What Is a Butterfly Stretch?

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How-to Do Butterfly Stretch

1. Sit on a mat and bring the bottoms of your feet together in front of the body. Hold your feet together with your hands.

2. Pull your feet towards the body and gently press your knees toward the ground.

3. Hold and breathe.

Muscle Worked

Primary Muscle Groups

Adductors

The adductors are the muscles on the insides of your thighs that move your legs toward the midline of your body

Secondary Muscle Groups

Hip Flexors

The hip flexors flex your leg at the hip joint, helping you to extend your legs forward.

Pro Tips

• Sit Up Straight- Avoid the temptation to round out your back during the butterfly stretch. Instead, think of extending from the top of your head to create length along the spine, while grounding your pelvis down through your “sits bones.”
• Ease Into It- Never force your knees toward the ground. This is an example of what’s called ballistic stretching, where you bounce or drive yourself into a deeper stretch than your body may naturally feel ready for. Is ballistic stretching safe? For most stretches, there are a number of concerns that crop up with this technique and it’s not recommended in a butterfly stretch. Allow gravity to let your knees separate and drop into the stretch as your muscles start to relax. You can gently press on your knees, just enough so that you feel a weightiness to them, but never try to bounce or jerk them downward. It’s not worth pulling your groin!
• Don’t Forget to Breathe- Focus on deep, steady breathing while you hold your butterfly stretch. Inhale to expand your chest and sit up a little straighter, exhale to relax your hips and let your knees drop further into the stretch. This is a great tension reliever and the concentration that deep breath fosters can make your stretch feel more effective, deepening your flexibility. If you’re using the butterfly stretch as a cool down, it’s also calming to get your breathing back in check.

Benefits of Doing Butterfly Stretch

• Flexible Hips The butterfly stretch opens up your hips and lengthens your inner thigh muscles (“adductors”). This gives you a better range of motion and translates well to exercises where you need to open the legs, like a sumo squat with barbell or other wide-legged squat variations. If you do exercises or sports where you need mobile hips, like running, dancing, or yoga, this is a good move to practice regularly. For desk workers, it can also help manage any stiffness from sitting too long.
• Looser Lower Body The butterfly stretch helps to ease any tension that’s accumulated in your lower body. It targets your groin, inner thighs, and hips for a deep releaser. It’s a great beginner stretch to eliminate muscle soreness after workouts or long periods of standing or sitting.
• Good Alignment- Since this stretch relies on sitting up tall and stacking the vertebrae of your spine, it’s a great move for posture. It also helps strengthen your hips and lower back muscles which are crucial parts of keeping you standing straight.

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