How to stretch your chest

Athletes of all backgrounds need mobility and stretching exercises to stay injury free. I use the roller on certain areas of the body to keep myself injury free. As a massage therapist the roller is my best friend. Here is a how to stretch your pecs using a foam roller.

The chest is composed of the pectoralis major and the pectoralis minor. These connect the walls of the chest with the bones of the arm and shoulder. Often times sitting at a desk can round your shoulders forward causing tension and pain. Did you know the average human head weighs almost 12 pounds. When you bend your neck forward that puts nearly 50 extra pounds of weight on your neck. Take a break mid-day and get out the roller and give your shoulders some attention.

A few tips to set up your work station to to better your posture.

I suggest that you raise your monitor to eye level so you can avoid looking down causing strain on your neck.
Next look at the position of your mouse and keyboard. Move them to a position so you don’t have to reach far to use them.
Set your chair to a height that allows you to maintain the normal curve of your spine.
Make sure your feet touch the ground. If your feet are unable to reach the floor consider using a stool

Schedule your breaks

Try this next week while you are working from home. Set a time to go off and get up every 30 minutes to take a mini walk, stretch break or to stand and march while on a conference call. Create a standing work station to stand up on the top of every hour to give your hips a break. Just trying some simple tricks will lower your stress level and give your eyes a much needed break from the computer monitor.

How to stretch your chest