Standing Lower Trunk Lateral Flexor Stretch

Lower-Trunk Stretches:

Method:
Stand upright with the feet together and the left side of the body facing a wall about an arm’s length away. Place the palm of the left hand on the wall at shoulder height, and place the heel of the right hand at the hip joint. While keeping the legs straight, contract the buttocks and slightly rotate the hips in toward the wall. Use the right hand to push the right hip toward the wall.

Affected Body Part:
Most-stretched muscles: Left external oblique, left internal oblique, left rotatores.
Lesser-stretched muscles: Left intertransversarii, left multifidus, left quadratus lumborum.

It is very easy to lose balance while doing this exercise, so stand on a nonskid surface. Keep the left arm straight, but do not lock the elbow. You can increase the amount of stretch either by moving the feet farther from the wall, by resting the left forearm on the wall instead of the hand, or both.