113/365 Stretch while you Watch

Friends and Fitness Enthusiasts,

After a long hard day, sometimes it's nice to plop down in front of the television and enjoy your favorite programs or whatever is on. What I find to be even nicer is stretching while watching TV.

Ideally, we are supposed to stretch every muscle group 4 times for 15-30 seconds. One of my teachers calculated this out; you would have to stretch for 150 minutes. That seems like an incredibly long time. However, if you like watching movies or maybe Glee and something afterwards, 2.5 hours can go by really quickly. Why not be kind to your body and stretch while you watch instead of just sitting there?

Everyone can benefit from stretching. By stretching, you increase your range of motion so that you can move farther without injury. I have found flexibility to be important in the daily activities of my life as well as a way to reduce cramping in muscles. Different amounts of flexibility are needed depending on the sport you're playing. A caveat: if you are going for strength, stretching can actually attenuate muscular performance. This means you probably shouldn't stretch right before you do any power lifting.

There are a couple ways to stretch: passive, static, PNF, and ballistic. Passive is done when you have a partner or object to stretch your muscle for you. Static is when you hold your body in a stretched position and slowly increase the intensity every 6 seconds. PNF is where you contract the muscle you're stretching then stretch it as you release the contraction. Ballistic is when you stretch with a bouncing movement. Do not do this; you're more likely to injure yourself doing ballistic stretches.

Next time you turn on the tube, get on the floor, and stretch your body out. You will feel better than if you simply sit on the couch.

In health,

Lauren