Stretching Exercises

In this article we are going to see the different types of stretching exercises that we can do before and after our training.

Exercising is very important for our body and mind. When we are little, exercise is something we do almost without realizing it, running, playing ball, exercising at school, playing in general are activities that keep us in shape in an unconscious way.

But as we get older, we lose that ability to be in shape almost every day and therefore we must find those moments to dedicate to our body.

Studies say that at least 3 times a week and for at least 30 minutes we should do some kind of physical activity. In this way we would avoid an evil that is invading us in today’s society, sedentary lifestyle. We do a multitude of activities but very few of them are linked to the movement of our body, we go to work by car, we go up floors in the elevator, we sit in front of a computer…these are activities that take up a large part of our time in the day to day. Day.

Therefore, it is convenient to do some type of physical activity that counteracts the passivity in which we find ourselves immersed (you can read this article on the benefits of sport). Exercising is very beneficial for different reasons:

• We eliminate stress and anxiety since with exercise we reduce tensions.
• By feeling better, calmer and seeing how our physique is changing, we improve our self-esteem. Exercise releases hormones and toxins that make us feel better about ourselves.
• We speed up metabolism. With exercise we manage to burn calories and improve our muscle mass. In this way, by accelerating our metabolism, it helps us lose weight. We leave you here an article on tips to speed up your metabolism.
• It improves our quality of life as it helps us maintain good health, keep our hearts strong and prevent osteoporosis.
• With physical exercise also improves our sex life. We are full of energy, with more strength and greater flexibility.
• Maintaining a good rhythm of exercises, we also reduce the possibility of suffering from diabetes. Because by exercising we not only burn fat but also sugar.
• Over the years, our muscles and hearts weaken. By exercising we manage to strengthen them and thus delay the aging process.
• The risk of getting cancer is decreased. Above all, women who do not exercise increase the chances of generating some type of tumor of the reproductive system and breast cancer.
• Scientific studies show that we increase our mental capacity in terms of memory, concentration and our reactions become more active.
• We also increase our sense of humor. It is proven that a remedy to feel better, if we suffer from some type of stress or depression, is to exercise continuously.

Therefore, we see that exercising is an incredible source of benefits. But when it comes to performing any physical activity, it is not enough to do it in any way, but we must take care of how we practice sports to avoid suffering some type of injury.

Instructions

Therefore, we are going to see some necessary instructions so that our body is fully prepared for the tension that it will suffer due to exercise.

And one of these routines that prepare our body is stretching exercises.

With stretching exercises we lengthen the muscles and tendons. This is done by subjecting the external part of the muscle to tension in the opposite direction to its contraction.

Let’s see a series of stretching routines for those people who, due to their work, have a high level of sedentary lifestyle. In this way we will improve our flexibility.

1. The first thing to keep in mind is that we should not start any stretching routine without having done warm-up exercises for 5 or 10 minutes beforehand. This is carried out with the same exercises that we are going to do but with a minimum level of effort, with very low intensity. In this way we prevent some type of muscle pull.
2. Lateral flexion of the neck. With this exercise we relax the head and neck area. The way to do it is by adopting an upright position, we try to bring the head to one shoulder and then to the other. We perform this stretch without shrugging the shoulders, keeping them at the same height.
3. Now we focus on the calves. We perform this exercise leaning against a wall with our hands and forearms at a 90-degree angle. To perform this exercise we must look for a leaning position, one of the legs must be bent forward and the other the other way around. The feet must remain on the ground. The body has to form a right angle. The front leg is bent at the knee, while the leg that was behind is stretched. The time for this position is half a minute. In this exercise we must alternate the legs.
4. Adductor stretching routine. We stand with our knees on the ground and our toes pointed to the sides. Placed on the ground, we keep the forearms below the shoulders at a right angle. Once in this position, we expel the air slowly with a straight back. At the same time we separate our knees and begin to lower our chest towards the ground. The arms will be extended to the front
5. Stretching exercise with the back of the knee. We sit on the floor with our legs straight and stretched out in front. We pass a ribbon through the soles of the feet, through the center, and hold it by the ends. We now gently pull the tape towards our body until we feel a stretch in the back of the knees. We maintain the position for about 20 or 30 seconds and slowly release. We can do them with both legs and alternating with each one of them.
6. Lower body stretching routine. We lie down, face up, and bend our knees, bringing them towards our chest. We hold the thighs with our hands and bring the heels towards the buttocks while raising and separating the hips from the ground. We maintain the stretch for about 30 to 40 seconds.
7. Upper back stretches. Here you will find more information on how to do back stretch. We perform this exercise looking for a support point between the shoulders and the hip. We stand in front of this support point, about to meter away, and extend our arms parallel to each other until us hold on to the support point. We lower the trunk without arching the back and with the legs stretched out. We exhale slowly and try to lower our shoulders so that we slowly stretch our back.

What do you need

We have seen in the previous point different stretching routines to improve flexibility. There are numerous exercises depending on our activity, age, training and physical condition. But we must always keep in mind that stretching exercises are very necessary before and after performing our physical activity. For this reason, we must vary the routines depending on the activity that we are going to do.

The following points are based on what we need to know when stretching:

If we are training:

• We must know that stretching helps us to have greater elasticity while reducing the risk of injury.
• During an exercise, it must be taken into account that the tendons, ligaments and joints participate together with the muscles when performing some type of physical activity. Therefore, if our tendons, muscles, and ligaments are strong and elastic, we will increase our strength and feel more agile.

If we are training intensely:

• After a very intense exercise session, the muscles tighten and shrink. Physical exercise on a regular basis makes our muscles hard but also makes them shrink, limiting our movement. Therefore, exercise without stretching can cause a lot of pressure on the nerves and can slow down the nerve impulse and sometimes even block it.

Therefore, we must take into account that:

• Regular training without stretching routines can make us feel a sense of permanent tension in the body. Also a feeling of fatigue and muscle pain or even arthritis.
• We must therefore stretch if we want to reduce tension. Sometimes this tension occurs as a result of stress and makes us feel tired and irritated.
• Therefore, stretching can relieve this tension, relax our muscles and reduce that level of stress. In this way we also get to reduce muscle, back and neck pain.

Tips

As a summary of all the above, we must know that:

• Stretching exercises slow down our aging process.
• If we do not stretch our muscles, we cause wear and tear on the joints.
• With them we increase the blood flow to the muscles.
• We increase our capacity for movement and improve our joints since, by placing certain parts of the body in specific positions; we increase the length of the muscles.
• We relax our muscles and this leads to an improvement in our mental and emotional health.
• With stretching exercises we help our muscles relax more quickly after exercise.
• We decrease the amount of lactic acid in the muscles.
• We improve the posture of our body.
• We promote increased flexibility of ligaments and tendons.
• We reduce the risk of any injury or muscle contracture when doing exercises. We leave you an article on how to treat a muscle contracture.
• We will improve the knowledge of our own body.
• Most stretching exercises are usually static.
• We should try to include all muscle groups in any routine stretching program.
• It is advisable to do at least two different stretches for each joint movement.
• It is recommended to perform these stretching exercises about four or five days a week, since a session of them usually lasts no more than five minutes. In addition, stretching is independent of whether we do some type of physical exercise or not.
• We must take into account when doing them; everything will depend on the factors of age, our physical condition and the type of sport or exercise we do.
• Therefore, although they are highly beneficial, we must perform them in the best possible way, with correct execution and posture when doing them and if we see that it causes us pain or presents us with great difficulty when carrying them out, we must change the type of stretching until our body is in a position to perform it correctly.
• We must bear in mind that, if we suffer from osteoporosis, an injury, sprain or inflammation of the member that we want to exercise, we must first consult if they can be beneficial for us when doing them.
• There are stretching exercises for all parts of our body. At each moment we should choose those that improve the relaxation of that particular part of our body that has received the most tension.