Pregnancy Quadratus Lumborum (QL) Stretch

Commonly Used For: Pregnancy-Related Pain.

Video Transcription: I'm going to show you how to stretch your Quadratus lumborum, or QL, which is a muscle in your side here that commonly gets tight during pregnancy, it can contribute to some low back pain. So what you're going to do, is the side that you want to stretch, you're going to put your hand on your opposite hip here. So if I'm stretching my right, I'm going to put my left hand on my hip. I'm going to tuck my right foot behind my left, your toe can be on the floor for balance. And then you're going to lean over, until you feel a stretch through that right side, and just hold that 30 seconds to a minute. If you need to hold onto a table or a chair, something sturdy for balance, go ahead and do so. Again, just holding that stretch, you should feel the stretch right through here. And then you would want to repeat that, on the opposite side, holding again 30 seconds to a minute. If you're on bed rest and not supposed to be up moving around like this, you can do it in the laying down position. So what you're going to do, is lay down on your side, the side that you're trying to stretch, should be facing up. You're going to bring your top arm up over your head, and let it relax there. And then your top leg is going to drop down off the edge of your surface. And then just again, holding that position for 30 seconds to a minute. And you should feel the stretch right in through here. And then you would flip around and repeat on the opposite side there. If you feel any pain, cramping, or contractions during this stretch, then stop and get a hold of your doctor. And that's your QL stretch.