These are the rest of the stretches I am meant to do to help prevent back pain by increasing mobility. Remember what I blogged yesterday:
Do not do them if you are feeling acute pain.
Do each exercise twice and hold for 30 seconds. You may have to build up to 30 seconds, and let me say, it is longer than you estimate. Most people count to 30 quite quickly when they are holding a stretch. Do not bounce, but perform each smoothly. Oh, and don’t forget to breath.
1. Mid Back stretch – push chest towards floor, reaching forward as far as you can.
2. Press-up – press upper body into position shown keeping hips in contact with floor. Keep hips and lower back relaxed. Only hold this one for a few seconds.
3. Cat stretch – I love this one. Try to do it properly and slowly. Do not just lift and drop your waist. On all fours, align your hands beneath your shoulders knees beneath your hips. As you inhale arch your back slightly, allowing your head to rise and your bottom to stick up and out. As you exhale pull your navel in towards your spine, pull your bottom under, curve your lower back is curve and then continue rounding into the upper back. Finally, allow the head I drop forwards. At this point, your whole spine should be making a C. Your back should be rounded to the greatest extent possible. Push your arms into the mat for extra resistance while stretching the upper back. Then do it in reverse, tucking in bottom and rolling down spine until you have your head and bottom pointing upwards. Do slowly for 5 or 10 reps.
4. Trunk Rotation – lie down, keeping back flat and feet together, rotate knees to one side. Hold and repeat on other side.
5. Double Knee to Chest Stretch – pull both knees to chest. Keep back relaxed.
6. Single Knee to Chest Stretch – pull one knee to chest.
7. Sitting on the ground with both legs outstretched, place one foot on the outside of the other knee. Rotate the shoulders past the knee. Gently press the elbow against the bent knee. Resist and repeat. Ensure that your posture is kept upright, don’t slouch. Hold and repeat each side.
Today’s decluttered item = plastic takeaway food container. How many plastic containers do we need? Who daily battles with the kitchen cupboard where the plastic containers live? Do the containers fall on you? Do you fight through the mess to find the right lid? Do you not want to throw out any because they are all serviceable? And do you worry about adding to landfill?
Is all the trouble sorting, restacking, searching worth hanging onto the freebie which isn’t very good quality anyway and is rarely used with the excessive number of other containers? No, so straight into the bin.
lucinda sans 
What was the decluttered item from yesterday?
Good post.
Any guesses, Jane?
It was a diffuser for a hair dryer.
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