Since most aerobic and strength training programs cause your muscles to contract and flex, to provide an equal balance, you must pay attention to lengthening and stretching those muscles after your workout.
Regular stretching will help you obtain the following benefits:
&bull Increased flexibility and better range of motion of joints: Tasks such as lifting packages, bending to tie your shoes or hurrying to catch a bus become easier and less tiring.
&bull Improved circulation: Stretching increases blood flow to your muscles. If you have a muscle injury improved circulation can help shorten the recovery time.
&bull Better posture: Frequent stretching helps keep your muscles from getting tight and allows you to maintain proper posture. Good posture is essential for minimizing aches and pains.
&bull Enhanced coordination: Coordination and balance helps keep you mobile and less prone to injury from falls especially as you age.
Stretching basics:
&bull Warm up first: Warm up by walking while gently pumping your arms or do a favorite exercise at low intensity for five minutes. If you stretch cold muscles your risk of injury increases.
&bull Hold each stretch at least 30 seconds.
&bull Do not bounce: Bouncing as you stretch can cause small tears in the muscle. The scar tissue left behind as the muscle heals can tighten and make you even less flexible and more prone to pain.
&bull Focus on pain-free stretching: Pain is a warning sign. If you feel pain as you stretch, back off to the point where you do not feel pain, then hold the stretch.
&bull Relax and breathe freely
&bull Stretch both sides
&bull Stretch lightly after your warm-up of walking gently.
&bull Stretch more thoroughly after your workout
Stretch as often as you exercise. A slower pace of exercising and then a cool down of stretches after the workout is a great way to cool down.
If you only have time to stretch once during the exercise routine, do the stretching after the workout.
Source: Mayo Clinic (2005)
Disclaimer: This article is not meant to diagnose, treat or cure any kind of a health problem. Always consult with your health care provider about any kind of a health problem and especially before beginning an exercise program.
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By: Connie Limon -
Personal Fitness Training School
It may seem unlikely to you that golf fitness training can help up your golf statistics 100 percent, but it is entirely possible. Like singing, playing the piano or basketball, golf is a skill that can be improved upon. With proper fitness, training, guidance and practice, you can absolutely improve your game.
Many people think of golfing as a leisure time activity outside of professional golf, but for amateur golfers the relevance of whether fitness and golf have any relation to one another seems unimportant. After all, golfing is a popular activity among the retirement crowd, so how fit do you need to be to play golf well if those much older than you can do it? The truth is that a good number of those older folks playing golf may have better golf stats than you because they have fitness behind their golf swings and precision line drives.
It may be that you play golf in your leisure time for fun and relaxation, but does that mean you cannot get the most out of the time you spend golfing? It takes balance, stamina, strength, concentration, and a good understanding about the mechanics of golf to play it very well. The more fit your body is the better your balance, stamina, and strength is. Fitness training can help you achieve better fitness more completely and in less time than exercising to become more fit on your own. Combine the fitness and golf training offered by professional golf fitness trainers and you have a winning combination that can help you up your golf stats by as much as a 100 percent.
Working with a golf fitness trainer you will learn what foods to eat to power your body up for spot on golf swings and impressive yardage out of your drives. You will be learning about and doing exercises that are geared towards increasing the lining up and power of your golf swings and drive yardages. You can also increase your golf stats a 100% by working with a golf fitness trainer.
You may be performing techniques improperly and poor form is hampering your game, and it is next to impossible to always see where you are going wrong unless you videotape yourself. Even then you may need an expert to evaluate your skills and pinpoint trouble areas. A golf fitness trainer can bring to your attention when you are performing a technique wrong and demonstrate how to properly perform various golfing techniques so that your game will improve.
Many of the muscles you use to golf with are muscles that need to be strong, fit, and healthy to power the functions of body organs like the heart, lungs, kidneys, liver and central nervous and immune systems in the body as well as to provide the power to maintain balance and aid in motion. Starting to work with a golf fitness trainer now and undergoing a full golf fitness training program will build the strength, fitness, and health of your muscles and your entire body so that you will be enjoying better golf playing, health and living well into your retirement years.
Golf fitness training is even suggested for older or the retired who want to spend more time playing golf. Older golf players can increase their golf skills and also strengthen their bodies balancing muscles to prevent falls. Golf fitness training increases muscle and joint flexibility which we all need regardless of our age so we can move with ease and not sprain and strain muscles and joints.
You can up your golf stats and your stats for living longer and healthier 100% by working with a golf fitness trainer. Schedule a consultation to learn more about golf fitness training and how working with a golf fitness trainer can help you up your stats soon.
Both Connie Limon & are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.