Gentle Yoga For Those Post Workout “I Can’t Move’ Days!

Now we’ve all been there, we’ve had a really good session at the gym and we’re feeling really proud of ourselves that we actually made it to the gym and we’re feeling super fit and energized and then we go to bed and wake up the next morning and can barely move!

I know they say ‘no pain, no gain’ but I could seriously do without it, by the time I get over the pain of one session it’s time for the next one! Although I love the feeling I get when I’ve had a good session at the gym I really do struggle the next couple of days especially with my thighs and hamstrings. It doesn’t matter how much I stretch before and after the session I still walk around like the walking dead for a good few days afterwards.

With good intentions I always say to myself that I’ll go to a restorative yoga class the following day but some days it just doesn’t happen so I try to do a little bit of gentle yoga at home.

Gentle Yoga Sequence:

Starting with Apanasana (knees to chest pose). Lying down with your feet standing on the mat, inhale and put your hands around your knees. Exhale and bring your knees to your chest giving them a hug and rock from side to side. To vary the stretch you can do one leg at a time by hugging one knee to your chest and extending the other, hold for a couple of breaths and then change sides and repeat.

Staying on the mat, take a strap and wrap it around your right root and raise your foot towards the ceiling. Extend your left leg across the mat and breathe into the area of stretch. Now repeat on the other side.

Take a bolster and place it by your right hip, lasoo the strap around your right foot and take both sides of the strap into your right hand and stretch your left arm out to the left. Turn your right ankle out to the right and slowly bring your leg down over the bolster. Stay here for a few breaths and then draw your leg back up towards the ceiling, hold and repeat the same sequence on the other side.

Hug your knees to your chest and rock from side to side and then from front to back and bring yourself up to a seated position on the mat.

From here we move into a seated Cat/Cow. This one was a new one on me until a few weeks ago but really I like it! Sitting cross legged with your hands on your knees move the front of your body forward, roll your shoulders back and gaze forward into a seated cow pose. Breathe out and bring your torso back to centre and bring your chin to your chest and arch your back as you move into seated cat. Repeat this sequence for a few breaths.

Staying in a seated position on your mat bring your legs out in front of you and then spread them out wide. Take your bolster and place it in front of you between your legs. Starting from your hips slowly bend forward and round yourself over your bolster, resting your forehead on the bolster. With each inhale and exhale sink a little deeper into your bolster keeping your neck relaxed and you should feel a nice gentle stretch in your lower back, back and shoulders.

If this feels too much for you, you can put the bolster away to the side and bring your legs closer together. Place the bolster on your legs and bring the front of your body over the bolster in a seated forward fold.

When you feel you’ve had enough of a stretch put the bolster aside and come back to a laying down position on the mat, hug your knees to your chest and rock from side to side.

With your knees bent move your feet as wide as your yoga mat. Bring your arms out wide with your palms facing downwards. Breathe in and bring both knees to the right side of the mat or onto the floor. Exhale and bring both knees back to centre. Inhale and take your knees to the opposite side, Repeat this sequence for a few more breaths before bringing yourself to a kneeling position on your mat.

Sitting on the heels of your feet, fold your torso over your thighs and rest your forehead on the floor in front of you. Stretch your arms out in front of you or by your sides (wherever you feel comfortable) and stay here in Happy Baby Pose for a few breaths.

Now I can’t guarantee that this gentle yoga sequence will take away all the pain from the gym session but it does give you a nice gentle stretch and hopefully relieves some of the pain and discomfort so you can carry on with your day feeling less of a zombie …