Five Key Stretches

Most of us stretch every day, be this in a purposeful and organised fashion or in a more instinctive, spontaneous way. I’ve touched on stretching and the importance of (or not) doing so here in the past. Now that you know that stretching can be of benefit, I’ll discuss how to get the most bang for your £ from doing it.

All but the most hypermobile (genetically super-bendy) of us will probably benefit from performing stretches. Stretching is very relevant if

you have a problem area that is related to or caused by stiffness and a lack of movement at a joint, muscle or tendon.

Stretching is also relevant simply if you

want to or need to be more flexible,

e.g. the gymnast who needs to be able to do a backwards walk over and, closer to home, the person who would like to regain the ability to tie their shoelaces, crouch down or reach an overhead cupboard more and be able to do so more comfortably and easily. Stretching can also – not always but often –

help settle niggles and can simply help to make your physical body a little more comfortable to be in.

Our ‘stretchability’ is based on numerous factors, of which our genes are one…

Our inherent flexibility sits on a spectrum with the naturally strong & stiff types at one end and the naturally bendy & weak at the other.

As with all spectrums, most values – values being people – fall somewhere in between the two extremes. You can greatly influence your position on the spectrum by making efforts to get stronger or more flexible but you will always be working with your underlying physiological characteristics. Other factors include age, gender (women tend to be a little more flexible than men) lifestyle, history and previous or current injuries.

Which Stretches are most beneficial?

The perfect cluster of stretches for you will likely be slightly different to my perfect cluster, and to the next persons cluster. BUT:

there are a few key stretches which most of us will benefit from.

I’ve picked five. Why these five? Because together they target a wide range of muscles and a lot of the ones that have a tendency to become stiff and restricted in us humans. This happens for a few reasons, including a too sedentary lifestyle and our daily life no longer involving some of the movements that our bodies are designed to do. You can, if you like, pick the stretches that feel most relevant, or just have a go at all of them.

What about Pilates and Yoga?

We’ll all be amenable to fitting stretching into our days in different ways. If you like the quick-fix hit of a handful of stretches done at home then the suggestions in this article could work well for you. If you’re someone who is up for doing an exercise class then both Pilates and Yoga offer myriad stretching opportunities. I run a Pilates class online twice weekly and there’s an element of stretching built into just about every exercise that we do. Yoga is the classic stretching discipline and again there are plenty of classes and teachers out there, both face-to-face and online.

Should stretching hurt?

You’re aiming more for mild discomfort than pain. Realistically if you want to make a structure more stretchy than it currently is, you’ll need to put a bit of effort in and tolerate a little discomfort. You’ll know if you’ve pushed a stretch too far because either your body will complain more and more until it ‘kicks you out’ of the stretch, or you’ll know about it for a good few days afterwards! I suggest not making the stretch too uncomfortable to start with and see how your body responds afterwards. Definitely don’t push into anything that you know is a warning sign for you of a niggle or a problem.

How should I stretch?

A mixture of DYNAMIC (gently bouncing) and STATIC (keeping still) stretching is the evidenced way to go. I really like and have found benefit from the following format:

Gently BOUNCE in and out of a stretch 10 times and then…

HOLD the stretch for 15 seconds. Then…

Gently BOUNCE in and out of a stretch 10 times again and then…

HOLD the stretch for 30 seconds. Then…

Gently BOUNCE in and out of a stretch 10 times once more and then…

HOLD the stretch for one minute. Finish.

If you don’t have (or won’t make?) time to do this then a 30-60 second stretch is still of benefit. If you have time do have a go at the suggested ‘bounce-hold’ format though, the combination of both dynamic and static stretching AND the length of hold time will make a noticeable difference if you do the stretch once or twice daily for a couple of weeks. Go on, take the bait…

The Stretches

The ‘back line’ stretch

I often call this – and you may know it as – the hamstring stretch but it does so much more than just stretch the back of your thigh. It can effectively stretch all the way through your neck and back, down the whole back of your leg and into your foot. There are a few ways you can do this stretch – see the pictures below. Keep the leg that you’re aiming to stretch as straight as you can at the knee, pull your toes up toward you and then lean forward from the hips as if you were taking your bellybutton towards your thigh and keeping your back fairly straight. Find a stretch somewhere down the back of your leg and go…

The Back Extension Stretch

This stretches our back into the opposite position to the one that many of us spend much of our day in; bent forward, sitting or hunched over. Give your bent back and nervous system a break and EXTEND. Prop yourself up on your elbows or at a comfortable propped height for you, breathe out, relax your back and bottom and find and feel the stretch in your upper, mid and/or lower back…

The Shoulder & Chest Stretch

Another stretch that attends to our often flexed forward posture, this time focusing on our front. Keep your back straight, place your hands behind you with fingers pointing away from you and attempt to squeeze your elbows towards each other. If you can get your elbows to touch you’re a contortionist at the extreme ‘bendy & weak’ end of that spectrum but even if you’re nowhere near you should feel a good stretch across your chest and front of shoulders.

Twist Stretch

This can effectively stretch any and all from your hip, up through your ribs, chest, back, shoulders, arms and neck – how to kill so many birds with one stone! Lie on your side as shown and, keeping your knees together and them resting on the floor, rotate through your upper body to take your top arm up and over and stretch towards the floor behind you…

Lunge Stretch

You’ve stretched the back line (see above) so let’s finish with the front line. With knees hip width apart and your hips facing squarely forward, squeeze you bottom on your backward leg side to drift this hip forward and upward – you’re looking for a stretch sensation down the front of your hip and thigh. Keep your upper body nice and upright and if you’re not comfortable on your knees you can do this in standing, all points are the same. There are some great ways that you can increase this stretch – drop me a line if you’d like to know them!

Happy Stretching!