Why you should stretch more often than before and after exercise - especially nowadays
Writer: ELIZABETH HEATH | Outlet: The Washington Post
Stretching doesn’t get the respect it deserves. Most exercisers absent-mindedly engage in just a few minutes of it before or after a workout, which certainly feels good but isn’t enough to promote flexibility or any of stretching’s other benefits. According to experts, stretching should be approached not only as a preview or addendum to other physical activity, but also as an essential stand-alone workout.
And it’s especially important now. After months of quarantine inertia, stretching can be a low-impact, nonthreatening gateway to a more active lifestyle, either for those who have fallen out of a fitness routine or who are interested in starting one. For people working from home, it can relieve the discomfort of working from a kitchen table and chair in a makeshift home office. And for essential workers on the front lines of the pandemic, stretching can save tired backs and reduce discomfort and stress.