for the same number of times.
Step 6: Repeat stretch
Repeat the stretch 3-5 times in each direction.
Americans spend an estimated $24 billion a year on back pain treatments.
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Comments (4)
practical advice-easy to do and definitely very helpful for you back
over 4 years ago by momliebman
In case you wondered why it's sometimes called the tiger position, try to picture a tiger that is just waking up and stretching.
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about 1 year ago by maruti
I like it because it streches my back.
about 1 year ago by errginn
When you are ready to come out of it, you can just walk your hands right back up the wall to come out of the stretch.
<;a href=";http://www.trainwithmeonline.com/stretching_exercises.html";>;stretching exercises<;/a>;
about 1 year ago by maruti
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