(Photo: Yan Krukau | Pexels)
We bet your arms and upper body are in there work on a daily basis. And no, we’re not talking about an arm day at the gym (although we love our gym rats).
There are a lot of not-so-obvious ways that life keeps your arms and upper body active AF. Transporting groceries? Typing on your computer? To ride? Each of these activities secretly keeps the muscles in your neck, upper back, shoulders, and chest alert. The result is that even if you don’t use these muscles, they have trouble relaxing completely. Not to mention that your range of motion feels like that of a Lego figure.
But you deserve more! That’s where yoga comes in: as a reminder that you deserve to move, minus stiffness and discomfort.
5 best yoga youtube exercises to stretch your arms and upper body
A little goes a long way when it comes to stretching your upper body. Pressing play on one of these yoga exercises on YouTube is time well spent, as you’ll feel less constriction from the mat in your arms, chest, and upper back.
1. 10-minute yoga for neck, shoulders and upper back | Yoga with Adriene
About a minute into this YouTube yoga exercise, your arms, shoulders and chest will… ahhh the feeling of being stretched in exactly the ways you’ve been missing in your life. Working down the body, Adriene includes head tilts to stretch the neck, as well as shoulder squeezes to reach the upper back. It’s one of those yoga classes that you don’t know you need until you’re on the other side.
Release the tension in the upper body.
2. 15-minute upper body yoga stretch | Yoga with Cassandra
Don’t let the name fool you: this yoga exercise on YouTube by Kassandra Reinhardt is actually a satisfying exercise for you whole body. However, you’ll develop a new appreciation for how to stretch your upper body with classic yoga poses, including Sphinx Pose, Warrior 2, and even Low Lunge with Cactus Arms, to feel an extra stretch across your chest.
Stretch your upper body.
3. Yoga for the hands, arms and shoulders | David Procyshyn
If you’re tired of demanding upper body strength without first giving yourself time to prepare your muscles, then this exercise is for you. Yoga teacher David Procyshyn guides you through parts that can sometimes feel annoying. But after you flex your hands with your arms at your sides or straighten your pinky fingers, you’ll wonder how you ever did the simplest upper body exercises without this thorough warm-up.
In the words of one commentator: “25 years of Plank, Chaturanga, Updog and Downdog, and after just a few weeks of this exercise I actually feel STRONGER for the first time.”
Take good care of your hands, arms and shoulders.
4. Yin Yoga for the upper body | Boho beautiful
Not your typical yin class, this practice from Boho Beautiful Yoga is both active and relaxing. You move through long held chest and shoulder stretches (Puppy Pose, Sphinx) that are interrupted by slow vinyasa flows. Instructor Juliana Spicoluk draws your attention to your internal sensations so you can capture what good posture feels like and take it with you from your mat.
Relax while stretching the upper body.
5. Yoga for upper back, chest and shoulder | Yoga With Bird
If you ask us, breathing is the most underrated tool when it comes to releasing tension. That’s what this YouTube yoga practice from Bird encourages you to do. A slow warm-up for neck and shoulder stretches, followed by low-lying poses on the mat, gives you permission to pause and give your body what it needs, whether that means slowing down or leaning forward.
As one commenter notes, “I did this today and by the end I was crying, it felt so good. It’s so easy to forget how important it is to take the time to do things like this.” We completely agreed with that.
Take the time for you (and your upper body).
#upper #body #tight #tensionrelieving #yoga #practices