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It's Time To Start That Morning Mobility Routine · The Dohnal Health Minute

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  Hey there and welcome back to the show. I'm Dr.
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  Chris Donnell, your chiropractor here in Nashville.
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  And today we're talking about something I genuinely
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  wish more of my patients would do. We're talking
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  about a morning mobility routine, just a few
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  simple moves to start your day feeling loose,
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  energized and ready to go. Now here's the thing.
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  Most of us wake up stiff. You roll out of bed
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  and your back feels tight. Your neck is cranky
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  and everything just feels stuck. That's completely
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  normal. When you sleep, your body is still for
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  hours. Fluids shift, muscles cool down, and your
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  joints just need a little coaxing to wake up.
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  So instead of jumping straight into your day
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  and hoping things loosen up on their own, let's
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  be a little more intentional about it. Let me
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  break this down for you with a few easy moves.
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  And I mean easy. We're not talking about a full
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  workout here. This whole routine takes maybe
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  five to seven minutes. That's it. The first move
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  is a gentle knee to chest stretch. You're still
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  lying in bed for this one. Just pull one knee
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  up toward your chest, hold it for about five
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  seconds, then switch sides. Do that a few times
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  on each side. What this does is gently decompress
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  your lower back after a night of lying still.
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  It wakes up those muscles along your lumbar spine
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  and gets a little blood flowing before you even
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  stand up. It's one of the simplest things you
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  can do and it makes a real difference. The second
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  move is what I call a supine twist. You're still
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  on your back. Bend both knees then let them slowly
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  fall to one side while you keep your shoulders
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  flat. Hold for a few seconds, bring them back
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  to center, and then let them fall to the other
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  side. This one is great for your thoracic spine,
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  which is the middle part of your back. Most people
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  carry a ton of tension right through there, from
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  sitting, driving, looking at screens. This gentle
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  rotation helps that area open up. Now here's
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  the third one, and this is the one I want you
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  to do once you're standing. It's a simple chin
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  tuck. You stand tall, you look straight ahead,
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  and you gently pull your chin straight back,
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  like you're making a double chin. Hold it just
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  a second or two, then release. Do that five or
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  ten times. It sounds silly, but this move is
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  incredibly effective for resetting your neck
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  posture. If you spend any time looking down at
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  your phone or sitting at a desk, your head tends
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  to drift forward over time. The chin tuck helps
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  counteract that pattern right from the start
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  of your day. So what can you start doing today?
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  Try this. Before you get out of bed tomorrow
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  morning, do your knee to chest stretch in your
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  supine twist. Then, once you're up and standing,
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  do your chin tucks. That's it. Just three movements.
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  Give it a week and notice how different your
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  mornings feel. Now, if you're waking up stiff
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  every single morning and these stretches don't
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  seem to be helping, that's worth paying attention
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  to. Persistent morning stiffness, especially
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  in your back or neck, can sometimes signal that
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  something else is going on that a simple stretch
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  won't fix on its own. That's where I come in.
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  At Donald Chiropractic here in Nashville, we
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  look at the whole picture. How your spine is
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  moving, where tension is building up, and what
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  habits might be working against you. Whether
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  you're dealing with something specific or you
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  just want to move better and feel better every
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  day, we're here for that conversation. Thanks
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  so much for tuning in today. I really appreciate
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  you spending a few minutes with me. If you have
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  questions or you want to come in and get evaluated,
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  give us a call or visit our website. We would
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  love to see you. This is Dr. Chris Donnell at
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  Donnell Chiropractic in Nashville, Tennessee.
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  Take care of yourselves and I'll talk to you
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  next time.