Pecs – The Doorway Stretch

Step 1: Stand in a doorway with your arms out in a “T” with elbows bent to 90 degrees (shown in picture); or, if the doorway is too wide to hook your elbows onto, bring your arms completely horizontal across the back of the frame.

Step 2: Take a big, but comfortable, step through the doorway with one leg forward, so that your torso moves through the frame while keeping your back straight. Your arms remain hooked on the doorway, and the forward leg has a gently bent knee.

Step 3: Hold for at least one minute, or until you feel a release. Make sure that while you feel a good stretch, there is no pain.

Step 4: You can repeat the same stretch with the opposite leg lunging.

Notes: You may feel this stretch more into the upper arm if your arms are straight, while an arm bent at the elbow will yield a stretch more specific to the chest. This can be considered 2 stretch variations.

To isolate the front of the shoulder and outer chest, follow the above guidelines but with the arms positioned upwards at a 45 degree angle as opposed to horizontally.

NOTE: As with all stretches, do not perform if the movement is painful. First warm up the shoulders with gentle rolls forward and backwards to increase the range of motion and to prepare the tissue. You can hold the stretch for 15-30 seconds, repeating 3 times.