A Beginner’s Friendly Guide to Get Started
Hello fitness lovers! Whether it’s your first time putting on sneakers, or the thousandth time increasing your performance by refining your current routines, stretching is essential in order to feel good, move well, and alleviate stiffness. Stretching is much more than just touching your toes, it can improve our range of motion/flexibility, reduce our chances of injury, and make our body feel more alive! Okay, grab a mat and let’s go over some stretching exercises for the beginners out there. Once you try these stretches, you will feel amazing!
Why Stretching is Important
Before we jump in to the fun stuff, let’s talk about why stretching is important. You may be thinking, “Is it really that important?” It really is!! Stretching is an excellent way to increase your range of motion/flexibility. Yes, it feels great, however, stretching can assist in relieving muscle tension, promote blood circulation, and prepare our body for physical activity. Sitting at a desk all day? Stretching can alleviate tense knots in our neck and shoulders.
A Little Introduction
- Warm-Up: Before you begin to baby stretch, it is always wise to get the blood flowing a little for a few minutes. Try a brisk walk or some light jumping jacks.
- Be gentle: Do not push yourself if your body is saying it does not feel good. Stretching should feel good and should not be something you push through. If it hurts, back off!
- Breathe: Breathe deeply and remember to relax! Breathe in as you stretch and breathe out as you hold the stretch. This will help you really breathe through the tension.
- Consistency: Make stretching a habit, and if you can, do it daily. After a couple of weeks, you won’t believe the difference in your body. If you can get into the habit of doing it every day for just a few minutes, the improvement you will see is quite remarkable.
Basic Stretching Exercises for Starter Stretching
Now that you are warmed up, let’s look at some basic beginners stretching exercises you can easily get started with. You can try this at home in your living room, in the gym, or if you’re feeling bold/creative, at your desk!
1. Neck Stretch
- Begin seated or standing up tall.
- Slowly move your head, tilting it to the side, while bringing your ear to your shoulder.
- Hold for 15-30 seconds, noticing the stretch in the opposite side of your neck.
- Switch sides and repeat.
2. Shoulder Stretch
- Bring your right arm across your body, straight out in front of you.
- Place your left hand gently on your right arm and slowly press it closer to your body.
- Hold for 15-30 seconds, and switch arms.
3. Chest Opener
- In seated or standing position, gently interlace your fingers behind your back.
- While keeping your arms straight, slightly lift them overhead, continuing to open your chest.
- Gently take a breath in, and hold for 15-30 seconds.
4. Cat-Cow Stretch
- Get down on your hands and knees with an arch on your back looking toward the ceiling.
- Gently breath in as you look toward the sky (Cow).
- Then round your back to the sky, and pull your chin into your chest, breathing out (Cat).
- Repeat this flow for a count of 5 repetitions.
5. Seated Forward Bend
- Sit with legs out in front of you.
- Inhale and raise your arms overhead. Exhale and bend forward, hinging at your hips.
- Try to hold your feet or shin, and let your head/ neck relax.
- Hold for 15-30 seconds.
6. Butterfly Pose
- Sit up tall, with the soles of your feet together.
- Let your knees drop out to the sides, gently pressing down with your elbows for a deeper stretch.
- Hold for 15-30 seconds, breathing deep and slow.
7. Standing Quad Stretch
- Stand next to a wall or chair for support.
- Grab your right ankle and pull towards your buttock.
- You want to hold your knees together, hold for 15-30 seconds and then switch sides.
Making Stretching a Habit
It can be very simple to add these stretches into your daily routine! You might choose to do these in the mornings to wake up your body, take breaks at work to do them, or add these stretches to your nightly routine as a way to wind down. The best part is, stretching typically does not take too long, so you can usually feel the effects pretty quickly.
To Wrap This Up
So, we made it to the end of this friendly guide to stretching exercises for beginners! I’d like to encourage you to try some of these stretches and see how you feel. You may just become someone who enjoys doing their daily stretches (can you imagine?). It is funny but better flexibility and wellness typically starts with just a few minutes a day!
Happy stretching, friend! Here’s to feeling good and being limber. Until next time!
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