The million-dollar question: Why is stretching important?
So glad you asked! Flexibility diminishes as we age. I’m sure you’ve experienced the same thing I have – you sit on the floor too long watching Hallmark movies and wrapping Christmas presents, only to struggle to reach your full height quickly upon standing. Flexibility begins to decrease at fairly early ages, but the good news is that your muscles are changeable, and you can start doing something RIGHT NOW to improve your flexibility. Start stretching!
“But Lauren, do you know how long it takes to stretch? Who has time for that?” Yep, I heard you – but let me tell you WHY committing just a few minutes a day will help you improve your life.
So what are the benefits of stretching?
1. Prevent Injuries
First, and most importantly, having more flexible muscles will help you prevent injuries not only while exercising, but also when you complete every day activities.
Anyone else guilty of attempting to carry every single grocery bag in from the car at the same time so you won’t have to make multiple trips?? Terrible habit, but we’ve all done it. The less flexible you are, the more likely you are to injure yourself when lugging 12 bags at once. While I’m not necessarily condoning it (I do it sometimes too!), I know we can all do better to be kinder to our bodies. Better flexibility (read: fewer tight muscles) allows you to have better motion – and less stiffness – in all of your joints.
Guess what also changes as we age – balance. When your muscles are more flexible, they can coordinate activities more efficiently, leading to less unsteadiness, falls and general lack of confidence with our mobility.
2. Improve Strength
Secondly, when your joints are less stiff, you can work your muscles through a larger range of motion which can lead to better strength, stamina and power. In order to maximize your strength goals, you’ll need to achieve a fuller range of motion when performing your exercises to properly challenge your muscles. This ensures that you are reaching the safest positions, minimizing stress on supportive structures and making productive use of your time.
Strengthening muscles around a stiff joint won’t improve your function long term and could lead to serious injury. You must be able to put yourself in the proper position in order to complete the exercise effectively. A balance between strength and flexibility is not only important, it’s essential to safe exercise and stable joints.
3. Improve Posture
How many times have you sat behind your computer too long, only to feel this crick in your neck, maybe a little tension at the base of your skull or even felt hard knots on the tops of your shoulders? Have you found yourself hunched forward when zoned in on a project for several hours? All those chronic postures lead to tightness in your pecs, upper trap, hip flexors and hamstrings. That tightness leads to more pressure on your skeleton, preventing true joint stability.
Even worse – all that chronic tension leads to a TON of stress. Have you ever worked with your massage therapist religiously, only to feel better for a short while, but feel tense/stiff/tight again the next day or two later? Their work will only be complimented by your efforts to stretch & address any postural deficits in between your sessions to maximize all the work they are doing. Stretching specific muscles properly allows you to have less pain when at your computer, even lasting longer (& more safely) than before!
4. Quicker Recovery
Like every other cell in your body, your muscle cells produce waste products that need to be eliminated when you are active. By stretching, you are improving blood flow to your muscles which helps to pick up these byproducts of activity and get rid of them. By getting this proverbial “crap” out of your system, you can improve your recovery time. That doesn’t mean you won’t feel sore after a good workout – that soreness is actually a good thing! But with less cellular waste building up, your recovery will be easier.
Now what?
So how do you stretch properly? I think we’ve all been taught at some point by our coach or gym teacher to bend over and touch our toes or sit in a butterfly position, but are those really helpful? Not necessarily, especially if you have previously been injured.
How to Stretch
Step 1: Identify which muscles you want to stretch and set aside a few quiet minutes to commit to your health.
Step 2: Warm up. You have 2 choices: complete dynamic stretches right away or warm up first on a bike or with a brisk walk, then perform more familiar static stretches.
⇒Dynamic stretches, like it sounds, are when you move from position to position in a repeated or smooth pattern. Examples: jumping jacks, walking knee hugs, arm swings.
⇒Static stretches are those in which you hold a position for a length of time.
Step 3: Perform each stretch for up to 30 seconds, but not beyond. Switch to the other side while your first side rests to maximize your time and prevent injury. Be sure to always stretch both sides. Don’t be alarmed if you notice that one side is more or less flexible than the opposite. You’ll fix that fast!
Step 4: A stretch is a good “pain,” but a strain is not. Be sure to stretch towards your barrier – not past it. You want to feel your muscles working, but you should never force a muscle/joint beyond its limit immediately. That’s how injuries occur. A little focused stretching over a short period of time will yield better mobility. This allows you to go farther with less stress on your tissues. Low and slow… Also, bouncing isn’t permitted. We’ve all seen it – but it won’t help. It actually places too much stress on your tissues, hindering your efforts, potentially leading to an injury. Just get into a position and hold it while taking nice, relaxed breaths.
Step 5: Enjoy the fruits of your labor. If you stretch properly, you’ll feel better and you might have less aches and pains in your muscles/joints soon after.
Looking for ideas on what stretches are the best for beginners? Stay tuned. Videos coming soon!
