When beginning a health journey, it’s easy to fixate on changing your diet and adopting an exercise regimen. But too often, a key component to better health is overlooked: flexibility.
Flexibility is the ability of a joint or series of joints to move freely – without pain and with a complete range of motion. It helps prevent injury and is essential to total body well-being.
Continue reading to learn how stretching novices can increase their flexibility.
How Can I Get Started With Stretching?
Here are some tips for starting a routine, and sticking with it.
Determine your baseline
At the beginning of your flexibility journey, consider taking a “baseline” video of yourself performing flexibility exercises like the toe touch and the forward bend.
Periodically, you can look back at this video to see how far you’ve progressed.
Set a goal
Write up a short mission statement that outlines your personal flexibility goals, and why you want to achieve them.
For example, your goal might be, “I want to touch my toes” or “I want to become more flexible to keep a healthy sex life with my partner for years to come.”
On challenging days when you don’t feel like completing your routine, you can refer back to your mission statement to remind yourself of the benefits of flexibility and the reasons you started stretching in the first place.
Pair stretching with other activities
To be consistent with your routine, try doing your stretches every day in connection with other habits or rituals.
For example, you may want to perform your stretching routine every morning as you wait for your coffee to brew, or at night before bed.
What Stretches Should I Practice?
There are hundreds of exercises you can try to enhance your flexibility. Below are a few techniques you can use to stretch out various parts of your body.
Before attempting any of these techniques, be sure to warm up your body with five to 10 minutes of light activity. This will get your blood flowing and elevate the temperature of your muscle tissue — increasing the benefit of the time you spend stretching.
Lower Legs
You use the muscles below your knee daily, so improving your flexibility in this area can benefit your mobility in the long run.
The runner's calf stretch is an excellent way to start.
Begin by facing a wall. Put your hands flat against the wall, keeping your body about one foot away from it. Place your right foot behind you and assume a lunge position, bending your left knee. Keep your right heel planted and gently lean forward into the lunge until you feel tension in your calf.
Hold the stretch for about one minute, then switch to your right leg.
Upper Legs and Hips
Many people experience stiffness in their hips and upper legs, which house some of the largest muscles within the body.
The butterfly stretch (which is known as the Baddha Konasana in yoga) is an excellent way to enhance flexibility in your inner thighs and improve your range of motion in your hips. Additionally, this position can help stimulate the prostate gland, kidneys, and other organs in the abdomen, making it helpful for men dealing with erectile dysfunction.
To perform this stretch, sit on the floor and bring your legs toward you. Place the soles of your feet together, with your heels as close to your groin as possible, and use your arms to gently push gently downward on your knees.
For a more advanced variation, you can try bending forward at the hips. This will stretch additional leg muscles.
Back
Soreness, stiffness, and tension in your back is incredibly common, especially if you have poor posture or spend long periods of time sitting down.
A position known as “child's pose” can be helpful. To get into this stretch, kneel on the floor with your backside touching your heels. While sitting on your feet, reach forward towards the ground in front of you, with your arms completely outstretched. This will help relax your back muscles, reducing stiffness and discomfort in your upper body.
Arms
Maintaining flexibility in your hands, wrists, and arms can help alleviate discomfort and tightness.
To stretch your wrist and forearms, extend your right arm straight in front of you and make a stop indication with your hand. With your left hand, grab the tips of the fingers and gently pull back towards your body, applying a comfortable amount of pressure. Then, repeat this stretch with your other arm.
Another arm stretch is called the bicep stretch. This stretch can help loosen your upper arm muscles. Simply sit on the floor with your arms straight behind you, hands facing away from you, and your knees bent. While keeping your hands in the same place, gently scoot your buttocks farther away from your hands until you start to feel resistance in the bicep muscles.
Neck
Increasing flexibility in your neck can improve your posture, relieve tension and prevent potential discomfort down the road.
A simple yet effective neck stretch is known as the upper trapezius stretch. To start the stretch, look forward and place your left arm behind you with the back of your wrist touching your back. Next, take your right hand, reach to the top of your head, and pull your head toward the right shoulder, essentially trying to touch your right ear to your right shoulder. Keep pulling until you feel tension on the left side of your neck and hold. Repeat the stretch on the other side.
Start Your Stretching Journey Now
Flexibility is important to your health, comfort, and overall quality of life. Stretching consistently can help you retain and even regain your flexibility, so you can prevent injuries and move freely without pain.
