I remember way back in my school gym class, we wouldn’t start any form of physical activity unless we’ve finished the routine stretching for at least 10 minutes. My teacher would always emphasize its importance; telling us that it will help us to not get injured while playing. But for me, it was a time to poke fun at my classmate’s awkward faces and posture while stretching (good old memories!). To be honest stretching has never been a very strong point of mine. It’s not something I ever really have had the patience for. And I’ve often wondered if this has contributed to my high injury rate.
So when I came across an article mentioning a study conducted by the Center of Disease Control and Prevention on the benefits of stretching, I was surprised to discover that the study concluded that stretching doesn’t help prevent injury.
However, the study did mention many other benefits an individual can gain from stretching. This is especially significant to people engaging in sports and other forms of physical activities such as martial arts. The following sections mention one of the said benefits detailed on that article posted on yahoo.com.
The main reason why people stretch outside of believing in the myth that it decreases the likelihood of injury is that it can help to ease the pain and soreness that comes after vigorous physical activity. A marathon, too much swimming, too much dancing, a new exercise routine-these are all things that can put undue stress on our muscles and tendons and luckily, stretching can help to ease the pain that this extra stress can bring.
If you could use some more energy, stretching can definitely help you in that department as well. When you stretch the different muscle groups in the body, you benefit by getting increased blood circulation and increased blood circulation means more energy for you. Surely, you could benefit from having a bit more ‘mojo’ in the morning; there is a reason why experts recommend that you exercise in the morning rather than at night and that is the reason why.
