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Traveling to far-off places for vacation or to visit loved ones during the holidays is fun, but the journey to get there can feel like an endurance event that entails marathon bouts of sitting or racing from one airport gate to the next. And that can leave you with achy joints or stiffness that you didn’t have when you embarked. What’s a tired traveler to do?
Your antidote: Gentle movement, like stretching, which will help you feel refreshed and ready to enjoy the rest of your trip.
“Our bodies are designed to move, and staying in the same position for hours can leave the hips, back, neck, shoulders, and legs feeling tight and uncomfortable. Stretching is a great way to give your joints and muscles some much-needed motion, and you can do it anywhere—like the airport, a rest area parking lot, the car, or even your plane or train seat,” says Lindsey Benoit O’Connell, C.S.C.S., a certified meditation teacher and breathwork facilitator and founder of The LAB Wellness. “Stretching and the breathwork involved in it can also help tame travel stress.”
Next time you take a trip, try these stretches for travel days.
Best Stretches for Travel Days
An on-the-go stretch session doesn’t just help unwind your muscles and mind. Stretching also helps increase circulation throughout your body, including to your legs. That’s important because sitting for long periods (like on a flight or road trip) is a risk factor for deep vein thrombosis, or a blood clot in the leg, particularly in people prone to them.
Aim to hold each stretch for at least 30 seconds, but feel free to hold as long as feels good.
1. Seated Figure Four
Why it works:
This stretch helps improve flexibility and range of motion in the muscles around the hips and glutes, helping to counteract stiffness or joint aches caused by a long day of sitting while traveling.
How to do it:
- Sit toward the front of a chair, both feet flat on the ground.
- Cross right ankle over left thigh, flex right foot, and gently hinge forward at hips until you feel a stretch along the outer hip and glute.
- Hold for at least 30 seconds.
- Then switch sides.
2. Seated Spinal Rotation
Why it works:
This stretch allows your spine to gently stretch and rotate, which can help unravel tight back muscles that don’t get much action when you’re traveling.
How to do it:
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Sit up straight on a chair, bench, or the ground, both feet planted on the ground.
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Place right hand on left knee and gently twist torso toward that side. Keep the movement controlled rather than rotating in a quick or jerky motion.
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Hold for at least 30 seconds.
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Then switch sides.
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