6 Restorative Exercises For Stress Relief And Self-Care: A Guide For Busy Women |

Living in today’s world can feel very overwhelming with our daily to-do list that never seems to end. You cross one thing off only to add two more tasks to complete. As a single working mother, I know how hard it can be to take a breath between all the busyness.

“Self-care” is a popular buzzword on social media right now. It’s great that we (women) are having more conversations about taking care of ourselves. I believe that self-care looks different for everyone. There is no right or wrong way to nourish your mind, body, and spirit.

Only you can know what works for you. This knowledge allows you to feel joy. You can experience self-preservation and align with your truth.

When I became a single working mother, my schedule quickly filled up. I had so much to do that I never had time for anything other than care for my son. I had to get him to school, clean, and run errands. My tasks included working, scheduling clients, and emailing clients. I also had to commute, study for my continued-ed exams, pay bills, and find a place to live, etc.

There was always something or someone needing my attention — every single waking moment. This left me feeling tired, stressed, and depleted of energy. I didn’t know how much I had left in me before a breakdown.

I just kept going until one day, while making my son’s bed, I threw out my back. I could not walk for two full days. I had to cancel my client sessions, ask for help with my son and with chores around the house. My body was telling me to hit the pause button and focus on taking care of my needs.

Over the two days I spent on my back, I had an important realization. Slowing down was exactly the self-care I needed. It was also OK to ask for support.

Now that my back is better and I’m back up on my feet, I incorporate a few restorative exercises. I use these exercises as a form of self-care. They help me slow down on days when I feel completely overwhelmed, tired, or stressed.

Today I want to share six exercises that might be helpful for you, too. These restorative exercises can help release tension in your body. They regulate your central nervous system and improve sleep quality. They also enhance movement quality. Additionally, they increase blood flow and reduce back pain. Finally, they calm the mind.

These exercises can help you shift from the sympathetic nervous system. This system activates the fight or flight response. You can move to the parasympathetic nervous system, which helps you relax. It slows down the heart rate and releases tension in the sphincter muscles of the gastrointestinal tract. This can aid in digestion.

What You’ll Need

A yoga bolster or foam roller (you can also just roll up a bunch of blankets and cushions)
A yoga block
A yoga strap (you can also use a longer resistance band)
A small rolled up towel

1. Diaphragmatic Breathing

Sit in a comfortable position with the legs crossed. You can sit on a bolster to support the lower back if it’s more comfortable for you. Take a light object such as a half foam cylinder. You can also use a yoga block or a book. Place it on your sternum.
Notice if it’s pointing up towards the ceiling or straight ahead. If it’s pointing up, roll your shoulders forward until the object is pointing straight ahead. This will help position the ribs which will support more functional breathing.
Place your left hand on your lower rib and your right hand on your lower abdominal.
Take a deep breath in and breathe into your hands, expanding your torso.
Take a deep breath out. Feel your body fall away from your hands. Notice your abdominal muscles come in towards each other.
Allow the breath to start and finish from the lower half of your torso.
Once you feel comfortable with where your breath is starting and finishing, you can rest your hands on your thighs. Then close your eyes or soften your gaze.
Take 10 deep breaths here, or longer if you desire.

Breathing diaphragmatically will help you to de-stress, support body alignment, and improve movement quality. Continue practicing the other restorative exercises in this program. Take a moment to check in with your breath.

2. Psoas Release

Place a big, firm yoga bolster or some blankets and pillows on the floor. Lie down and align the end of the bolster with your mid-back. This is right where your bra strap or heart rate monitor strap would rest.
Extend your legs on the floor and notice if your back is arched and the ribs are elevated. If the ribs are elevated, add more bolstering. Do the same if you have an arch in your back. Continue adding bolstering until your ribs are down.
Keep your chin tucked in. If it’s difficult to keep the chin down, you can add more bolstering under your head.
Once you’ve found a comfortable position, lower your arms to the floor next to your body.
Take deep breaths. With each exhale, encourage your ribs to drop. Let the tension in the front of your body dissipate.

This position will help you release tension in the psoas muscle. This muscle commonly becomes short and tight from sitting and driving. Spend at least 5 minutes here to reap the benefits of this restorative exercise.

3. Psoas Release With Floor Angel

Place a big, firm yoga bolster or blankets and pillows on the floor. Lie down and line up the end of the bolster with your mid-back. This is right where your bra strap or heart rate monitor strap would rest.
Extend your legs on the floor and notice if your back is arched and the ribs are elevated. If your ribs are elevated, add more bolstering. Do this until your ribs are down. If you have an arch in your back, add more bolstering as well.
Keep your chin tucked in. If it’s difficult to keep the chin from tilting up, use additional bolstering. Place it under your head.
Rest the back of your hands on the floor horizontally on either side of you. Keep your elbows slightly bent. Lift them off the floor.
You can stay here to stretch your chest and shoulders. Alternatively, start to slide your arms (like a snow angel) up and down. Keep the back of your hands on the floor and elbows lifted to go a bit further.

This will encourage external rotation in the shoulder, and stretch the pectoral muscle and anterior deltoid muscles.

4. Hip Flexor Release (Single and Double Leg Option)

Lie on your back, bend your knees, and place your feet pelvis-width apart with vertical shins.
Lift your hips up and slide a yoga bolster or yoga block under your tailbone.
The goal is to let gravity bring your hips out of hip flexion and into hip extension. You want your pelvis to tilt towards your face without turning on your glute muscles or “actively” tilting your pelvis.
Keep your chin tucked and ribs down while you rest here and take deep breaths.

To go deeper, you can take your hands around one thigh. Pull the knee towards your chest. Bring the opposite foot off the floor and extend the knee. Keep your knee straight and your heel off the ground. Hold for about 1 minute and then switch legs.

5. Quad Stretch With Strap

Lie on your stomach with a rolled-up towel under your sternum so that your pubic bone rests on the floor.
Keep your hips square to the floor. Keep your pubic bone touching the floor. Bend one knee and draw the heel towards the same side hip.
Move only as far as you can. Stop if your hip begins to flex or your pubic bone starts coming off the floor. Also, stop if you feel a pull in your back.
Hold for 1 minute and then switch sides.

To go further, you can wrap a yoga strap around your ankle and drape it over the same side shoulder. Hold the strap with both hands and bend the knee. Use your upper body to pull the leg up. Go as far as you can while keeping the pubic bone on the floor. Ensure your hips remain square to the floor.

Hold for 1 minute and then switch sides. (If you don’t have a yoga strap, you can reach back and hold the outside of your ankle with your hand.)

6. Child’s Pose

Come onto your hands and knees. Stretch your knees apart and your big toes together.
Sit your hips back towards your heels as you reach your arms forward. You’ll feel a stretch along the sides of your back, your low back, and your glutes.
Rest your forehead on the floor and remain here for 1 minute.

If this bothers your knees, you can place a small rolled up towel underneath them to help keep the knee joint from going into complete flexion. You might also want to try stretching your calves; sometimes tight calf muscles can make this pose uncomfortable.

I like to do these restorative exercises in the evening while watching a show with my son, but you can do them whenever you want. I recommend at least 1 minute for each exercise to truly benefit from the release in the muscles. The goal is to relax and to allow gravity to help release tension in your body.

It might not look like big movements, but there’s a lot of movement happening in your body with each of these restorative exercises.

Take deep breaths and enjoy a good book or a show while you move your body. Yes, even this is movement. Enjoy the sweetness in slowing down.