If you are a wheelchair user, keeping the muscles in your legs loose and flexible will help keep you healthy and feeling good. Here are some tips for independent leg stretches done from a seated position on the floor.
- Using a strap, put the strap around your foot and gently pull back to stretch your ankle.
- Still holding the strap, bring your leg out to the side, then back in to help keep your hips flexible.
- Next, bring your leg straight up to stretch out your hamstrings.
- Then, using the strap or your hand, bend your knee to your chest. Hold for 20 seconds, then push your knee out to the side in a “butterfly position,” for more hip stretching. Hold for an additional 20 seconds.
Repeat these stretches 20 times on each leg for a great stretch.
Check out the video for a demonstration of these stretches.