Flexibility in your body is a key component to overall health and wellbeing for all of us, ensuring a good level of mobility and a strong body. Several factors can affect our flexibility, the most important being:
- Age: As we age, our muscles and joints become tighter and stiffer, reducing flexibility. This can accelerate if you continue an inactive lifestyle as you age.
- Work & Daily Activity: People who sit for long periods for work, such as office workers or drivers, are more likely to suffer from inflexibility. Regular stretching or exercises like yoga and pilates help improve flexibility.
- Genetics: Some people are more flexible than others, which could be due to bone structure and the tightness of tendons and muscles. However, anyone can improve their flexibility!
The Importance of Flexibility
Flexibility is important for many physical benefits and positively impacts your overall wellbeing. Stretching to improve flexibility is a great place to start, and numerous options exist for all muscle groups. Increased flexibility can help with:
Better Posture and Balance
Flexibility in your muscles will assist with proper alignment of the body; I’m proving you improve and balance while sitting and standing.
Less Pain
If your balance and posture are good, you won’t experience the pain that can often come when your body is out of alignment. Flexibility can also help with muscles lengthening and opening, resulting in looser muscles and less muscle aches and tension.
Improved Physical Performance
Flexibility increases muscle blood flow and helps the muscles work much more effectively, contributing to overall performance improvements, particularly when playing sports.
Fewer Injuries
Good flexibility reduces any possible muscle imbalances in your body, which may reduce the chance of sustaining an injury during physical activity.
A Positive Mind
Working on your flexibility using stretches that open the body brings about feelings of relaxation and calm.
Improve Flexibility with Physiotherapy
Regular stretching doesn’t always have the desired results you are after, which may be due to an underlying issue that is difficult to identify. In these instances, physiotherapy advice or treatment can benefit. Physios can provide massaging techniques and other movements to address any problems.
Regardless of your situation, it is important to remember that everyone’s body is different, and to work on your stretching and flexibility at an optimal level is best done with the guidance of a physiotherapist who can tailor a regime for you.
The team of physios at Melbourne Sports Physiotherapy fully understands the effects of various stretches, and with their knowledge and monitoring, you will feel amazingly flexible very soon! Some basic tips to keep in mind when working on your level of flexibility are:
Pre-workout Dynamic Stretching
Physiotherapists highly recommend dynamic stretching before beginning your main workout or sport. These include push-ups, leg swings, and jumping jacks, which all reduce stiffness in your muscles and activate them, ready to take on the following harder impact.
Static Stretching for Cool-downs
After exercising, stretching is important as it helps loosen the muscles that were tightening during the high impact. Holding stretching positions for long durations is the best way to do this.
Focus on Flexibility
There isn’t any clinical proof that stretching increases the length of muscles, so keep your focus on improving their flexibility. Physiotherapy exercises help increase ‘neural mobility’, which helps your muscles work together and improve endurance. Improving neural mobility allows the muscles to tolerate a greater strain.
Keep on Moving
If you are unable to complete specific exercises, at least keep moving. Muscles need regular physical activity to improve their tolerance, which can be done with a simple walk, jog, or light activity such as gentle yoga or a massage. These activities release tension in the body and help create a holistic approach to your health and wellbeing.
Physiotherapy treatments are designed to complement your regular activities, so incorporate some physio into your routine when you need to.
Breathe and Stay Hydrated
Breathing exercises are also important to overall wellness but can easily help soothe some of the aches in your body. If you have any pain in your back or your head is starting to hurt, pause, take a deep breath, and let it out slowly. Do a few of these, and your muscles will begin to relax.
Drinking plenty of water is also essential for your body. It is refreshing and contributes enormously to our overall health.
Adjusting your daily routine to include a few tips and adding some physio treatment will likely impact your flexibility and wellbeing. For more information or professional advice for a healthier and more comfortable lifestyle, give the team at Melbourne Sports Physiotherapy in St Kilda, Blackburn, or Essendon a call or book an appointment online.
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