Is Touching Your Toes a Stretch? Try Flexibility Training 101

Written by Andrea Metcalf: Orginialy for FitStudio

You can bend over and reach for your toes all you want. But until you stretch and strengthen the muscles involved in this movement, you may never be able to touch your toes!

How many people do you know who’ve said to you, “I’m just not flexible”? But the fact is, everyone can improve in this area. Flexibility is the range of motion around a joint: a knee, a shoulder, a hip, a neck. This range of motion is determined by the strength of the muscles surrounding the joint.

You can increase your flexibility in three ways:

1. Stretching
2. Strengthening
3. Circulating (increasing the blood flow in your muscles).

Stretching

In stretching, we use movement to increase the length of a muscle surrounding a joint. There are two types of stretching: dynamic and static.

Dynamic. When you engage in dynamic stretching, you move through a range of motion. For example, you might swing a leg front to back to stretch the hamstring. This is a great warm-up activity, and it helps reduce your risk of injury.

Static. This form of stretching involves maintaining a particular position for a period of time. For example, you might place your foot on a block and lean forward, stretching the rear leg and hold that position. This type of stretching is more suitable for cooling down following a workout.

Strengthening

When one muscle group grows stronger than an opposing muscle group near a joint, flexibility declines. For example, you might find it difficult to touch your toes if your hip flexors (in the front of your body) are stronger than your glutes and hamstrings (in the back). When a muscle imbalance occurs, the weaker muscles shorten to keep a joint in a fixed position. The solution is to add strength to those muscles.

Circulating

When the blood flow to a muscle increases, that blood delivers nutrients, gets rid of waste products and promotes healing and growth. Massage and acupuncture are great ways to increase blood flow to your muscles. You might also consider investing in a foam roller. You can do a variety of exercises with this simple piece of equipment.

For more information on increasing your flexibility, consult my book Naked Fitness. This book presents a new approach to using stretches and exercises to improve your health, boost your fitness and lose weight.

The Maintain-Your-Weight Campaign

Written by Andrea Metcalf

It’s the season for comfort food. And we all know that too much comfort food can bring on uncomfortable weight-gain. It can happen easier than you think. In the 10 weeks leading up to the New Year, eating as few as 250 additional calories daily (that could be one cocktail!) can equate to five pounds of unwanted fat. If you consider the added stress of shopping and pushing aside your exercise routine for quality family time, the damage can be even greater.

In spite of the odds, it’s still possible to keep the scale from ticking upwards. Follow our three-step plan to stay ahead of the eight ball when the New Year’s ball drops.

Just move. Many people believe that they should skip a workout if they can’t do a full 45 minutes in one fell swoop. That’s not the case — you can still stay active. Walk at every opportunity. Park further away from the entrance to the store or work; take the stairs instead of the elevator; do a mini stroll after each meal. The point is to just stay on your feet. Wear apedometer, and aim to increase your steps taken each day.

Eat consciously. We’re not saying you can’t enjoy a slice of pecan pie — just be smart about it. Keep portions small when you indulge, or split it with a family member. Choose a glass of wine or champagne instead of a sugary mixed cocktail. Go without gravy. Stay hydrated to avoid mistaking hunger for thirst. And if you taste a dish that doesn’t live up to its billing (it will happen), stop and put down your fork. Every calorie you eat should be worth it.

Pair up. It’s not easy sticking to a diet or exercise program, especially when your family might unwittingly throw you off course. Team up with an ally, someone who’ll support your efforts, stick up for you if Aunt Milly mocks your “rules,” and help block food-pushers, if necessary. That person can also be a listening ear, in case you need to vent — the holidays often make all sorts of feelings emerge. Besides, it’s the season of sharing. Make it work for you.