Upper Back Mobility (video)

Our body craves movement and there are places in the body that you likely move often and well, while there are other places that don't get a lot of movement- the sticky places as I like to call them. For many of us, the upper back/thoracic spine is one such place.

As your spine houses the nervous system, we want to keep our spine healthy and mobile. Doing movements that will "unstick" the spine will improve your whole body health.

This mobility exercise is a delicious way to move and awaken your thoracic spine. I've been LOVING this movement lately and loving the feeling of freedom in my upper back afterwards.

HOW TO:

- All you need is a rubber ball such as kid's ball or yoga tune up ball. The ball will act as a point of reference for you as you rotate your spine around the ball. Place the ball at any point on the spine around the mid-back.

- Make sure you keep the ball pinned to the wall with your spine as you make slow controlled circles. If you feel the ball slip out from behind you to any degree, then slow down your movement and only move as far as you can while keeping the ball in place.

- The circles are slow and controlled. Go as far as you can in every part of the rotation without letting the ball move. You can do one or two circles (or more) in each direction then place the ball a little higher up the spine and continue the controlled circles.

- Pay attention to which parts of the spine move more freely and which parts feel a little more stuck. Take note of the stuck spaces and move those places more the next time you do this movement.