Standing inner thigh stretch with chair

Although you can stretch your inner thigh area in many different ways, this stretch is probably the easiest way to stretch your groin area without tensing your neck, shoulders, and back.
To do this stretch, follow these steps:

1. Stand next to a chair.
2. Raise your leg that’s closest to the chair and place your foot on the seat of the chair. Make sure to keep your hips and shoulders facing forward, as shown in Figure 8-7a.
3. Exhale slowly as you bend forward and lower your hands toward the floor. Check out Figure 8-7b for the visualization of this stretch. Let gravity do the work for you. If you feel too much strain, place one hand on the seat of the chair to give you a little more control over the stretch.
4. Gradually deepen the stretch with every exhale as you hold this stretch for 30 seconds. Shake your head “no” to make sure that you aren’t holding tension in your neck.
5. Roll up slowly and repeat the stretch with your other leg. Never bounce or force the stretch. This actually can cause the muscles to tighten rather than relax and lengthen.

A few do’s and don’ts for this stretch:

• Do tilt your pelvis back so you feel the stretch a little deeper in your groin.
• Do keep your arms and shoulders relaxed and just let gravity gently deepen the stretch.
• Do keep your standing leg straight.
• Don’t rush!