Staying flexible despite getting bigger
I'm noticing that as I'm putting on more muscle, I'm not as flexible or nimble as I used to be. For example, I can't reach a large portion of my back to wash in the shower, and it feels like my pecs get in the way if I need to reach across myself for something.
Do you guys have any tricks for maintaining flexibility while pursuing size gains? Is the answer something as simple as "stretch more"?
Posted Apr 4, 2017, 9:29 PM UTC
16
Basically this, condensed into a 4 letter word: yoga. Even if you don't become some super serious yoga practitioner, some of the moves really help with flexibility. I regularly do some that help with shoulder and hip flexibility.
Can you suggest some specific moves?
I found this page a while back for shoulder flexibility, complete with gifs.
http://www.shape.com/fitness/workouts/9-yoga-poses-open-your-shoulders
I also do this when I'm at the gym for rotator cuff stretching
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K938ohitkWo
If you're looking for hip flexiblity, these absolutely destroyed me in the best way possible
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBmwPjZ_B3w
Thanks for the recommendations!
You should generally do the whole routine rather than just a few moves. You can find a ton of free Yoga on youtube, like Yoga With Adriene.