In a study about sports injuries, 26 percent of the respondents believed that some of their pain came from not stretching enough or having enough time to recover from their physical activity. Stretching before a workout and stretching after a workout is a simple way to prevent injuries and more.
Do you want to learn more about the benefits of stretching before exercise and why you should never skip it? Keep reading these 5 reasons to learn more about stretching as part of your pre-workout routine.
1. Increase Flexibility & Range of Motion
One of the biggest reasons that many people stretch is because it helps increase their flexibility. This is especially important for people who require flexibility for the sports that they participate in. Stretching is an easy way to help different muscle groups in your body and help them go back to their natural states.
When you regularly stretch before your workouts, you will notice a huge difference in your daily workouts! Stretching makes it much easier to bend over, squat, and do other exercises.
Not only does stretching increase your flexibility, but it also improves your range of motion. If you do not stretch, your muscles are likely constricted and unable to be used at full capacity.
Stretching helps you utilize your muscles and improve your workout.
2. Reduce Muscle Soreness & Pain
Next, stretching before and after exercise is one of the easiest ways to reduce muscle soreness. Stretching can help you warm up before a big workout and can keep your muscles from getting tired and stiff.
Moving your body can help you remove lactic acid from your muscles, which causes soreness.
Stretching is also great for pain prevention. It can minimize tight muscles and can prevent the pain that comes with injuries to your muscle. For example, if you have a back injury after exercising, stretching can heal your injury, preventing you from feeling more back pain.
If you want to get back in action after a sports injury, stretching can help!
3. Prevents Injuries
If you want to prevent injuries when exercising, the best way to do this is by stretching. As was mentioned before, it helps you warm up, which makes it more difficult for you to strain your muscles or joints.
Stretching improves your range of motion. When you cannot fully use your muscles, you may find that you cannot do your regular exercises. When you stretch before and after exercise, your muscles will be elongated.
This means that when you exercise, your muscles will not feel too much exertion or force. Without stretching and improving your flexibility, exercise will put more physical stress on your body and increase the likelihood of getting injured.
4. Provides Mental Clarity & Reduces Tension
One benefit of stretching is that it can help improve your mental clarity. Essentially, it helps establish a stronger connection between your mind and your body. By stretching, you relax, lessen your stress, and reduce the tension in your body.
Stretching can also protect you if you allow your mind and body to harmonize. By taking deep breaths and feeling each different muscle group in your body, you can find areas of your body that need extra attention or need more care.
For example, if you notice that your ankles are feeling extra fragile, you may not want to do an activity that puts them at risk. Stretching allows you to listen to your body, develop body awareness and understanding, and find exercises that will help you improve.
Stretching can even help release endorphins into your body. This is a chemical released into your body and makes you feel good, especially when you exercise. Not only do endorphins make you feel happier, but they can also help lower your perception of pain.
5. Helps Prepare Your Body for Exercise
Finally, stretching can help prepare your body for exercise. As a warmup, it signals your muscle and tells them that they are about to be used. This can help you feel more prepared, regardless of what exercise you are going to do.
It also helps improve your coordination. Stretching makes it easier to move your muscles and allows you to move more freely. By stretching before you exercise, your body will be better equipped to do any exercise.
Another way that stretching helps you prepare your body for exercise is to promote better circulation throughout your body. When you have improved circulation, your body receives blood more efficiently.
This means that your muscles will be able to receive oxygenated blood and that exercise will not be as tiring for you as it may have been without stretching first. Make sure you are properly prepared to exercise by stretching first.
Learn More About Stretching Before Exercise Today
Stretching before exercise and after exercise is one of the best things you can do. Not only does it prevent you from getting injured and being sore, but it can also prepare your body for exercise, increase your flexibility, and can even provide mental clarity as you are working out.
By learning more about stretching and the types of stretches for different muscle groups, you can experience each of these benefits.
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