How to Improve Spinal Mobility and Test Upper Back Flexibility?

Do you want to easily improve stiffness in your thoracic spine at home? First we need to determine whether rotation or extension is the stiffest movement.

How do you check the range of motion for rotation? First sit on a stable chair, preferably in front of a large mirror, then cross your arms over your shoulders and begin rotating your torso with the arms held horizontally at both sides. As you rotate your body to the left, observe how far the elbow reaches in relation to your thigh on the rotating side. If your elbow extends over the thigh line, your mobility is relatively good. Compare whether the mobility is the same when rotating to the right and left. If the rotation is limited - for example only reaching the midline of the body - or there is a significant difference between the two sides, it's worth focusing on rotational exercises.

How do you check the range of motion for extension? Cross your hands behind your neck and then begin extending your thoracic spine by lifting your elbows significantly towards the ceiling. If you feel the greatest limitation in this movement, then it's worth incorporating extension exercises into your routine.

Here are some simple exercises for improving thoracic spine rotation.

Half-kneeling twist: if you want the easier version, place the leg next to a wall in front with a 90-degree angle, then place your hands facing forward and start doing the rotational movement as far as you can go. If you want a heavier exercise, change the leg position so the lumbar spine is blocked from this kind of movement - when you do it with this leg forward, the rotational movement becomes much stiffer. So start with the easier version, then continue to the harder one. ---