A Quick Guide to Helpful Stretching Exercises

Is stretching same as warming up? The answer is no, they are not the same. Though, it is a popular myth that more or less, stretching and warming up are the same. Warming comes before stretching. Warming up is required by a body to prepare it for the physical activity demands from a succeeding exercise routine. An appropriate warm would be low intensity whole body exercise like jogging in place. This is followed by stretching and if you do not do a warm up prior to stretching, you might risk injuring the cold muscle and the affected musculature.

Stretching gives mixed results. Various studies have been undertaken on the benefits of stretching, though all with inconclusive results. Some scholars claim that stretching has multiple benefits while some say that it is a futile exercise. Those that find stretching beneficial argue that this form of exercising provides the body with an improvement of muscular co-ordination which is supplemented by decreased level of muscle tension. Another benefit of stretching is that it promotes an enhanced level of circulation of blood to the different parts of the body.

Another element of stretching is that, when an individual is stretching, he/she should focus on specific parts of the body like the lower back, shoulders, neck, legs and hips – essentially the major muscles of the body and the important joints. It would help if the focus is on the parts that would be involved in the exercise that would follow. Also stretching should be bilateral i.e. both the body sides should be exercised.

Stretching can be counter-productive, when it is done in a jerky and bouncy fashion. It is recommended that it is performed in a slow and smooth manner. Any immediate and sudden movement of cold muscles can effect in undue stress on the joints and also in tears in the muscles. If not attended to these tears can turn to micro scars gradually as the muscle heals. This will make the muscle more susceptible to pain and also less flexibility due to decreased tightness of the muscle.

Stretching can result in pain in some individuals, especially if they have done significant amount of stretching. This can be attributed to soreness of muscles due to excessive stretching. An optimal stretching should not result in pain but should feel like tension in the affected muscles and connective tissues.

While stretching it is best to do it under supervision or base it on an expert opinion. It is important for an individual to be alert to alterations or modifications required in their stretching regime. If a muscle is already strained, stretching it can cause further harm. Also when a muscle is inflames or injured or infected it is best to refrain from stretching or exercising.

The types of stretching techniques include dynamic, static, ballistic and proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF). Ballistic involves a lot of bouncing and thus it is not recommended much especially for beginners. The most common type of stretching recommended by experts and preferred widely is the dynamic stretching, which is used a supplement to the warm-up routine. For a desired increase in flexibility, the preferred style of stretching is static and PNF.

Stretching provides the body with an increased level of flexibility. It is noteworthy that structurally sound joint integrity and excessive flexibility are not mutually exclusive. An individual can have both the qualities in their body.

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