Stomach massage is great exercise to shed tension

3 cues to help you shed tensions

Your internal organs live in the space between the ribs and the pelvis below your lungs and heart. The abdominal core muscles surround and protect them. Always remember inside your body is like a web. Organs, tendons, nerves, veins connect and intertwined with each other. Everything you do affects everything within that web. Such as food, posture, stress, lifestyle, even movement. Small frogs, round back, knee stretches are all stomach massage exercises. And that’s on the reformer, the mat, the chair and the tower all have their set of massage exercises. They’ve different names, but in essence, they all help to massage your stomach and shed tension. Of course, they also tone and strengthen the surrounding muscles. That’s what creates strong back muscles. But if you want to shed tension while you move you need more than right techniques. You need a shift in the way you move. These subtle little changes will help you be more efficient in your movement and be less tense.

1. Capital C versus small c.

There’s a reason we call the rounded shape capital C not small c. We want the curve to be longer so that you have more space in your back muscles, we want your spine to be free to elongate.

– As you breathe in and expand your rib cage, sense that your lower thoracic vertebrae and beginning of your lumbar vertebra lengthening to keep you longer – head to sacrum.

2. Sense, feel, and visualize your organs getting lifted when you move.

When we’re stress, our whole body goes under tension. Like muscles, the organs also hold tension involuntary. Like me, I know you also love sweating and working out. But how can you challenge yourself in a way that doesn’t put more tension in your body? Thinking and trying to feel something can increase tension. Again thanks to our free tool – breathing there’s so much we can achieve. When you breathe sense that your body is getting spacious inside. Think of lifting your lungs and internal organs up as you elongate your spine.

3. Lift your kidney up

Our organ’s jobs are to give us energy and keep us alive. If you feed them low-quality food they become sluggish, lazy, and they also tensed and hardened. One of the organs that has to detox our body is the kidneys. Have you ever felt tight below your ribcage when you try to lengthened? Stressed and tensed kidneys can make it hard for you to lift your lower back. Make sure that you eat high nutritious food and drink plenty of water. And now that you know where your kidneys are situated, visualize them rising up as you breathe and grow taller. 

Once you have had a moment to try these exercises, I would like to know did any of these cues help you to massage your back muscles and release tensions? Which one?

Xo 

Jeanique