Tammara stretching a tennis tournament participant |
There are exceptions to almost any rule, but in general males tends to be less flexible than females. Well, at least their bodies tend to be. Some of the reasons are scientific, such as the structure of the body and hormones as stated by many studies including a study published in the Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research 2010. Other reasons are more anecdotal. Most men that I have worked with, including many professional athletes, admit that they do not stretch as much as they know they should. Also, many more women than men enjoy types of exercise regiments that incorporate stretching such as yoga. What ever the reasons, we need to loosen up our men!
Flexibility. It’s a wonderful word. The opposite would be rigidity and most of us aren’t fans of that. I’m not only referring to muscles, but considering we are a massage establishment, the focus of this blog will be on muscle flexibility.
Marsha’s Bio |
So, what does a regular flexibility routine look like? Here are some tips that have been shown to make a positive difference:
- Always stretch after a work out of any kind.
- Stretch preferably everyday, but at least 4 times/week.
- Stretch to the point of feeling the stretch, not feeling pain.
- Hold the stretch for at least 30 seconds.
- Do not bounce stretch. Static stretching is safer
- Stretch each major muscle, don’t skip any!
- Never stretch “cold” muscles. Always be warmed up.
View from massage rooms |