Before you do any back exercise, be sure to stretch or exercise your body gently. Back stretching before workout is essential to prepare your muscles and prevent injury. Some forms of stretching are better than others, and one advantage of knowing the difference between static and dynamic stretching.
Static stretching involves holding a posture for 15 to 30 seconds and is a good one for improving flexibility and undoing tight muscles, but it’s not the best for warming up. Dynamic movements are better when you use yoga as a warm-up before you exercise; however, soft yoga is your better bet after you exercise.
Conversely, dynamic stretching is done with controlled, active exercises that help to warm the muscles, raise blood flow and increase your flexibility, making it best for beginners before getting active. When you know which type to use, you perform better and reduce your risk of hurting yourself.
Many recommend dynamic stretching as the best way to get your body ready for any physical exercise. With static stretching, you hold each stretch for a while, but with dynamic stretching, your body is always moving and stretching your muscles along the way.
This is why, for one thing, your heart beats faster when blood gets to your muscles quicker and you’re ready to start doing more arduous exercise. Things like shoulder rolls, leg swings, arm circles and walking lunges are regular dynamic stretches meant to rouse the muscles you’re exercising during your workout.
Regular static stretching is a type mixed with the more rigorous ballistic stretching, where you bounce vigorously to stretch the muscle. Ballistic stretching involves holding a stretch and then bouncing to stretch further, which, if not done properly, can lead to an increased risk of injury; dynamic stretching is far easier to manage and safer, so it is better suited to a warm-up.
You can view our previous article on leg stretches before a leg workout if you want to warm up your legs before a workout.
Incorporating dynamic movements, including back stretching before workout, can enhance performance, reduce the risk of injury, and better prepare the body for physical activity.
The top 5 dynamic Back Stretching Before Workout Exercises
You should always do back stretches before exercise to improve mobility and avoid hurting yourself. You’ll hit the trapezius, latissimus dorsi (lats) and muscles down your spine. You should begin this way: Circles with your arms, loose movements with your shoulders and a little twisting of your torso. They help work your traps, lats and smaller stabilisers.
Moving your spine with cat-cow stretches, forward bends, and side twists will stretch tight muscle groups and increase movement in your spine. Moving and stretching your shoulders at the same time works your lats, which helps a lot with upper body exercises. Starting with a back stretching exercise helps you improve your posture, mobility and do your activities better.
In this post, we are going to share 5 great exercises for stretching out your back in your next warm-up session. These moves are perfect for anyone looking to incorporate back stretching before workout routines. To loosen up your muscles before you do any physical activity, perform each movement for between 30 and 45 seconds.
Exercise 1: Overhead Toe Touch
- All you want to do is keep your arms above your head and your biceps at ear level.
- Bend forward, touching your toes while trying to stick your hips straight out.
- Go as low as you can while making sure your knees aren’t locked in place.
- Slowly stand and hold your arms up, stretching your back a little.
- Take your time during each repeat as you let your back warm up gradually.
Exercise 2: Stationary Bike
Put your hands behind your head and feet apart at the hips. Take your right leg and go to the side and turn your whole upper body, so your left elbow hits your right knee and come turn it back to the starting point.
- Bring up your left knee slowly and bring your upper body up so right elbow meets the left knee. To turn your body the other way and go back to the beginning.
- Don’t move the dumbbells from one side to the next, and don’t move over to the other side.
Exercise 3: The World’s Most Effective Stretch
- If you are standing, keep your feet about hip width apart and your arms by your sides.
- Lower your right leg down one creating perfect 90-degree angles with the two legs.
- Bring your left hand forward and closer to your right foot, and with your left knee, get it towards the ground.
- Reach your right arm up on the right and twist your upper body in its direction.
- Just get up and try leading from that other side of the team.
- She put some weight on the other side and put Cisco on the side.
Exercise 4: Dynamic Lat Stretch
For this, you attach the top of the resistance band to something that you can reach and grab the band in front of you, and it’s placed higher than your shoulders.
- Hold one end of the band in your hand and back away from the anchor until your arm is straight.
- Tip your hips forward, then push them back with your back and arms straight.
- Place the band on your upper arm, bend towards the arm with the band and look at the floor.
- You are getting back in the middle.
- If you’re using your hands, alternate the exercise between hands. If you’re using your legs, alternate between legs.
Exercise 5: Active Hanging
- Clench your hands into fists and hang from a chin-up bar faced forwards. But you don’t bend your arms, and you pull your feet away from the ground.
- Breath in deeply and let your shoulders rise.
- Then, press your shoulder blades together and slowly use your arms to straighten your body.
- Then, let go and your shoulders drop down.
Conclusion
Incorporating back stretching before workout is a simple yet powerful way to improve your performance, prevent injury, and increase overall flexibility. Dynamic stretching is the best method to warm the body up, especially if it is designed to influence the muscles you’re about to use.
All five of these dynamic back stretches focus on muscle groups that support your spine and aid in both improving your range of movement and getting you into your workout with better posture. If you make these exercises part of your routine warm-up, not only will you feel more prepared, but you’ll also be setting yourself up for safer and more effective workouts.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is the importance of back stretching before you work out?
Before working out, back stretching loosens tight muscles, increases blood flow and increases range of motion. In doing this, you reduce the risk of injury and begin to prep your body for physical activity, in particular exercises which involve the spine, shoulders and core.
2. I am wondering if I should stretch my back first, statically or dynamically, before I exercise?
It is recommended that you do dynamic stretching before working out. This is an active activity that warms up your muscles and joints. Post-workout cooldowns are better suited for static stretching, which would improve long-term flexibility.
3. Should I do each back stretch in a warm-up for how long?
To get the best of dynamic back stretches, hold them for 30 to 45 seconds. Added to it is that this amount of time allows you to ready your muscles and not overdo them in advance of the main workout.
4. Can Beginners do these back-stretching exercises safely?
The five dynamic back stretching exercises listed above, such as Overhead Toe Touch and Cat-Cow, are beginner-friendly. I’ve designed them to be safe, easy to follow and effective in improving posture, flexibility and mobility before workouts.
