If you are a senior and are looking for a few ways to improve your overall mobility and keep your body pain free, this article, in addition to the video above will detail some of the best stretches to do this. This are some of my favorite movements that I use with the seniors I work with to keep their body and joints young. We will cover stretches that help to improve the flexibility of your entire body, so make sure you implement every single one of them for full effectiveness.

The Importance of The Program

Something I did want to note before detailing some of the stretches are the importance of following the entire program fully. Although you can pick out a few of these stretches to keep your mobility, doing every single one of them will give you the best results. This is largely in part because I chose exercises that will work your entire body. Doing this is crucial to make sure your body doesn’t have any imbalances, which could cause more issues down the road. I would highly recommend watching the video above to see exactly how each of the exercises described below are done.

8 Best Stretches for Seniors to Stay Mobile & Pain Free

Seated Hamstring Stretch

A perfect exercise to stretch out your tight hamstrings and lower back after sitting all day. I really enjoy this exercise because you can do it seated, at any time throughout the day. The chair I actually do this stretch in, in the video above, is in an adjustable weight bench, linked below if you are interested in purchasing it.

ATG Split Squat

In addition to that, the ATG split squat will give a great stretch on your hip flexors and knee muscles too. This is a great exercise for knee pain and can improve the strength in your lower body, one leg at a time as well.

Upper Back Opener

If you are someone with poor posture, this exercise will help to undue that. Start by placing both hands on your weight bench or sturdy chair, step back a couple feet, and gently put your head through the hole your arms created, opening up your chest and upper back. Try keeping your arms fairly straight through the movement.

Split Stance Calf Stretch

Seniors often have very tight and immobile calf muscles for a variety of reasons. Practicing the split stance calf stretch, demonstrated in the video above, will help to ease this tightness. Make sure you focus on keeping your heel planted in the ground for the best stretch.

Pec Stretch

Back to the upper body, we will open up our chest a little more with the pec stretch. If you have shoulder pain, I would ease yourself into the stretch lightly, not pushing too hard at first.

Toes Up Forward Fold

This stretch is similar to our hamstring stretch, except in a standing position. You will put your toes up onto a raised object or slantboard (link below) and gently reach your hands down to try to touch your toes. You will notice immediately that you will feel a deep stretch through your calves when doing this as well.

Squat Hold

Another great strengthening and mobility exercise for seniors to be doing in 2023 is holding a deep squat position. This is great for overall mobility in your lower body, and will help keep you moving better in life. If you struggle doing a deep squat hold, try holding the position as low as possible, with added support to hold onto.

Chair Lean Back Stretch

To work on our upper body posture one more time, we will hammer home another upper back opener, all with the use of a medicine ball. Simply place the medicine ball behind your upper back in your sturdy chair, place your hands on your head, and lean back gently, allowing your chest and back to open up greatly.

---

One Last Thing

If you want to continue to improve your mobility and move pain free, regardless of you current ability in you need to subscribe to our blog. If you don’t want to do that, feel free to check out this other article I am going to link below, showing you some of the best strength exercises for seniors to stay fit and healthy in 2023.

---

---

#seniorfitness #olderadults #mobility #physicaltherapy #painreliefexercise #stretching #lowimpactworkout #elderly #seniorcare