One of the most important things you can do when you are dealing with uncertainty on any scale is to maintain your physical fitness. Our bodies are our mode of transport. Physical movement keeps the circulation going and lets the body know how much we are counting on it. In these unprecedented times of Coronavirus, we need our fitness routine more than ever. That said, a common step often skipped in our regime is this one, the final stretch.
Stretching is the way our bodies return to their pre-workout form, but better. Working our muscles tests their limits and helps us build and maintain healthy lean muscle tissue and strength. Under the demands of a proper workout, muscles become compressed and flushed with oxygenized and nutrient-dense blood. In straining them to become stronger, they now need to be restored.
What do you stretch? Some say the muscles you use. I say everything, all the majors, top to bottom. When we do a complete body stretch we are checking in on our whole physical well-being. A full body stretch can signal the need for alignment and we can also assess the health of our joints and our resultant posture. We can also see the muscle imbalances that may need work.
Stretching assures us of healthy flexibility and joints that can perform in a full range of motion. It keeps the body agile and at the ready to exhibit power. As older adults, power becomes even more important than strength. We need to be able to perform with speed as well as strength and together that equals power. Just as we gently prepare the body with a proper warm up for the muscles and joints, we also cool and lengthen those same components in gratitude.
That all may seem like a lot of work but it's more than worth the returns of good mobility, powerfull agility and a body we can enjoy and count on. Strength in times of uncertainty. We are all worth that much!
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