Lower back, upper back, shoulders, hips and neck

Spinal Health: Blocks Active

Actively lengthens your spine while opening your shoulders, building gentle mobility and decompression through your whole back.

How to do it

1. 1

   Kneel with two blocks set out in front of you

   Blocks roughly shoulder width apart and set high to begin with. A folded blanket under the knees makes kneeling comfortable.

2. 2

   Fold forward and place your hands on the blocks

   Arms reaching forward, hips staying back over the heels. The blocks catch your hands so your spine keeps its length.

3. 3

   Press lightly down and reach the hips back

   That gentle press plus the hips travelling back is what lengthens the spine, and the shoulders open by working rather than by sinking.

4. 4

   Keep the neck in line and the gaze down

   The head follows the spine rather than lifting to look forward.

5. 5

   Work here for 45 to 90 seconds

   Come down onto your forearms on the blocks, or reach less far, if the shoulders start complaining.

What to watch for

Sinking instead of lengthening. If the chest is dropping between your arms and your shoulders are creeping up by your ears, the active part has stopped, so raise the blocks and reach less far.

Ways to adjust it

• Block height adjustment
• Forearm on blocks
• Reduce arm reach
• Blanket under knees
• Gaze down
• Neutral neck

Other ways to do this movement

Every version below is the same movement set up differently, so one of them usually suits.

• Spinal Health: Active Twist
• Spinal Health: Spinal Wave (Sarpa)

Before you try it

Move within a range that stays comfortable. Stop if this brings on sharp pain, dizziness, or symptoms that travel down an arm or a leg, and speak to a clinician before repeating it.

From the clinically authored Vinys movement library.