Stretching is an exercise that enhances overall physical fitness and performance. We are not talking about the involuntary stretching that occurs to the body after sleep or long hours of immobility.
Instead, we refer to the deliberate stretching that athletes, sportspeople, trainers, and even physical therapists promote in their various disciplines.
According to wellness experts, this exercise is good for the body in numerous ways. For example, it boosts balance, range of motion, and flexibility in active sportspeople. It also goes a long way in strengthening muscles and ligaments, and the resulting flexibility progressively enhances performance in the average person’s everyday activities.
Nevertheless, why is stretching good for you beyond flexibility and motion? In this post, we shall examine why, and outline the health-related benefits of stretching, according to health experts and trainers.
Why is Stretching Good For You?
Stretching is good for you because it is in itself a form of physical exercise that can enhance physical fitness and performance. It is an activity that athletes, trainers, sportspeople, and even physical therapists promote in their various disciplines, and for good reason.
Stretching improves flexibility and joint range of motion (ROM), which can enhance physical performance and reduce the risk of injuries during exercise or while partaking in daily routines.
It also revitalizes blood circulation to vital organs, aiding in nutrient delivery and the removal of metabolic waste. Stretching is generally good for you because it contributes to the maintenance of a healthy body by enhancing posture, wakefulness, balance, and coordination.
Is Stretching Good for Your Body?
Ever wondered why athletes stretch while preparing for increased physical activity? Well, for sportspeople, fitness means more than the world to them. That is because it helps them enhance posture, and perform optimally in sporting events.
According to experts, however, flexibility, which is gained through stretching, is an important factor in achieving physical fitness. Stretching is also linked to stress and body ache relief, less muscle damage, and susceptibility to injuries. Peak performance in sports and our daily lives is also achieved by properly and progressively warming up through stretching.
People, therefore, engage in stretching for various reasons. Some do it through yoga to alleviate lower back pain, increase flexibility, muscle strength, and achieve inner peace. Others perform it to improve muscle tone, joint strength, and posture. However, stretching has more short and long-term benefits to it that we shall outline below.
Health-Related Benefits of Stretching
Stretching, being an essential yet overlooked component of fitness, offers the following health benefits, as supported by numerous studies.
Improved Cardiovascular Health
Doing regular stretching exercises, including static, PNF, dynamic stretching, as well as those incorporated into disciplines like yoga, can reduce blood pressure and heart rate. By doing so, your level of stress and muscular tension is reduced too. Moreover, stretching can also boost blood flow and circulation, which is essential in transporting oxygen and nutrient-rich blood to the body tissues.
Reduced Stress Levels
Folks suffering from chronic stress often experience anxiety, tension, and fatigue. The three are the body’s responses to stress. Regular stretching exercises have been linked to reduced mental tension, anxiety, and depression.
Reduced Pain, Discomfort, And Stiffness
Folks with lower back or neck pains are often diagnosed with severe muscle cramps and excessive muscle tension that increases discomfort in the body. However, engaging in regular static stretching can enhance motion, which relieves pain and muscle stiffness.
Increased Flexibility
Regular stretching has been shown to enhance flexibility, which is vital for numerous bodily functions. Flexibility is not only essential in performing everyday tasks but ensures you achieve your goals with relative ease.
Increased Range of Motion
Stretching can help enhance the unrestricted body movements around the joints, especially in the key mobile areas like the shoulders and hips. A joint’s ability to rotate or move its full range of motion is what offers your body freedom of movement. Regular stretching maintains and increases your range of motion. According to studies, dynamic, static stretching has been identified to be the most effective in enhancing your range of motion.
Improved Body Function
Incorporating regular flexibility training (including isostatic stretching) into your fitness routine makes it all-round, and can improve your body power, muscular strength, and agility. Since the human joints are mechanical vessels that perform repetitive movements, sitting or being immobile for long periods can tighten, contract, and make our muscles weak and supple. Proper stretching techniques, however, can enhance the body’s overall function by boosting its ability to cope with the mechanical stress imposed by movements.
Reduced Risk of Injury, Wear and Tear in The Joints
Experts assert that engaging in a high rate of activity without warm-up increases the risk of injury, muscle cramps, and spasms. As is the case with athletes and sportspeople, dynamic stretches are incorporated into the warm-up routine to enhance cardio and body temperature, and also prepare the body for the upcoming high-intensity performance. For that reason, stretching is thought to reduce the risk of injury by preventing cold muscle ligaments and tendons from over-straining, spraining, and possibly rupturing.
Further, when muscles on one side of the joint become weaker than the opposing ones, wear and tear are induced around the joint structure. Regular stretching, however, helps the muscles on either side of the joint to exert an equal measure of pull. This ensures the joint moves freely and optimally in all directions.
Risks Factors
As discussed herein, stretching can have long-lasting health-related benefits to the body. However, it may not always be safe. Therefore, check out the following risk factors before opting to engage in stretching:
- Stretching can make an existing injury more acute, hence, you should be careful to perform safe stretches and probably recommended by your physiotherapist or other health practioner.
- Folks with chronic medical conditions should consult specialists to tailor a stretching protocol that caters to their needs.
- Certain types of stretching such as isostatic are known to limit muscle growth in teens aged 18 and younger, and shouldn’t be incorporated into their fitness routines.
Safety Tips
Whether you are a pro or starting on stretching, here are a few standard safety tips to note:
Be careful not to overdo your stretches. Normal tension should only be applied until you feel slight discomfort, but no pain.
Don’t start your stretching sessions with cold muscles. Take up to 10 minutes to do a slight cardio and body warmup.
Don’t go overkill and bounce. Unlike the case with ballistic stretching, bouncing is dangerous and may work counter-intuitively towards your goals.
Final Thoughts on Why Is Stretching Good for You
Stretching is a physical exercise that enhances overall health and performance. Deliberate stretching is done to promote certain sports performances and therapies.
However, our bodies are naturally predisposed to stretch involuntarily as a way to restore proper function. Stretching has many health-related benefits, including increased flexibility, reduced risk of injuries, and increased range of motion; thus, it is highly recommended by physicians and trainers.
