Increase Flexibility in your Lower Back and Hips
Not all of us are born with a natural double wide hole. Some of us have tight hips, prominent tail bones, or other anatomy that makes our passages feel hopelessly narrow. Don’t give up! There’s hope!
Gaining flexibility in your hips, lower back, and glutes can really help you accommodate wider toys and fists. Here is a set of stretches that target those muscles and tendons. Doing these stretches regularly will increase the range of motion in your hips and lower back, making larger plugs and fists more comfortable.
We aren’t saying you have to do them plugged, but it sure does make it fun!
Glute Cross Leg Stretch
1. Start laying on your back with your knees bent at 90 degrees, feet flat on the floor.
2. Lift your right foot off the ground and cross it in front of your left knee.
3. Gently pull on your left shin, hugging your legs into your chest until you feel a stretch in your glutes and into your lower back.
4. Hold for 30 seconds, then repeat on the other side.
Child Pose
1. Start laying flat on your back with your knees bent at 90 degrees, feet flat on the floor.
2. Lift your feet up and grab the outside edge of your feet with your elbows inside your knees.
3. Keeping your knees bent at 90 degrees, pull your feet toward you allowing your knees to come down on either side of your torso until you feel a stretch in your lower back.
4. Hold for 30 seconds.
Single Leg Knee Hug
1. Lie down on the back and extend the feet straight out.
2. Bend one knee toward the chest keeping the other leg extended straight out.
3. Hold onto the bent knee and pull it gently down into the chest.
4. Hold for 30 seconds, then repeat on the other side.
Pigeon Pose (Not suitable for people with knee problems)
1. Begin on all fours with the hands slightly in front of the shoulders and shoulder distance apart.
2. Bring the left knee forward and place it slightly behind and to the left of the left hand with the ankle pointing toward the right hip bone.
3. Slide the right leg back and keep it straight so that the thigh faces down toward the floor. If the hips are not square, tuck the back toe under to correct this.
4. Lower the torso forward and rest on folded arms to increase the stretch if necessary.
5. Hold this position for 30 seconds and repeat on the other side.
Kneel and Twist
1. Kneeling upright on the floor, move one leg in front and place the foot flat on the floor. The thigh should be at a 90-degree angle to the shin. Your back toes should be extended behind you.
2. Keeping the body upright, raise the arms to shoulder height out to the side.
3. Focus on tucking the shoulder blades down and back to prevent the shoulders from rising.
4. From the torso rotate slowly toward the left side of the body until the arms are almost in line with the legs. Then slowly return to the center and rotate toward the right side.
5. Rotate 4–5 times to each side, only turning as far as it is possible to without any pain.
6. Switch legs and repeat.
Many of these poses are adapted from yoga, and there are lots of other great stretches that target these areas. Keeping limber is critical for playing safely. In addition to loosening you up, these stretches will also improve that perfect ass up-chest down arch that you know you want.
