Mindful Flow - Hip Stretches for Cyclists & Gardeners

Do you feel tight around your hips, thighs, and lower back? This practice is perfect for cyclists and gardeners and anyone else who feels tight in these areas. This is a slow-paced class that will gently stretch your hips and thighs, relieve low back strain, and let you fully relax by the end.

We begin on the back using a block and a belt to lengthen both the front hips (hip flexors) and the hamstrings (back of thighs). Then we transition to a few variations of a low lunge to loosen up the hips, front thighs, and hamstrings some more.

Once standing, we practice tree pose and a wide-legged standing sequence to activate the hips and legs.

On our belly we do one of my favourite variations of crocodile pose to relax the nervous system and gently lengthen the inner thighs.

We end with a stretch for the front thighs before resting for final relaxation.

Recommended Props:

1-2 yoga blocks

1 yoga belt

pillow or blanket