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This article is a transcribed edited summary of a video Bob and Brad recorded in January of 2024. For the original video go to https://youtu.be/417iZbXm9B0
Mike: Today, we're going to show you the top three exercises you can do if you have a hunched-over posture.
Brad: And we're going to show you an option you can do while you're walking to get you upright.
Mike: Plus we have a bonus at the end which will really help loosen up those tight muscles.
Brad: Let's get at it. All right, these first three options are all very effective. You can do all three or pick out the ones that you want to do. You may want to just do one, or you may want to do one week and switch it to the next week so you're not getting bored. We are going to use these balls. What are we going to do with them, Mike?
Mike: So we're going to take a ball, place it behind your back, I'm going to go at my mid-back. And this stretch is going to open up your tight pec muscles and maybe abdominal muscles as well, because, oftentimes, if you're hunched over, these muscles become tight from being rounded so often. So you're going to try to put the ball here as a focal point or fulcrum and you're going to try to go back against it. Now if your shoulders are okay and you have the mobility, certainly, lift your arms up. I'm really stretching, going in the opposite direction of that flexed posture. And this actually feels really good, even if you don't have a flexed posture.
Mike: That's right. Now some common questions we have gotten about this particular stretch is people say, "Well, what size ball do we use?" One is a five-inch ball, I wouldn't go any smaller than that one, Mike is using an eight-inch diameter that's probably about as big as you want to go. It's critical that the ball is squishy, not a hard firm ball like a basketball or a soccer ball. So nice squishy ball, take it from the neighbor kids, wherever you can get it, buy it online, whatever. So they work well. Another point I want to make is this ball, I think Mike mentioned it, but you can adjust it up or down. This is actually breaking loose the spine, if you will, it doesn't break it loose, but it stretches the spine and the muscles at the same time, so it's really great. Do you want to try the smaller one, Mike?
Mike: Yeah.
Brad: What do you think?
Mike: I like the bigger one because I get a little more motion, but this is a good beginner for some people. Place the ball kind of where you are flexed over, that's going to be the most beneficial for you. It may be lower for some or higher up.
Brad: Right. All right, the second option you're going to be supine or lying on your back. This works best if you're on a carpeted floor, you could maybe do it on your bed but not very well. Get on the floor if you can, Mike, go ahead and show them the options.
Mike: You're going to start in kind of a hook-lying position, so my legs are bent up like this and my back is flat on the ground. Now some people might be so tight, that they can't even keep their heads on the ground like this, it's too tight. So you may need to place a pillow here for comfort. Once you're lying down here and you're comfortable, some people just laying here is going to feel like a stretch, you can lay here for a minute. If this feels comfortable for you, what you want to start doing is making snow angels. If you live in a winter wonderland, like we do here, you know what snow angels are. But basically, you're going to bring your arms up and then back down and try to keep in contact with the ground as much as you can. If you have tighter shoulders, they're going to start creeping up, that's okay, just do what you comfortably can with this. This is going to help loosen up those shoulder blade muscles, stretch them out, and loosen up the pecs, it really does a little bit of everything.
Brad: That's right, Mike, do you want to demonstrate how some people who are tight in the pecs, in the shoulders, their arms will actually be inches above the ground like that?
Brad: There you go, see that? And that is okay, you may not go near as high as Mike is going, but that's okay to start with, you need to give this time. It may take a couple of weeks if you're really tight and flexed over, like I am now, to get to this.
Mike: So we're going to progress, if that exercise seems safe for you. Now a simple progression is simply removing the pillow from your head, if you can lay flat down on the floor and do it this way, that is the next step. Now if this becomes easy for you, what you could do is actually take a pillow again, place it where you have kind of that humped spine, a rounded forward spine, place it there. It's going to cause you to arch back even more, kind of like the ball and the chair, and you're going to do the same thing. Simply raise your arms up and then come back down. Try to do 10 repetitions of this if you can. And again, touch your arms to the floor, if possible.
Brad: One thing I do want to mention is, at this point, you may want to put another pillow underneath your head when you add that throw pillow underneath your back between the shoulder blades, it's all a comfort thing, you want to make sure you're comfortable and breathing really relaxed while you do this.
Mike: Now another progression yet, the most advanced option, you're going to need a foam roller to perform this one. So to get on, I'm simply going to place my buttock on the lower half, I'm going to lay down flat and you want a longer one so your head can be touching the foam roller as well. If your neck is tight, you could certainly put a pillow under your head. And now I have even more distance between my body and the ground, so it's really going to stretch out the pec muscles. And again, we're just going to do the same snow angels. You can see this is more difficult for me because my arms are starting to creep up more as I'm going up above my head and then I come back down. Make sure to breathe throughout this, do not hold your breath.
Brad: Right, now, one thing you may be wondering, with this advanced demonstration using a foam roller, it is really helpful if you want to do this and you want to purchase a foam roller, this is 36 inches long, that's pretty standard, longer length, but make sure you get a softer density. They come in hard, medium, and soft, get the softer one, you'll be happier, it's much more comfortable. All right, now we're going to show a version of how to stretch the lats and the abdomen muscles using a simple doorway. Mike, go ahead and show them what to do.
Mike: So you're going to grab onto a door frame. If you can't reach up to one, we'll show another option later you can do. So I'm going to be stretching my left side, my palm is facing away from me, and I'm touching the top of the doorframe. The door has to be open for this because I'm going to slowly start leaning into the doorway. This is really going to help open up the lateral aspect here, stretching the lats and even the abdominal muscles, which can become tight when you're in a rounded posture.
Brad: I like to hold this for 15 to 30 seconds on one side, you're going to perform this on both sides, so you're just going to face the opposite way and perform the same stretch.
Brad: Right, just make sure your wood trim up there is securely fastened. All right, now if the doorway is too high or too short, what you can do that's a little more flexible and works well is either use a piece of Dowling, a PVC pipe, or a broom handle like we have here, this is a mop, we need something about four to five feet long and relatively sturdy, so it doesn't bend and cause you problems that way. We can do it standing. Now with a mop like this, it works well, you can put it on a table or a countertop. We're going to put one hand up high and you can actually do this with two hands too.
Brad: So if you do not have a nice mop like this and you just have a piece of Dowling and you put that down, it's really critical that it does not slip on whatever you're doing, if you have a countertop, what you'll do is put a shoe down, put the end of the stick into there and that will prevent it from slipping. It is a really important part of doing it if this is the option you're going to use.
Brad: So the way we do it is similar to reaching up to the doorframe, you just grab the stick, okay? And I'm going to lean sideways. I can feel the muscles stretch here, we're getting some abdominal stretching. It actually opens up that shoulder as well. If you do have shoulder problems and this hurts and creates sharp pain, this is not an option for you, so be careful with that.
Brad: Now Mike just demonstrated, that he's using the Booyah Stik, which has really nice rubber ends on the end of it, very strong. He just did both sides and he held it for 15 to 30 seconds. Now the other option that you can do with this is to get both sides at once by grabbing the stick up high with both hands, your hands are not going to slip down. If they do, you need to hold tighter, and then lean forward and you'll get that stretch. And this really emphasizes the abdominals really well, so when you're hunched over, we need to stretch them out so you can get up tall without the muscles here pulling you forward. There we go, again, 15 to 30 seconds or stretch, and then come back and relax. Make sure we relax with all these, you're breathing well. Deep breath in, and as you stretch, that's a good time to exhale, the muscles really respond well to exhalation when they want them to stretch more.
Mike: It's also important when you're hinging forward to not round your upper back, again, we are bending at the waist and keeping a nice straight back.
Brad: Excellent point, Mike, very good.
Mike: So this option is for when you're walking and you notice yourself getting more rounded and flex posture, all you can do is simply place your hands behind your back, grab your wrist with one hand like this, and this will help create a better good posture. If you want, you can even intermittently bring your shoulders back, if you have the mobility. Obviously, if this is challenging, you don't have to do that, just simply doing this will help create a nice upward posture, and prevent that forward-roundedness.
Brad: Now there's going to be people like me, I have tight shoulders and I have a hard time actually getting all the way back, I can do it, and there'll be some people, but it just won't happen. So a couple of options, if you happen to have a cane or you're walking with a cane, simply use the cane between your hands and it does the same thing.
Brad: Now another option is a simple towel, a small towel would work really well. You just take that, reach it behind you, and then you have your bridge between there so you can do your stretch and walk and get those shoulders back where they belong. Obviously, you're not going to walk like this for a long period of time, you were going to mention that, Mike?
Mike: Yeah, just do it intermittently, every so often during your walk. I mean, if you're comfortable walking like this the whole time, go ahead, but it's not necessary.
Brad: Right. All right, we also have one more option that's going to help loosen up these muscles here because they pull the shoulders forward, help that round out, you really need to open that up and loosen these muscles up, we have some nice options coming up.
Mike: So if you have some tight muscles in the front here, the pecs, the abs, the shoulder muscles, do the stretches like we mentioned earlier, but also massaging the muscle groups loose can help with that. I have the D6 Pro Massage Gun. Now this is a pretty heavy-duty massage gun, it's for people with more muscle mass or a bigger build. Brad has the Air 2 Massage Gun, which would work for a slighter build or smaller person.
Brad: Right, so with these, I would definitely use either the round head or the airhead, it has a little cushion on it. That would be best if you're just starting to use a massage gun. Again, we're going to work the muscles here.
Brad: It should feel good if you're getting, you don't want to get underneath your arm into the armpit, there are actually some nerves in there that could get irritated. This is for the muscle. We're not getting right over into the joint itself, always the muscle, these muscles are going to loosen up. It should feel good, like I mentioned, make sure you work both sides. And also, you can do this for the back, the hips, and many other parts of the body as well. So you don't want to have a massage gun just sit for one muscle group because it's effective throughout the body. All right, find out which stretches work for you the best, that feels the best, and do them on a daily basis. Mike, we have another video, don't we, that relates to this?
Mike: Yes, if you want to check out another video on how to stop walking hunched over, check out "How To Stop Walking Hunched Over! 5 Best Fixes". This one has some different tests and stretch options you can try as well.
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