LANGER HEALTH

Movement & Mobility

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Stretches

Hold all stretches for 30 seconds and make sure you complete each move on BOTH sides. Repeat stretches twice on each occasion with your body squarely aligned before beginning any stretch. Initially repeat 2-4 times per day. You should only take the stretch to a comfortable range. It shouldn’t produce pain. Please only perform stretches advised by your practitioner.

* Please consult with your practitioner before incorporating any of the following exercises into your program

It is important to exercise self-care in the time between your chiropractic and soft tissue therapy appointments. Performing the below upper body stretches will help to relax your muscles and improve your joint range of motion.

Hold all stretches for 30 seconds and make sure you complete each move on BOTH sides. Repeat stretches twice on each occasion with your body squarely aligned before beginning any stretch. Initially repeat 2-4 times per day. You should only take the stretch to a comfortable range. It shouldn’t produce pain. Please only perform stretches advised by your practitioner.

Upper Body

Neck

Young man in athletic clothing stretching or adjusting his hair against a gray background.

    • Can be done seated or standing.

    • Place your opposite ear towards the shoulder and then tuck chin forward.

    • Place your opposite ear towards the shoulder without twisting the neck.

Young man in athletic wear scratching his head and looking down against a plain background.

    • Can be done seated or standing.

    • Place your opposite ear towards the shoulder and then tuck chin forward.

A man lying on his back with a foam roller under his neck, wearing a black sleeveless shirt, black shorts, and sneakers, in a light-colored studio setting.

    • Place a rolled-up towel underneath your neck

    • Ensure your head is resting on the other side of the towel creating a curve in the neck

    • Lie on a hard surface

    • This should not be a painful exercise. If discomfort is experienced ensure the towel is supporting the neck adequately without forcing the head to stay forward

    * Please consult with your practitioner before incorporating any of the following exercises into your program

Shoulder

A man in athletic clothing stretching his arm across his chest in a gym or studio setting.

    • Place one arm across the body

    • Pull arm into a further stretch across body with opposite arm

Man stretching with arms behind head, wearing black tank top, black shorts, and gray sneakers, standing against a light blue background.

    • Can be done seated or standing

    • Raise one arm and bend at elbow

    • Pull elbow towards mid-line with opposite arm

Chest

Person lying on a green massage table with arms and legs extended, eyes closed, in a relaxed position.

    • Lie on an elevated surface with neck supported.

    • With palms facing upwards place arms out on a 90+ degree angle to the body

    • Allow arms to stretch backwards increasing the stretch through the chest

A man standing in a sports outfit with one hand on his hip and the other touching the wall, against a plain background.

    • Place one arm bent at elbow on door frame

    • Lean away from the doorway keeping your spine straight.

Mid Back

A man in workout clothes performing a front arm stretch against a plain light blue background.

    • Interlock hands and face palms facing away

    • Gently push forward with hands

* Please consult with your practitioner before incorporating any of the following exercises into your program

Lower Body

It is important to maintain self-care in the time between your chiropractic and occupational therapy visits. Performing these simple lower body stretches will help to avoid potential injury and improve your joint range of motion.

Ensure you maintain hold on the below lower body stretches for 30 seconds. Complete on both sides and repeat stretches twice on each occasion. Your body must be squarely aligned before beginning any stretch. Begin by repeating the stretches 2-4 times per day. You should only take the stretch to a comfortable range and you should not be in pain. Please only perform stretches advised by your practitioner.

Hip Flexors and Quads

Man performing a lunging exercise in workout attire

    • Place one foot forward and the other leg back on its toes

    • Slowly slide your back foot further back

    • Keep your spine straight and upright

A man performing a stretch with one foot on a stool, lunging forward against a plain background.

    • Place one on a chair and the other leg back on its toes

    • Slowly slide your back foot further back

    • Keep your spine straight and upright

A man in athletic clothing performing a lunge exercise against a plain light blue background.

    • Kneel down on one knee with the other leg out in a lunge position

    • Tilt your pelvis backwards so your lower spine is not arched

    • Lean forward keeping your spine upright

A man performing a lunging exercise in a black workout outfit and gray sneakers on a plain gray background.

    • Bend one knee and pull foot towards your body

    • Keep your spine straight and upright

Lower Back

A man lying on his back holding his knees to his chest in a stretching exercise.

    • Pull both knees to chest

    • Hold as close to body as possible keeping upper body neutral

Man in a yoga pose kneeling with arms extended forward on the ground

    • Start on hands/knees

    • Sit back on your feet

    • Reach forward with your hands/arms

Man in black sleeveless shirt and shorts performing a yoga pose on the floor.

    • Position yourself on all fours.

    • Arch middle back toward ceiling

Man in athletic clothing on hands and knees, stretching or exercising against a light blue background.

    • Position yourself on all fours

    • Point stomach toward floor

Gluteals / Piriformis

A man lying on his back holding his knees to his chest with both hands

    • Lie on your back.

    • Lift up knee and pull with hands towards chest

Woman lying on her back stretching her legs and arms in a fitness studio with a plain blue background.

    • Lie on your back.

    • Lift up knee and pull with hands towards opposite shoulder

A woman lying on her back on a gray floor holding her knees to her chest in a stretch.

    • Lie on back

    • Pull one knee up with hands

    • Cross opposite leg over.

* Please consult with your practitioner before incorporating any of the following exercises into your program

Strengthening

Strengthening stretches are important to maintain muscles strength and mobility. Please see the following stretches you can perform at home.

Hold each of the stretches below for 30 seconds and aim to repeat them 2-4 times a day. Complete on both sides and repeat stretches twice on each occasion. Ensure that you are stretching at a comfortable range, you should never be in pain! Please only perform stretches advised by your practitioner at Langer Chiropractic and Soft Tissue Therapy, Wembley.

A man performing a leg lift exercise on a gray background.

Hip Strengthening Stretches and Quads

    • Lie on your back with your feet on the floor

    • Slowly lift your pelvis off the floor

    • Return pelvis to the floor

    • Repeat 5 times

Man performing leg lifts lying on the floor in a fitness studio

    • Lie on your back with your feet on the floor

    • Slowly lift your pelvis off the floor

    • Slowly straighten leg, then bring it back to the floor, repeat on other leg

    • Return pelvis to the floor

    • Repeat 5 times

    • Lie on your back

    • Slowly bring both knees up to your chest

    • Slowly return to lying position

    • Repeat 5 times

Man performing a balance exercise on all fours with one arm extended forward and opposite leg extended back.

  • (Superman)

    • Place yourself on all fours

    • Slowly lift your one arm and the opposite leg up together

    • Slowly lower arm and leg back to neutral and repeat on the other side

    • Perform 5 repetitions each side

* Please consult with your practitioner before incorporating any of the following exercises into your program

Preventing injuries with chiropractic

    • When can I start exercising?

    • When can I get back to my sport?

    • What can I do to prevent this from happening again?

    The answers to these questions are relatively straightforward. But for some, injuries continue to happen. Which leads to the key question:

  • This is the hardest to answer. Some injuries may occur even when you’re doing the things you’re supposed to be doing. Sometimes you just have to shrug your shoulders and move on. But it’s also very important to continue to try to discover the underlying causes.

    1. Under-preparation

    2. Over-training

    3. Lack of focus or not paying attention

    Under-preparation means doing things you’re not ready to do. People who have never done aerobic exercise go out and try to run 10km. People who have never done strength training go to the gym and try to lift weights that are too heavy. People who have never taken a yoga class go to one, like it, and then go every day for a week.

    These exercise patterns can be dangerous, physically, and may directly lead to injury. A teenager has some leeway and can get away with making a variety of training errors. This may even be true for those who are in their mid-20s. But persons who are older need to train on a trajectory. Good principles to follow include starting slowly, starting with the basics, and making sure to include rest days in your training program. Build up your strength and stamina. Doing more than you’re ready to do will send you straight to your chiropractor’s office or even to the hospital.

    Over-training means doing too much. Most of us are guilty of this. For example, you love to run, you build up your weekly running distance to a good level, but then you keep piling on distance. All of a sudden you’ve got a stress fracture in your leg or a bad strain of a calf muscle.

    How do you know when you’re over-training? The key is to train smart, and to be aware of the possibility of over-training. The temptation to do more is always there, but the result is never good. The short-term gratification is completely outweighed by the frustration and loss of conditioning resulting from injury enforced down time.

    What about focus and paying attention? Many injuries happen during normal training because the person’s mind wandered off. People pay more attention to the TV or to their incoming text messages than they do to the equipment they’re using or the weight they’re lifting. The result is an injury.

Empty waiting room with chairs along the walls and artwork on the walls.

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