4 Benefits of Flexibility Exercises

If you were to walk into a gym today and observe the daily routines of its patrons, you would likely notice a common theme:  people's desire to get their workouts done, and to carry on with their busy lives. 

As a result, many people have done away with making flexibility exercises a part of their workouts.  However, several benefits can be achieved by putting a focus back on flexibility exercises. 

1. Decreased chance of injury through reduced joint stress

Stretching (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

* The old adage is true – "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."  If you are about to put your body, and especially your joints, through a rigorous workout, it makes sense to take those joints through their full ranges of motion first. 

* A joint that is flexible will not only have a great range of motion, but it is also less likely to get injured than a cold or tight joint.  Having said this, most experts agree that stretching a joint should only be performed once the body and muscles have been warmed up.  As a result, it is now advisable to do a few minutes of light cardio activity to get the blood flowing before beginning a stretching program. (If your workout or flexibility program consists of some type of yoga, just ease into it by not stretching as far at the beginning - see #2 below.)

2. Increased range of motion

* It has been shown that for some weight lifting exercises, the fuller the range of motion is, the more beneficial the exercise can be to muscle building.  It would then be in your best interest to achieve that goal. 

* Increasing your range of motion is most easily performed by doing a dynamic stretch of the body part that you plan to target in your workout routine.  Dynamic stretching, as opposed to static stretching, involves putting a targeted body part's muscles and joints through a series of progressively wider ranges of motion until they are fully stretched - a yoga routine is a good example of this.

A gymnast stretching exercise. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

3. Increased balance

* Imagine if you dropped something on the floor, and you were about to pick it up.  But just before you do this, you are told you cannot bend your knees or bend at the hips.  Picking up that object now seems next to impossible without falling flat on your face! 

* This is an extreme example, which illustrates a simple concept.  Flexible joints allow a body to keep its balance.  A body is most balanced when the head, shoulders, and hips are in perfect alignment, and flexible joints allow for this alignment to happen whether you are working out or just going about your daily activities.

4. Improved posture and muscle relaxation

* Muscle tightness, due to lack of flexibility in one area of the body, can cause problems in other areas.  As an example, tight hamstrings often lead to increased tension and fatigue in the muscles of the lower back.  As a result, low back pain then leads to poor posture as your body tries to protect itself from the pain it is enduring - remember - everything in the body is connected and affects the other parts!  The best way to prevent some forms of low back pain is to ensure that leg and torso muscles are subjected to a variety of flexibility exercises. This is why relief for chronic pain can often be found through specific exercises.

To conclude, whether the stretches you incorporate into your daily routine are static or dynamic, are performed at home or at the gym, are probably not the most important factors.  The most important factor is that you do make flexibility exercises a part of your workout so that you can get the most out of your training - and achieve a healthier, stronger, and pain-free body.

Dealing with Aches and Pain After A Workout

Have you just begun to exercise? If so, you may have noticed that you feel some discomfort the first few weeks into your routine. It is not uncommon to feel aches. But if you do, pay attention and listen to your body, as over exercising can lead to injury.

Have you heard the saying “No pain, no gain”? That is not always the best advice. If you ever feel pain after a workout, something is wrong. Start by investigating the pain. It could be a cramp, strain or sprain. When an exercise movement causes pain, the first thing to do is to stop what you are doing.

Aches can be due to muscle soreness. If you wake the next day and you are sore in the muscles that were used in your previous workout, the body is responding to being used in a new way, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. But, even so you don’t have to suffer through the aches.

Alleviating the Pain

Here are some ways that you can get past the pain and help your muscles heal properly to avoid future injury. We will start by discussing the R.I.C.E. method.

* Rest – If you feel discomfort or pain in your muscles or joints during or when performing activities after your workout, give your body a rest. It could be that you are just new to the routines, but also overuse of a muscle can lead to a weakness. If you are weight training, leave at least 48 hours between each muscle group to allow for muscle repair. Poor form can also be a cause of strain, so work with a trainer if you need to, to make sure you are performing the exercises correctly.

* Ice – Using ice packs on an area of soreness or injury can provide short-term relief from pain. Try a fifteen-minute treatment. Then move your limb around and see how you feel.

* Compression – This also alleviates some pain and can reduce swelling that is putting pressure on vital tissues in the area. For a sprain or strain, try using a compression bandage like an ACE to keep fluid from accumulating in the area from inflammation. Keep the bandage snug but not too tight to cut off the blood supply to the area.

* Elevation – Another way to reduce or eliminate swelling is to elevate the hurt area. If it is a limb, use pillows or a stool. Try to raise the injury or ache above the level of the heart for best results.

Other than R.I.C.E. there are other ways to help minor aches and pains.

* Sit in a bath – The warm water can help with swelling and also take the pressure off of the area from the buoyancy.

* Massage – Loosening the muscles can stretch out any kinks that are leading to pain. It may take a deep tissue massage which can be slightly uncomfortable at first.

* Stretch – Gentle stretching can keep muscles supple when exercising. A good warm stretch can avoid some injuries. Be sure to warm up before, and cool down and stretch after every exercise session.

If you are experiencing aches and pains from your workout, these are a few ways to bounce back from them.

Is Your Job Killing Your Back?

If you’ve ever suffered from back pain (while exercising or otherwise), the problem most likely has nothing to do with your back.

Let me explain...

In today’s world, our bodies are constantly contorted into positions that are abnormal for us. Whether it’s working at your desk for 8... 9... 10 hours a day, commuting to work or relaxing and watching television, your body isn’t meant to stay in the “sitting” position for very long.

What’s the result? Your body becomes misaligned… specifically your hips.

After a prolonged period of time, your hips start to pull on the tendons and ligaments that connect it to your back. And this pulling is what causes the sharp or dull back pain an alarming majority of Americans suffer from.

If you were to go to a regular doctor, you’d probably be told to do some stretches to “fix” your back (or even worse - pop some pills!).

But there’s a problem with this solution.

Most of these stretches are designed to loosen your joints. And the key factor that these doctors don’t know about is that you don’t want loose joints. You want them to be tight. Tight joints mean stable and strong joints. And help prevent injury in the first place.

That’s why I recommend the following stretches to my clients. It helps realign your hips to relieve stress on your back, but also works to help keep your joints nice and tight to help avoid injury in the future.

Here are some stretches from my friends over at the Healthy Back Institute that you'll want to perform daily to avoid back pain:

1. Shoulder Stretch: You need to stretch and develop these muscles because they are very susceptible to injury. And tight shoulder muscles contribute to back and neck pain, especially if your head and shoulders droop forward.

How To: Stand in an open doorway. Raising your arm to a 90-degree angle with palm facing out, press your hand and shoulder against the wall and doorjamb. You should feel the wall against your armpit. Slowly increase the tension as you push forward. Hold for a 10 count. Then repeat with the other arm.

2. Hip Flexors: You need to do this stretch, particularly if you sit all day at work. Sitting all day puts pressure on the hip flexor muscles. This is a major cause of minor lower back pain. Stretching your hip flexors muscles several times a week will prevent this kind of lower back pain.

How To: Stand in a modified runner stance, with right foot forward and left foot back, feet flat on floor. Put your hands on your hips and keep your back and hips in straight alignment. Push forward with your hips, while maintaining your erect posture. Slowly, push your hips forward only until you feel a comfortable level of tension. Hold for a 10 count. Switch sides by reversing your leg stance and repeat.

Give these a try. They have helped me a lot. Start off every other day and go from there. Consistency’s the key.

There are other steps you can take to overcome back pain and stiffness naturally, too.

In fact, Jesse Cannone – a top fitness trainer and co-founder of the Healthy Back Institute – has written a book called The 7-Day Back Pain Cure. It shows you how to get to the root of back pain problems and fix them without drugs, injections, or surgery. It also suggests numerous measures you can take to prevent back pain in the future.

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