Importance of Stretching Before A Workout
Stretching means manipulating both your joints and muscles through movement to prepare them for exercise or recovery after your workout. A pre-workout stretch helps improve your muscles' range of motion to improve your ability to twist, bend, stride, and reach during your exercise. It is recommended to do either static stretching or dynamic stretching before your workout sessions at the gym.
The amazing thing about stretching is that you can do it anywhere and now with the MAXPRO you can now stretch deeper at the comfort of your home gym. Static stretching is one of the most common types of stretching. It is considered safe and effective for improving flexibility. When performing static stretching, you are required to hold a stretch in a challenging position for approximately 30 seconds. Some examples of static stretches include side bends, shoulder stretch, and hamstring stretch.
Dynamic stretching helps to warm up the body before your daily exercises. The stretch involves active movements where muscles and joints go through a range of full motions. These stretches help to keep the body in motion and stretch your hamstrings. Some examples of these movements include jump squats, lunge with a twist, and high kicks.
What Are the Advantages of Pre-Workout Stretching?
The Top 6 Benefits of Stretching Before Workout Are:
- Longer Workouts
Stretching helps loosen your tendons and muscles to relieve your muscles from fatigue. Body flexibility decreases as a person ages. Therefore, you need to warm up to “awaken” the dormant parts of your body, especially if you spend long hours sitting at a desk.
- Increases the Flow of Oxygen
Stretching before a workout increases the flow of oxygen to your muscles. Inadequate flow of oxygen may cause tightness, aches, pains, and tension as you workout. Consequently, you may experience problems in your back, knees, neck, hip, and back. A 15 minutes stretch can increase the flow of oxygen in your muscles and reduce pains and aches during the workout.
- May Help Prevent Injury
Stretching too much may tear or strain your muscles. However, stretching properly reduces the likelihood of injury, and it increases the range in which your muscle can move. Pre-workout stretching warms up your muscles, increases blood flow in them, and decreases any tightness that can cause tear or strain.
- More Energy
When muscles remain stagnant, the blood tends to accumulate in them, so you feel tired and lethargic. Movement helps to nourish muscles and improve concentration levels due to the blood flow to the brain. Thus, you get increased levels of energy.
- Improves Your Workout Performance
Strengthening and loosening your muscles before workouts boost your overall workout performance immensely. Generally, looser muscles need less energy to work, and a more flexible body will go further during your exercises. It is recommended to stretch before your workout if you want to improve your workout.
- Improves Posture
One of the key components of working out appropriately is using the right posture. This means moving in the right manner when running or squatting correctly. Stretching helps to improve your posture and maintain healthy poses during your workout.
Conclusion
Active and passive stretching can be really useful before or after exercising depending on your goals and the intent of the workout. There are studies for and against stretching but it's mostly dependent on individual goals and intent so experimentation is key!