Stretching should be a daily habit. Here are some videos to show you how
We all could do with moving a little more often, and unless you’re a committed yogi or pilates fan, you probably don’t make time to stretch daily. We tend to associate stretching merely as a warm-up or cooldown for exercise, but it should be an integral part of our day in itself.
Stretching isn’t just for athletes, it is an essential practice for everyone, to help prevent injury. Flexibility exercises are as important for your overall health as cardio and strength training. Stretching keeps the connective tissues or fascia in your body mobile. Fascia is a thin casing of connective tissue that surrounds and holds every organ, blood vessel, bone, nerve fiber and muscle in place.
As you can imagine, if this fascia is left immobile for extended periods of time, you will start to feel that tightness in your muscles, like when you sit in a car for too long or stand in the one position all day. Perhaps you noticed it when tackling some DIY during lockdown.
So stretching isn’t just for the super active. Stretching is important to ensure the fascia will support your body in every movement, particularly as we age. Our joints can lose up to 50% of their range of motion as we age.
The answer? Aim to stretch for at least 10 minutes everyday.
