Focusing on Certain Muscle Groups and Stretching

I’ve recently been asked for some advice on working with specific body parts.

• Butt
• Inner thighs
• Hamstrings (back of thigh)

Normally I would not advise anyone to work one set of muscles because then those muscles will get strong while others that are just as important will not thereby causing imbalances.

When you have a muscle that’s strong but the ones next to it are weak, the stronger one tends to pull the weaker and cause pain and injury. Obviously this is not good.

So why would I go along with her in working these specific areas? Because she has already seen her chiropractor and he has told her that these areas need work in order to fix some of her existing physical problems.

Will I ignore her other leg muscles while focusing on these weaker ones? No, definitely not.

The next several posts will focus on finding ways to work these areas of her body.

Right now I’m going to stick with stretching. It’s amazing how helpful stretching can be when you’re building muscle and trying to alleviate muscle pain. Sometimes it fixes everything.

Here are my favorites for stretching my hamstrings, inner thighs, and quads (front thighs). The 2^nd and 4^th are awesome hip flexor stretches too. That last move takes a bit of flexibility so be careful.

If you have a chair then you can try these stretches.

Don’t force your muscles to stretch farther than they want to. It doesn’t matter if you’re not all that flexible. Stretch as far as is comfortable preferably on a daily basis – healthy flexibility will develop as you progress. You don’t need to be able to touch your toes in order to stretch your hamstrings. In fact, there are plenty of people who can get a great hamstring stretch with bent knees!

Happy Stretching!

What are you favorite lower body stretches?

*DISCLAIMER: I’m not responsible for any injuries that occur while trying things found on my blog. Always consult your doctor before trying new exercises and always listen to your body. If you feel pain, stop. Injuries should not be taken lightly and are no fun to live through.*