Seated Straddle Forward Hinge

How to do it

1. Sit tall on the sit bones with the legs wide, allowing a small bend in the knees.
2. Keep the knees and toes generally upward without forcing the hips to rotate.
3. Hinge forward from the hips, walking the hands further out.
4. Maintain a comfortably long spine and stop at a mild-to-moderate inner-thigh stretch.

Form cues

• Use a small knee bend if straight legs create posterior-knee tension.
• Walk the hands out gradually without bouncing.
• Do not pursue maximal depth.

Why this exercise helps

The seated straddle places the hips in abduction before a forward lean is added, so many people feel the stretch through the inner thighs and hamstrings. Leading the movement from the hips can keep the lower back in a comfortable position, but a perfectly neutral spine is not required. Sitting removes the balance demand of a standing stretch and makes the range easier to regulate. A small knee bend or raised seat may also make it easier to tilt forward without pulling sharply behind the knees.

Stop or modify if

• Rounding the lower back instead of hinging from the hips — tilt the pelvis forward (anterior tilt) and lead with the chest rather than reaching with the forehead.
• Forcing the legs as wide as possible before the hips have the available range — work at a width that still permits an upright, sit-bone-grounded starting posture.
• Bouncing or pressing to increase depth — hold a steady position; abrupt loading at the end range is harder on the adductor tendons than a sustained hold.

Modifications and progressions

• Sit on a folded blanket or firm cushion to tilt the pelvis forward if the hamstrings pull the pelvis into posterior tilt and prevent a neutral spine.
• Maintain a generous knee bend (up to 45°) if straight legs cause tension behind the knee or prevent hip hinging.

Muscles worked

Stretches: hip adductors, hamstrings

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