Flexibility Improving Routine: 5 Workout Activities And Expert Tips!
Workout
Published on: 28-Mar-2024
10 min read
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Anushka Tripathi
Flexibility Improving Routine: 5 Workout Activities And Expert Tips!
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Flexibility, often overlooked in fitness routines, plays a crucial role in overall health and performance. Our bodies often become stiff and lose flexibility due to busy work schedules. Limited flexibility can restrict range of motion, hinder athletic performance, and even contribute to muscle soreness and injury. Therefore, it is important to incorporate various methods to increase flexibility routine.
This blog post is about the science of improving flexibility routine and how it affects our body's musculoskeletal system. We will investigate how specific stretching exercises can enhance its elasticity and range of motion.
Next, we will reveal five main workout activities that are made for improving flexibility. These exercises will follow the ideas of static stretching, dynamic stretching and active mobility drills - each one having its own goal in enhancing flexibility. We also give you professional suggestions to make sure your routine for flexibility brings maximum results while staying safe from harm. Let’s take a closer look at how to incorporate exercises to increase flexibility routine with this blog.
Table Of Contents
1. How Can You Improve Flexibility?
2. What Are 5 Activities That Improve Flexibility?
3. How Do You Create A Flexibility Routine?
4. What Is The Best Workout To Improve Flexibility?
5. Dietitian’s Recommendation
6. The Final Say
7. FAQs
8. References
How Can You Improve Flexibility?
Flexibility is the ability of muscles and other connective tissues to temporarily stretch and is essential to relieve muscle tension and pain and promote relaxation. If your body continues to hurt, you will not feel at ease! It also allows your muscles to move through their full range of motion (mobility), improving your aerobic fitness, strength and endurance for maximum benefit. Here are some simple methods to improve flexibility:
1. Make Stretching A Routine
Not everyone needs special training to improve flexibility. Some people may be surprised by the results of just a few minutes of stretching at the start of the day. After your workout, start stretching to relax your muscles or improve your range of motion.
There are various types of stretching to improve flexibility, including static stretching, dynamic stretching, and active isolation stretching and they are deemed as the best exercise to increase flexibility routine.
Also Read: Stretches Before Bed And Their Benefits
2. Practice Yoga
Undoubtedly, yoga is the indeed the best way to increase flexibility routine and can be done by anyone, from children to the elderly. You can try different yoga postures like Hatha Yoga or Surya Namaskar to get an all-encompassing flexibility benefit.
Yoga is the best form of exercise that can help you stay young, energetic, and keep your mind calm. This ultimately relaxes muscles that are important for body flexibility. Some of the yoga poses that should be in your flexibility improvement routine are child’s pose, downward facing dog, and doorway chest stretch.
3. Add Dance To Your Schedule
If you want to improve your flexibility, dancing comes first. Many dancers have incredibly flexible bodies and are incredibly energetic. Another benefit of dancing is that music improves your mood. One of the most popular dance forms for building flexibility is Zumba. This comes from the overall movement of the body, with shoulder sway and hip rotation along with changes in direction.
Also Read: 14 Zumba Dance Workout Benefits And Tips
4. Perform Pilates
Movements such as sawing, spine stretching, and neck tightening are considered excellent ways to increase flexibility. Pilates focuses primarily on the core but works every area, from the inner thighs and hamstrings to the upper back and neck. Paying special attention to your posture can also help prevent overstrain and muscle fatigue.
5. Massage For Reducing Tension
While it’s true that stretching and exercise can make your body more flexible, adding a relaxing massage routine can benefit your body. Massage helps to tighten muscles and tissues that limit movement in body parts and focuses on areas such as the calves, quadriceps, IT band, upper back, and lats.
6. Don’t Forget To Relax
Relaxing your muscles is vital for overall well-being. Stress can cause muscles to tense up, leading to discomfort and pain. Combat this by practicing relaxation techniques like deep breathing, which can help alleviate tension and promote muscle flexibility and relaxation.
7. Stay Hydrated
Another simple way to improve flexibility is to stay hydrated because water makes up most of your muscle mass. It’s important to drink water, especially during and after a hard workout, to help your muscles perform optimally. Plus, your body needs to be adequately hydrated to function properly. So, increase your daily water intake and make a proper hydration routine for optimum results.
What Are 5 Activities That Improve Flexibility?
The top 5 exercises to improve and increase flexibility routine are mentioned here:
1. Hamstring Stretch
Stretching your hamstrings is essential for maintaining flexibility and preventing injuries in your legs and lower back. This is one of the best exercises that you can perform before your bike ride or run.
How To Do Hamstring Stretch?
Sit on the floor with your legs stretched out in front of you.
Bend your right knee and place the sole of your right foot against your left inner thigh.
Keep your left leg straight and toes pointing up towards the ceiling.
Lean forward from your hips, reaching towards your left foot with your hands.
Hold the stretch for 20-30 seconds, feeling the stretch along the back of your left leg.
Switch legs and repeat the stretch on the other side.
2. Triceps Stretch
Stretching the triceps helps improve flexibility routine and range of motion in the arms, enhancing upper body mobility and reducing the risk of injury. After working out your arms, stretch them. Even if you are just moving boxes, stretch them afterwards. Just be sure to stretch twice a week as it improves flexibility and posture.
How To Perform Triceps Stretch?
To perform this stretch, you have two options: you can either sit or stand.
Begin by holding your hands over your head, shoulder-length apart.
Next, try to reach the middle of your back with one hand.
Using your other hand, grab your bent elbow and gently push your bent arm down to deepen the stretch.
Continue until your elbow is nearly at head level.
Remember to switch between arms to ensure equal stretching.
3. Rabbit Pose
The rabbit pose in yoga involves kneeling, reaching back to grasp the heels, and bending forward to touch the crown of the head to the floor, providing a deep stretch for the spine and shoulders. It is recommended that you do it after a long day’s work in the office.
How To Do Rabbit Pose?
Kneel on the yoga mat with your thighs perpendicular to the floor and the tops of your feet flat on the mat.
Place your hands on the back of your thighs, palms facing upward.
Inhale deeply and lift your hips, leaning your torso forward until your forehead touches or approaches the mat.
Reach your hands backward and grasp your heels, with your thumbs resting on the outside of your feet.
Exhale slowly as you draw your chin towards your chest, creating a gentle stretch along the spine.
Hold the pose for several breaths, maintaining a steady and comfortable position.
To release, gently release your heels, return your hands to the back of your thighs, and slowly roll your spine back up to a kneeling position.
4. Sitting Shoulder Stretch
The sitting shoulder stretch is a simple yoga pose that involves reaching one arm across the body and using the other hand to gently press the arm towards the chest, stretching the shoulder and upper back muscles effectively.
How To Perform Sitting Shoulder Stretch?
Sit on the ground with your butt and heels planted firmly.
Bring your hands together behind your head.
Squeeze your shoulder blades together and lower your clasped hands as far down to your buttocks as possible.
Hold this position for approximately 5 seconds.
Release your hands and repeat the above steps a dozen times.
5. Lunge Stretching
Lunge stretching exercises are done by stepping forward with one leg and keeping the other leg stretched out behind, lowering the body until both knees bend at 90-degree angles. This stretch focuses on hip flexors, quadriceps and hamstrings; it helps increase flexibility and movement in lower part of your body.
How To Do Lunge Stretching?
Start in a standing position with your feet hip-width apart.
Take a large step forward with your right foot, bending the knee to a 90-degree angle. Keep your left leg straight behind you with the knee off the ground.
Lower your hips toward the ground, feeling a stretch in the front of your left hip and thigh.
Place your hands on the ground on either side of your right foot for support.
Hold the stretch for 20-30 seconds, then switch legs and repeat on the other side.
For a deeper stretch, raise your arms overhead or twist your torso to the right, reaching your right arm toward the ceiling.
Remember to keep your upper body upright and your core engaged throughout the stretch.
How Do You Create A Flexibility Routine?
To create your flexibility exercises routine, you should follow some steps which are as follows:
Goal Setting |
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Application of the FITT Principles | Use the FITT (Frequency, Intensity, Timing, Type) principles when designing a flexibility program. Your flexibility exercise program should include several stretches that target all major joints, including the neck, shoulders, elbows, wrists, torso, hips, knees, and ankles. After choosing an exercise, follow the instructions:
|
Exercise Safely |
|
Flexibility Exercises to Avoid |
|
What Is The Best Workout To Improve Flexibility?
Here are some of the best workouts mentioned to increase flexibility routine that you must know about:
1. Prefer Dynamic Stretching Over Static Stretching
Whether lifting weights or running, dynamic stretching is a more beneficial warm-up than static stretching. Static stretching, such as touching your toes, can help you feel relaxed, but dynamic stretching prepares your body for the various movements that you will use in your upcoming workout.
An example of dynamic stretching for those planning to run is the knee-to-chest exercise. While standing, lift your knees toward your chest and then lower your legs to the floor. Grasp your shins and lift your knees so that your kneecaps touch your chest. Do 10 reps, alternating each leg. Hold on to a sturdy, stable object, such as a railing or chair, to make dynamic warm-ups easier.
2. Add Stretch-Bands To Your Daily Routine
Another exercise option is to add lightweight resistance bands to your workouts or stretching exercises. Resistance bands can increase mobility and stimulate dormant muscles. By activating the muscles in your body, these resistance bands help create tension by engaging major muscle groups. The more you stretch the band, the more resistance you put on your muscles.
There are different ways to deal with stretch marks. With each exercise, you will feel different parts of your body stretching.
Upper Body: If you hold the band with both hands and spread it out to the sides, you will exercise your shoulders, chest, back, and forearms at the same time.
Leg extensions: Lie on the floor, grab a band with both hands, wrap your feet around them, and alternately extend your legs toward the floor.
Leg Stretch: Alternatively, wrap a band around both feet and spread them out to the sides to activate all the muscles in your legs, hips, and major muscle groups.
For best results when using resistance bands, maintain good posture, move slowly, and maintain a steady, slow tension on the resistance band.
3. Try Using A Foam Roller
Using a foam roller on muscles is a self-myofascial release (SMR) technique and it helps improve flexibility, functionality, and performance while preventing injury. It can help remove lactic acid from your muscles, allowing them to recover faster after a workout.
This is a type of self-massage technique in which you place your body weight against an object and knead or “roll” your muscles to relieve stress. This method may help relieve muscle tension, pain, and inflammation and it also increases the range of motion in your joints. Targeted muscle groups may include the hamstrings, quadriceps, thighs, calves, back, or glutes.
The roller is placed under the target area and moved using one’s own body weight to gently massage the muscle, relieving the limitations of normal soft tissue extensibility. This makes your muscles more flexible.
Expert’s Advice
Maintaining a normal range of motion in your joints is an important part of your overall health. Good flexibility has many benefits, the most important of which is quality of life. Among other things, flexibility exercises can reduce stress on joints, reduce pain, and improve athletic performance.
Health Expert
Lavina Chauhan
The Final Say
To enhance everyday movements and avoid injuries such as back pain, it is vital to increase flexibility routine. However, this aspect often gets ignored in fitness routines. So, make use of easy techniques for boosting flexibility in your daily routine.
Aim to stretch at least once a day, gradually increasing frequency for better results. Tracking progress can keep you motivated, even if you can only spare 5 to 10 minutes for stretching sessions two to three times per week!
FAQs
1. What are the methods to improve flexibility?
These are the best improve on flexibility exercises that can perform:
Consider foam rolling
Perform dynamic stretching prior to activity
Practice static stretching after activity
Target your stretches to the areas that need it
2. Will starting an ‘improve flexibility program’ with my friends get me better results than solo routine?
Well, while doing an improve flexibility program with friends give you the motivation, the effectiveness depends on individual commitment and consistency rather than whether it's done with friends or solo.
3. What is the best yoga to improve flexibility?
Improve flexibility fast with mentioned yoga poses:
Eye of the Needle Pose (Sucirandhrasana)
Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana)
Crescent Lunge (Anjaneyasana)
Half Moon Pose (Ardha Chandrasana)
Garland Pose (Malasana)
References
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