Muscle stiffness is a common experience for many people, and it affects up to 24%^[1] of the global population chronically. It can be concerning if you experience muscle stiffness in your thighs. However, with proper inner thigh stretches, you can relieve the stiffness. It is important to keep safety tips in mind while performing these stretches. In this guide, we will discuss these safety tips in detail.

About inner thigh stretches

Your inner thigh has a couple of muscles that play an important role in allowing you to walk properly. Five muscle groups, called the hip adductors, form part of the inner thigh. These muscles play a big role in helping to maintain balance, provide safer movement, and stabilize other parts of your body, such as your core, lower back, and hips.

Different kinds of stretches can help your inner thighs. Inner thigh stretches focus on helping to relieve tension, stiffness, and pain in these muscle groups. The stretches are also useful for people who regularly work out and want to improve their overall recovery process.

What are the benefits of stretching your inner thighs?

There are several reasons why you might want to do some inner thigh exercises. When you understand the benefits associated with these stretches, then you know what you can expect. It’s going to let you see why it’s a good idea to start with some stretches that target your inner thighs.

When it comes to looking at these benefits, it’s important to remember that the muscles in your inner thighs play several important roles in your body. We talked about the fact that they are important for stabilizing certain parts, as well as to help with balance. A strong and healthy inner thigh muscle can make a big difference in these functions.

Let’s take a closer look at some of the main benefits:

• Thigh exercises help to reduce muscle tension. This reduces feelings of tightness and stiffness. In turn, this can help improve range of motion and flexibility.
• You’ll notice that these stretches can also do wonders when supporting and stabilizing your core. This can help make exercises that target your core easier to do.
• Your hip mobility and stability will improve if you regularly do inner thigh exercises.
• If you want to learn how to get thicker thighs, these stretches can also be a great start. They can help build more muscle tone in your thighs.

When should you stretch your inner thighs?

It’s a good idea to do some inner thigh stretches before you participate in more strenuous workouts. This can serve as a good warm-up for your workout session. It’s also a good idea to do these stretches if you feel that the muscles in your hip, thighs, and groin feel tight and stiff.

Dynamic inner thigh stretches

When you’re looking at inner thigh stretches, there are two kinds. The first one we want to focus on is dynamic stretches, which are great for warming up your muscles. They also help to ensure you can move more safely afterward, which makes them particularly good before an intense training session.

When you do dynamic stretches, it means you’ll be moving the muscle past what’s considered a normal range of motion^[2] for that muscle. Let’s take a closer look at two specific ones that will help you target your inner thighs.

• Leg swings: When you do leg swings, it’s going to stretch your inner thighs, hamstrings, groin muscles, calves, and quadriceps. You’ll start by standing up straight with your feet about shoulder-width apart. Start with your right leg – bring it upwards so that it forms a straight line in front of your hip. Your left foot should remain on the round. You’ll now swing your right foot over your left leg and let it come down to the ground level, but don’t let it touch the ground. Use a swinging motion again to bring it back to the starting position. Switch your feet.
• Crossover stretch: While there are some variations of the crossover stretch, they generally share very similar characteristics. You’ll need a comfortable place to lie down for this one. Lie on your back, then place one leg over the other. Let your foot touch the ground on the other side of the leg, then stretch out your arms. Repeat this the other way around as well.

Static inner thigh stretches

Now that we’ve taken a look at some dynamic stretches let’s consider what static stretches are. These thigh workouts generally focus on holding a part of your body in a very specific position^[3]. You’ll hold the pose or position for several seconds before releasing. It’s a great way to improve flexibility and reduce problems like stiffness in your muscles.

These are great static inner thigh stretches that you can try:

• Butterfly stretch: These stretches are quite common in thigh workouts. It involves sitting down and folding your legs, with the bottom parts of your feet touching each other. You’ll then place your hands on your knees and push down.
• Lateral squat: Squats are also great for improving muscle tone and reducing stiffness. The lateral squat works similarly to a regular one, but this time, you’re going to move to the side while you’re in your squat position. One leg will stretch out to the side, while the other leg remains by your side.
• Reclining angle bound pose: This is a combination of a stretch and a yoga pose. You’ll go into the Cobbler’s Pose, also known as the Bound Angle Pose. Lie on the floor and make sure the bottom parts of your feet touch each other. Lower your knees to the ground until you feel a stretch, then hold this position.

Safety tips

Now that you have a better idea of how you can do inner thigh stretches to relieve stiffness and pain, it’s important that we also cover a couple of safety tips. These safety tips focus on helping reduce your risk of injury. They will also ensure you can maximize the efficiency of the stretches you’ll do to help address thigh tightness.

• Don’t bounce: The movements you make when you do these stretches should be gentle. Don’t bounce on the floor, as this can make your stiffness worse, especially if it’s caused by something like a strain or injury in your thigh muscles.
• Start slowly: Pushing yourself too quickly can cause injury. That’s why you have to make sure you start slowly. Be gentler than usual with the first two or three stretches, and then gradually up your temp. If you’re recovering from a strain or sprain, take your time and build up strength. Consider increasing the intensity and frequency of the stretches over several days.
• Don’t forget to breathe: If you’re doing an inner thigh workout, it’s important to remember to breathe. Don’t hold your breath, and be sure to breathe from your diaphragm. Gentle breathing can help you stay relaxed while stretching and provide your muscles with a constant supply of oxygen during the exercises.
• Don’t push beyond what’s comfortable: As you do these stretches, you must listen to your own body. If you have inner thigh pain while doing the workout, stop. You don’t want to push yourself to a point that’s beyond what’s comfortable for you. This could lead to injury and make your muscles feel even more uncomfortable afterward.

If your goal is to lose weight with these stretches and other exercises, consider taking a good supplement to help support your goals. If you take a look at a Phenocal review, you’ll notice that this supplement not only helps people, but it’s also very safe to use alongside your exercise routine.

Outlook

Tightness in your thighs can make walking and going through your daily routine difficult, as it can also be accompanied by other symptoms, such as pain. Luckily, there are simple solutions that can often do wonders, such as a couple of inner thigh stretches. These stretches help to relax your muscles, reduce tightness and stiffness, and improve pain.

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