A hot tub is useful for many reasons. Relaxing while enjoying some hydrotherapy is only the beginning of hot tub enjoyment. What if you could do some light exercise while in your spa too? You’d be helping your health in multiple ways with one activity—time in the hot tub. Goodall Pools & Spas has been around for nearly 60 years. For almost half of that time, we’ve been helping the residents of Pennsylvania with their spas and with fresh ideas for new activities to try out in them. Here are 4 stretches to do in the hot tub.
Lower Back Stretches
Regular hot tub soaking is beneficial for relieving pain. If you suffer from lower back pain, you may already use your hot tub to help alleviate the recurring discomfort you feel. There are some stretches you can try in the hot tub that are meant to help with this type of pain.
Before you start stretching, be sure that you allow your body time to prepare for the exertion. Warming up your muscles as you warm up your body will help to loosen them so that stretching will be even easier.
Strategic Shrugging
First, you can try some strategic shrugs from the comfort of your spa chair. Keeping your arms relaxed at your sides, slowly shrug your shoulders up and count to ten. Breathe deeply in and out through your nose while you count. Then bring your shoulders back down for a ten-count break. Repeat this process about 10 times.
Trusted Twisting
Next, try a trusted twist. This works best while sitting straight and tall. Twist to one side with your hand holding onto the side of the hot tub. Hold your position for about five seconds. Then twist to the other side in the same manner. Move slowly and enjoy the stretching of your entire back. You can twist as many times to both sides as you like.
Chest Stretches
Maybe you want to get up from your comfortable seat and try some stretches for the top half of your body. Here are a couple of ideas to get you started.
Torso Stretching
Form a circle with your arms, keeping your elbows slightly bent. With a slight C-shape to your spine, make some space between your shoulder blades. Then lift your chest while squeezing your shoulder blades back together and moving your arms backward in a swimming motion.
Superman Stretching
One more stretch for the torso, which also is helpful for back pain, is the Superman stretch. Stretch out just like Superman, with your hands holding onto the side of the hot tub. Then gently lift your head up for about five seconds. You can repeat this classic stretch as long as you comfortably enjoy fantasizing about being Superman.
Hot Tub Selection
These are just 4 stretches to do in the hot tub. You can experiment with all kinds of stretches and figure out which ones are the most helpful for you. If you need a hot tub for your stretching, Goodall Pools has a great selection. We carry Sundance® Spas and Viking® Spas that offer ample space for stretching and soaking. Visit any of our five retail locations, and our staff will help you choose just the right hot tub for you.
