Boss
says, "if you don’t stretch your muscles, you
are stretching your luck. Stretch or stretcher the choice
is yours."
Stretching is one of the most essential exercises to
increase flexibility and reduce injuries. Stretching can
be a complimentary exercise before and after aerobic
exercise or can be done isolatedly. There are various
types of stretching exercises.
Static stretching and Dynamic stretching.
In Static Stretches a muscle is slowly stretched and held
in the lengthened position for a period of time. Each
specific stretch position is held for 10 to 30 seconds.
During this one focuses on the muscle being stretched.
The feeling of the slight tension in the stretching
muscle should slowly subside. Then one stretches a bit
further until the mild tension is felt again. There
should be never any pain.
In Dynamic Stretching, the muscles are stretched, while
in motion. Dynamic stretch is a controlled form of
rehearsal of the specific movements, which are to follow
in a work out or in a sporting activity. Dynamic
stretches are performed after static stretches. For e.g.
a person before playing tennis will do warm up, static
stretches and then dynamic stretches before starting the
game. The Dynamic stretches will include slow forehand
and backhand movements and overhead movements, similar to
what is to follow.
Following are set of stretching exercises.
Ideally, one must follow a sequence of stretching
exercises, so that, all the muscles are stretched without
missing any. STRETCHING
EXERCISES
Calf stretch: To stretch your left calf take your
right foot forward and lean forward. Both feet pointing
straight ahead bend your right knee and feel the stretch
in your left calf. Keep your left heel touching the
ground all the time.
Shin stretch (toe
drag): To stretch the front muscles of the left leg, step
forward with your right leg, keep your right knee flexed.
Rest the toes of your left foot on the ground and feel
the stretch in the front muscles of your left leg as you
gently drag your toes ahead.
Hamstring stretch:
Sit on the ground with your knees straight, bend forward
and try to touch your toes without bending your knees.
Alternative method is standing with your legs crossed
bend forward and try touching your toes. Do not make any
jerking movements and stop if it hurts.
Hamstring
stretch can also be performed standing and bending
forward.
Groin stretch: Sit
on the ground and do a Namaste with your feet. Gradually
bring this namaste closer to you. You could stretch your
adductors by performing a side lunge as shown in the
figure.
Quadriceps stretch:
To stretch your left quadriceps, stand erect, grab your
left foot and bring it up behind your buttock. This is
the stork position, which stretches the front of your
thigh.
Gluteal stretch or
buttock stretch: To stretch your left buttock standing
erect grab your left knee with your left hand and try to
bring the knee close to your abdomen as you flex your
hip.
Lower back side bends:
To stretch the sides the lower spine is bent sideways and
lateral flexion is achieved. Standing erect with arms by
your sides bend sideways to your left till your left hand
goes beyond your knee.
Spinal rotations:
To achieve rotational flexibility stand erect, raise both
your arms outwards till they are level with your
shoulders. Now turn your body and try to look behind you.
Abdominal stretch:
Kneel down and rest your buttocks on your heels and lean
your body backward to feel a stretch in the abdomen. With
practice you could fully stretch your abdominal muscles
by touching your back and shoulders to the ground.
Upper back: To
stretch the upper back hug yourself tightly by crossing
your arms in front of you and holding your upper torso.
Now bend your head downwards and feel the upper back
stretch.
Pectoral stretch:
Clasp your hands behind your back. Now try to take them
as far behind as possible. This enables you to stretch
your chest muscles.
Triceps stretch:
First bend your elbow fully. Now raise your arm up till
it almost touches your ear. With your other hand grab the
elbow and pull it backwards.
Total upper extremity
stretch: Intertwine your fingers of both hands.
Stretch your hands forwards. Now raise your hands in
front of you as high as possible. You must feel the
stretch in your forearms, arms, shoulders and upper back
as you slowly raise both your upper extremities up.
Neck: The neck is
stretched in three movements. First is the flexion and
extension movement where you look up and then gradually
tilt your head downwards. Turning the head to either side
performs side turns. Trying to touch your ear to the
shoulders on either side performs side tilts.
PRECAUTIONS
At no point in stretching, there should be any pain.
We must halt the movement if any uncomfortable sensation
is felt. If stretches are accompanied by music, make sure
that there is no rhythm to the music. There are instances
where one gets carried away by the rhythm and jerks are
applied while stretching which result in muscle strains
and other injuries. Always warm up before stretching.
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