The Benefits of Stretching
Healthy muscles lead to upgraded performances: it's a statement that can be applied to any of us! However, very few athletes use and tap into the maximum capacity that the human body has to offer.
Before going any further, allow us to specify that muscles' quality does not reflect a body's health. Indeed, tight muscles highly used by regular efforts, are more exposed to injuries.
However, flexible muscles will allow to reach better performances as mobility gain comes with regular stretching. So for confirmed and high-level athletes muscle's fiber rupture point is pushed further.
If you're at a beginner level, or training from time to time, it is still important to maintain your muscles' elasticity as this will effectively help their development. Take two elastic bands for instance with one stiffer than the other: you can easily guess which one would break first!
Keep also in mind that stretching after a workout allow to reduce soreness - even totally erase the feeling altogether! So why wouldn't you combine business with pleasure?
Unfortunately, stretching do not have a good reputation among athletes and for good reason: trying to touch your feet while keeping your legs straight is rather unpleasant for most of us.
Yet, by taking a little time from each practice (10 to 15 minutes before or after workout at your convenience) could allow, in less than a week, to tickle these toes with less pain.
We won't be the last to praise the benefits of yoga, tai-chi and other forms of body art mixing a spiritual aspect with relaxation of the body; it is not unusual to see the elderly practicing these and even excelling at them! So if you have always been stiff as a board, know that you are not a lost cause!
Warning ! It is not recommended to stretch after a really strong effort or if you are really tired. It is then best, mostly if you workout several times a week, to have one day dedicated to body relaxation through stretching.
If you wish to stretch nonetheless be careful and stay focus at all time. An exercise not done properly can wrongly stretch a muscle and would not create the expected relaxation effect: instead the muscle fibers could be weakened and could lead to a strained or pulled muscle.
It is all about consistency: the more you take care of your body, the more you will be a living proof that feeling young is not only about a state of mind!
Thus, having a good lifestyle (you can follow our tips on our Spirit page), keep hydrating yourself (for water benefits follow the link ;) and stretching regularly will allow your muscles to retain their strength and flexibility. It may also allow you not to have to use that back scratcher after this intense upper body workout at the gym but be able to use your own arms instead...