Stretching helps your body loosen up and relax, and gets the oxygen flowing through your blood and to your muscles. A lot of great tutorials and books are out there on the subject of stretching, so you shouldn’t have any trouble finding new movements. Just be careful that you stretch safely at a level that’s healthy for your body! Several years ago, I once strained a muscle from stretching too rigorously — and after that I learned my lesson. Stretching should feel good, not hurt. So with that in mind, here are some basic rules for stretching:
Listen to your body. Where are you most tense? Stretch there first.
Go into the stretch gently and slowly, and stop when you feel tension. If it hurts, you might be going too far.
Stretch your whole body. It’s all connected. Stretch your neck, your back, move your hands, move your individual fingers. Do some arm rotations and reach for the sky. Do back bends and reach for your ankles. Moving while stretching will help your body stay fluid and coordinated.
Take regular rest breaks from your work and stretch briefly each time. Many ergonomists and physical therapists recommend a two minute stretch break every twenty minutes.
Take microbreaks — every few minutes, stop typing and lift your hands away from the keyboard for about 10 seconds. Lift your eyes from the computer screen and let them wander.
Breathe while you stretch!
Try yoga, dance or martial arts to move your body in new, graceful ways.
Check your local bookstore or library for books on stretching techniques. I’ve had luck with some of the techniques in Peter Escogue’s book Pain Free At the PC. They’re really basic and anyone can do them. He also offers a lot of restful, passive stretches that let you lie around and tune your mind out while stretching.
Use visual images to help your body — breathe in to the stretch and imagine that the oxygen is targeting the muscles most in pain.
Spend 10 minutes stretching first thing in the morning to wake up, instead of drinking coffee. Stretch before bed, to help you sleep soundly.
Bonus tip — # 11: Enjoy how your body feels when you stretch
Ten Tips for Safe Stretching
Tuesday, February 12, 2008 17:16Stretching helps your body loosen up and relax, and gets the oxygen flowing through your blood and to your muscles. A lot of great tutorials and books are out there on the subject of stretching, so you shouldn’t have any trouble finding new movements. Just be careful that you stretch safely at a level that’s healthy for your body! Several years ago, I once strained a muscle from stretching too rigorously — and after that I learned my lesson. Stretching should feel good, not hurt. So with that in mind, here are some basic rules for stretching:
Bonus tip — # 11: Enjoy how your body feels when you stretch
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One Response to “Ten Tips for Safe Stretching”
Ten Tips for Safe Stretching : Anxiety-Stress says:
February 12th, 2008 at 5:27 pm
[...] Original post by Amy [...]
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