Yoga for Tired Legs and Feet (If You’ve Been Standing All Day)

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If you’ve been on your feet all day, this yoga for tired legs and feet practice is exactly the class for you. It’s intended for anyone who has been standing all day, whether you work long hours as a school teacher, hospital or retail staff, or someone in the service industry. So if you’re feeling stiff, sore, tight, tense, or otherwise achy, the following stretches for tired legs will help.

The lower body-focused stretches emphasize the hips, hamstrings, quads, calves, ankles, and tops of the feet. The yoga for tired legs and feet practice includes easy-to-follow stretches, even for those who are not familiar with yoga. It also incorporates a little upper body stretching to help you release through the shoulders and upper back because those areas can also become tired after a long day.

These are simple stretches for tired legs. There’s nothing too strenuous and they’re suitable for all experience levels. Consider them an antidote to being on your feet all day.

30-Minute Yoga for Tired Legs and Feet

Almost all of the poses in this yoga for tired legs and feet practice are done either seated or lying down.

Reclined Bound Angle or Butterfly

Start lying on your back in Reclined Bound Angle or Butterfly Pose. Bring the soles of your feet together to touch, let your knees fall open, and place your arms wherever you’d like, either resting your palms on your belly or extending your arms alongside your head. Take a few breaths here, as you really allow your knees and your thighs to feel heavy and find a slow, steady breath, in and out through your nose.

When you’re ready, use your hands to help lift your knees all the way back up.

Windshield Wipers

Take your feet mat-width apart and slowly lower your knees and thighs from side to side in a windshield wiper motion. You’re trying to get that full range of motion through your hips here so take your time and lower as much as possible while keeping your shoulder blades grounded. Let yourself move back and forth.

The next time you have your knees and thighs over to the right, pause here. If you’d like to add some intensity, cross your right ankle over the top of your left knee to encourage your knee and thigh to lower a little more. Uncross and do the same thing on the other side. When you’re ready, release and come back to center.

Ankle Rolls

Pull your right knee toward your chest and extend your left leg straight on the mat. As much as you’re pulling your right thigh toward you, you’re also stretching your left leg away from you. Try to create more space between the crown of your head and your left big toe. Roll your right ankle as if you’re tracing some circles with your right foot. You can also flex and point your foot. Then reverse the direction of those circles. Keep your head and shoulders heavy on the mat.

Half Happy Baby

Stay here or intensify the stretch by coming into Half Happy Baby. Flex your right foot and hold onto your big right toe with your two peace fingers as you stack your ankle over the top of your knee. (You can instead reach your right hand to your outer right foot or side of your leg.) I like to use my elbow to push my knee and thigh open a little more. This stretch gets into the hamstrings and hip. Keep your right foot flexed and keep trying to push down into your left hip and left sit bone as your left shoulder stays anchored and grounded.

Reclined Pigeon

From Half Happy Baby, keep hold of your right toes or foot as you bend your left knee and bring your left foot flat on the mat. Cross your right ankle over your left knee to create a figure-four shape and flex your right foot. Reach your arms along either side of your left thigh and interlace your fingers behind your thigh in Reclined Pigeon. Pull it toward your chest and stay still or rock a little from side to side to massage your lower back. Slowly lower your left foot back to the mat.

Reclined Hamstring Stretch

Straighten your right leg and reach it toward the ceiling. Hold onto the back of your right leg anywhere that’s comfortable. Try to keep your right knee straight, if possible, and flex and point your feet so you alternately push through your heel and point your toes. Depending on the kinds of shoes that you wear, this stretch can feel quite intense.

Slowly release and straighten your right leg on the mat as you pull your left knee toward your chest. Repeat that same sequence on the other side, practicing ankle rolls, taking Half Happy Baby, Reclined Pigeon, and Reclined Hamstring Stretch.

Toe Squat

Rock yourself to sitting or roll onto one side and make your way to kneeling with your knees hip-distance apart. Tuck your toes and start to shift your weight back toward your heels. You can take your hands to the mat and keep most of your weight in your palms rather than your feet and ankles.

Or, depending on the intensity of the stretch you desire, you can sit upright and rest your hands on your thighs. This is such a good stretch to do every single day. Breathe slowly here.

Shift your weight forward onto your knees, untuck your toes, and tap the tops of your feet on the mat.

Ankle Stretch

With the tops of your feet on the mat, sit back onto your heels. Hold onto your right knee with your right hand and see if you can lift your shin off the mat to stretch the top of your right foot. You won’t need to lift your leg much to feel a stretch along your right foot and ankle. Stay lifted and tall through your chest. You can bring your left hand behind you for stability. Lower your shin to the mat and repeat on the other side.

Low Lunge

Step your right foot to the front of the mat and lower your left knee to the mat. Stack your right knee directly over your ankle and frame your foot with your hands, maybe making fists so you don’t place too much of your body weight on your wrists. Let gravity pull your hips forward and down toward the mat in Low Lunge. You’re trying not to use much effort in this hip stretch. Breathe deeply into the stretches.

Low Lunge Twist

If you like, add a twist to your Low Lunge. Take your left palm or fingertips to the mat or a block and reach your right arm up in spinal rotation. Keep releasing those hips down.

Then bring your right hand back to the mat.

Head to Knee Pose

From your Low Lunge, straighten your right leg as you shift your hips toward the back of the mat and come to sitting. Keep your right leg straight and bring your left foot to the inside of your right thigh. Let yourHead to Knee Pose be a passive forward fold in which gravity pulls your chest and head down. There’s no pushing or pulling and there’s no need to have a flat back. Relax your belly, your facial muscles and let your shoulders and arms be heavy. Just feel the stretch along the back of your right leg without forcing it as you lean forward.

Slowly walk your hands back as you lift yourself to sitting.

Seated Twist

Lift your left knee and step your left foot outside your right thigh. Push down into your left big toe as you hug your thigh toward your chest. Wrap your right arm around your left leg and take your left hand or fingertips to the mat behind you as you find a simple seated twist. Lift and lengthen as you sit tall and then twist toward the left as you hug that thigh toward your belly. You’ll probably feel this a little through your left glute and into your left thigh. Keep pushing into your big left toe and dropping your shoulders down and away from your ears.

Slowly release back through to center.

Bound Angle or Butterfly

Find a seated version of the stretch you did at the beginning of class with the bottoms of your feet together and knees apart. Again, make it a passive forward fold as you let your back round in Bound Angle. There’s no need to pushe or force the stretch in your inner thighs. Breathe here.

Keep your legs in place as you slowly lift your head and chest. Maybe you take a moment to kind of massage your feet with your thumbs in any way that feels good, maybe pulling back on the toes a little and working your way up into your calves.

Find your Low Lunge on your second side and stay here or add a spinal twist. Then start to shift your hips back as you transition to Head to Knee Pose and then come into your Seated Twist.

Seated Wide-Legged Forward Bend or Straddle

Come into Bound Angle or Butterfly Pose again or try this wide-legged forward fold instead. You don’t even need to open your legs that wide or go to your end range of motion. You’re looking for maybe a four out of 10 in terms of intensity. Nothing that feels too painful or strenuous. Just let yourself come down into the pose and take slow, steady breaths here. If your back body feels incredibly tight, you might not need to fold forward. Instead, work on sitting tall. The benefits of these poses are the same no matter how far forward you fold.

Keep your legs as they are as you lift just your head and chest and maybe give yourself that same massage.

Downward-Facing Dog

From sitting, bend at the knees, cross your ankles, and take your hands shoulder-width apart in front of you. Then step your feet hip-distance apart behind you and lift your hips up and back into Downward-Facing Dog. This stretch focuses on the legs and lower body. Bend into your left knee and try to keep your right leg straight as you reach your right heel toward the mat. Focus on stretching along the calves, lifting your seat, and pushing your chest toward your thighs. Switch sides. Then find a neutral Down Dog with a little bend in both knees.

Happy Baby Pose

Bring your knees to the mat, swing your legs in front of you, and lower yourself all the way onto your back. Pull both knees toward your chest and then widen your knees toward your shoulders and armpits. You can stay here or come into Happy Baby Pose by grabbing both big toes, outer edges of your feet, or calves. Try to stack your ankles over your knees. Use your elbows to press your knees apart. Keep your lower back pressing into the mat. You can rock a little side to side here if you like.

Reclined Twist

This last twist targets the IT band, which is another area of the legs that tend to become quite tight from standing all day. It’s also especially helpful for runners as well, who tend to have tight IT bands. From Happy Baby, keep drawing your right knee in toward your chest and extend your left leg straight on the mat. Cross your right thigh over your body toward the left. Then reach your right arm straight out to the side from your shoulder.

If you’re already feeling a good amount of sensation, feel free to stay here. If you’d like to intensify the stretch, straighten your right leg, which also targets the hamstrings. I say straighten, but really a bend in that knee is totally fine. Just find your expression of the pose. Stay here for several breaths.

If your right leg was straight, bend your right knee and roll onto your back and then twist to the other side.

Savasana

Roll onto your back into Savasana, your final resting pose. Take up some space with your arms and your legs, close your eyes, and give yourself a few minutes of total relaxation so you can feel the effects of your yoga for tired legs and feet practice. Try to let go a little more with each exhale.

When you’re ready, stretch your arms overhead or whatever other movement feels good. Then slowly roll onto one side, come up to take a seat, and notice if there’s a little relief and more of a feeling of spaciousness before you continue with your day.