Stretching Out Muscles Under the Rib

You may not be able to feel or see the muscle under your ribs, but the intercostal muscles between and beneath your ribs assist in moving your ribs when you breathe. The external intercostals elevate your ribs when you inhale and the internal and innermost intercostals lower your ribs when you exhale. Even though they may be smaller than your chest or leg muscles, stretching these muscle can directly impact how well you breathe.

  1. Benefits

    • Stretching all of your intercostal muscles can help to increase the amount of air your lungs can take in. In a 2012 study published in Experimental and Clinical Sciences International Online Journal, subjects who stretched their intercostals before performing a breathing exercise inhaled more volumes of air and had higher respiratory factors, such as tidal volume, than the control group that did the breathing exercise with no stretching. The stretch elicited a slower and deeper breathing pattern with higher activity in the diaphragm and intercostal muscles. It may also increase the size chest cavity to allow the diaphragm to expand more.

    Better Stretching Types

    • No single stretching method is better than another. The type of stretch you perform would depend your goals. If you want to increase neural and muscle activity to improve your performance during a workout, then you should do dynamic stretching exercises that move your muscles and joints repetitively over their range of motion. A sample exercise is to flex your torso side to side in a controlled manner, while maintaining a standing position to warm your body up. Static stretching, which is holding a stretch for 20 to 30 seconds, reduces neural stimulation and enhances relaxation to allow deeper breathing. Holding a stretch by laterally flexing your torso to your left while raising your right arm overhead is a sample static stretch.

    Standing and Floor Exercises

    • Standing stretches for your intercostals also works on balance, body awareness and core stability. Certain floor-based exercises place less stress upon your joints to allow you to relax and focus more on your intercostal muscles. Most of these exercises are based on yoga poses, which also emphasize breathing and mindfulness. Standing stretches include Half Moon Pose, Triangle Pose, Reverse Warrior Pose and Standing Backward Bend. To end your rib-stretching session, relax with one or two floor exercises, such as Camel Pose and back bend on a firm stability ball.

    Precaution

    • The intercostal muscles can be strained if pulled with too much force, which can be due to improper warm-ups or overtraining. This is common among rowers, ice hockey players, bowlers and javelin throwers, according to an article in PhysioAdvisor.com. Intercostal strain symptoms include a sharp pain or pulling sensation in one side of the chest -- usually on the same side as the dominant arm. The area can become sensitive to the touch and inflamed. Do not stretch strained intercostals, as this can delay the healing process. Seek medical help immediately if you experience pain in the chest or along the ribs.