Flexibility Key To Youth
It’s likely you’ve heard, via an aerobics class, yoga tape, or maybe from a running coach that stretching is imperative for peak performance. Too often we approach it as drudgery, lacking the patience to embrace this pursuit for what it can be: actually a toning, power-building way to gain more awareness of our breathing, while enhancing awareness of our physical being. With very little time expenditure, one can start this process, and in short order find some of the benefits extend well beyond purely athletic endeavors.
Stretching of any kind promotes increased flexibility, the ability to extend our limbs further and with less effort than if we remain sedentary over a period of time. When we instinctively stretch upon getting out of bed, we increase circulation, which gives the sense of being more awake. As the first minutes of the day go by, we move with more ease because our body is warming up, and becoming prepared for what we’ll ask of it. This is the basis for why we stretch prior to physical activity: a nimble muscle will lead to greater comfort when exercising, and tolerate stress put upon it much better than an inflexible one. Also, muscles that have gone through prior range-of-motion exercises are much less prone to injury. Inevitably, this leads to more freedom of movement, and better athletic performance.
These are convincing points when deciding to devote a few minutes a day-whether you work out that day or not-to the art of stretching. For most of us, there’s a much more vital benefit: it’s not a “stretch” to say that flexibility is the key to youth, where our physical being is concerned. If we are loose of torso, everything flows better, and we’re capable of more physical activity. This sends the message to the body that it’s not time to “throw in the towel”, as the aches, pains, and general tightness that creeps into many peoples’ daily lives is further delayed. And what we’re after anyway is not only longevity, but QUALITY of life.
Tight muscles also portend musculoskeletal imbalances that lead to pain, which is restrictive at best, and at worst, causes injury. For instance, if a runner’s hamstrings and hip flexors are tight, and the condition is left unaddressed, it can manifest in lower back discomfort. Our jobs make sitting at a desk a mandatory evil in many cases, but we can overcome these obstacles to flexibility with surprisingly-little time spent. Any good tendencies practiced can become second nature if done consistently, and here’s how 5-8 minutes before and after a workout can help keep you injury-free. Far transcending enhanced athletic performance, this will improve the way we carry ourselves throughout the day.
So we’ve determined that flexibility through stretching is valid, but how do we start? I suggest that a DYNAMIC warmup is used if preparing the body for a workout. This approach takes the limbs through a range of motion 6-8 times, never forcing a stretch, and only holding the position about one count. This warms the body by emulating the motions about to be performed, and lubricates the muscles and joints, as to not shock the body when it gets to work. Dynamic stretching is done at times almost as an aerobic activity, but here’s where an overlooked benefit to stretching comes in. As a runner, I went to formal yoga classes with the thought that I would increase flexibility, thus keeping the chances of injury down. What I didn’t bargain for was the diligent attention we were urged to pay to our breathing. If we’re more aware of how we breathe all day-including while stretching-we can cut down the incidence of “half-breaths”, that phenomenon that-due to inevitable stress in our lives-keeps us from relaxing even if we don’t know it. If we practice breathing easier-and one of the best ways to grasp this art is through stretching, those half-breaths will become less and less a factor, and by definition, our blood pressure is regulated, and our metabolism raised.
Differing from the dynamic stretching which has us doing ‘repetitions’ of the same stretch, in order to get breathing going and prepare muscles for activity, STATIC stretching is usually the approach after a workout. Each muscle or limb is stretched to the point of tightness, but not pain, and held for 20-40 seconds. This where flexibility improves through staying the course; relax breathing when at the peak of each stress, and soon you’ll find yourself going further with each effort. Stretching increases total and specific range of motion and enhances recovery from exertion, as it assists in the flushing of metabolic waste (lactic acid) from the muscles. Always follow a stretching regimen-no matter how long or short; they all help-by drinking water.
A search on the internet that mentions stretching or yoga will offer a myriad of options as to particular stretches that will help you create a stretching regimen. Also, advice from a massage therapist or personal trainer may be invaluable. The cliché: What you put into it, you get out of it fits well here, so commit to a few minutes a day, and in a month, there’s quite a chance you’ll look back and wonder how you got by without all the benefits a little stretching has to offer.
|