Stretching: exercises for beginners at home for all the muscles of the body

It is believed that stretching is needed only for those who practice yoga, dancing, or any sports professionally, but not for amateurs. But the meaning of stretching behavior is not in demonstrating it to others and performing complex gymnastic elements, but in its enormous health benefits at any age, regardless of gender. Next, we will consider all the advantages and disadvantages of stretching, as well as a detailed set of exercises for all muscles.

Why stretch

Flexibility is an indicator that the body is young and healthy because the development of muscle elasticity and joint mobility ensures normal blood circulation, which means that every cell of the body is saturated with nutrients and oxygen.

During stretching, the musculoskeletal system is strengthened and restored.

Stretching is needed for full recovery after any type of stress, it allows the muscles to relax and get in shape faster. Plus, stretching has fewer contraindications than strength or cardio training.

The benefits and harms of stretch marks for women

Main advantages:

• Reduces stiffness and muscle pain caused by spasms.
• Posture improves, the body recovers faster and the person as a whole feels much better.
• From an aesthetic point of view, stretching also brings the body into good shape: it strengthens the muscles, making them longer, and helps to cope with excess weight.

Disadvantages:

• Performing only stretching, you will not be able to develop speed, endurance, strength, coordination, so stretching is best combined with training aimed at your goals. But stretching helps you get results faster.
• Can be dangerous if the muscles are not properly stretched. Stretching exercises do not like jerks, pains, sudden springy movements since all this can cause injuries.

Is stretching good for men

Stretching is useful for everyone, but especially for those who perform strength exercises aimed at gaining muscle mass. Stretching will help speed up the growth process, restore muscle faster, increase range of motion, and relieve spasms. All this, more often than not, interferes with progress, so stretching is indispensable for power loads.

Contraindications to stretching exercises

• Diseases of the joints and bones, including arthritis, arthrosis, osteoporosis.
• Injuries to ligaments, muscles, and spine, including hernia.
• Diseases of the cardiovascular system.
• Thrombosis.

Stretching for beginners: where to start

• For starters, don't choose technically challenging exercises, start simple. In stretching, the main thing is to relax the muscles, return them to their normal state, and the sensations should be pleasant, not painful.
• Always warm up well. Don't stretch cold muscles - this is the first step to injury. 
• Start your workout at 30 minutes, then gradually increase the duration of each exercise, increasing the workout time to one hour.

A set of exercises for stretching the whole body at home

Standing tilt

1. Stand straight with your feet hip-width apart.
2. Tilt your torso forward and relax completely, sagging under your own weight.
3. Hands can be folded into the awning or lowered to the floor in a relaxed state.
4. Hold the position, feeling a smooth stretch of the muscles of the back of the thigh and back. Don't wobble.
5. Having maintained the position for up to one minute, slowly rise to the starting position.

Traction of the front of the thigh

1. Standing straight, lunge back with one foot and lower your knee to the floor, keeping your shin and foot on the floor in the same way.
2. The front knee should be at right angles, that is, the heel should be under the knee.
3. Grab your back foot with your hand and bring your heel as close to your buttocks as possible.
4. Do not bring to acute pain, the amplitude will depend on the elasticity of the muscles of the front of the thigh.
5. Hold for a few seconds (30-60), then gently rinse and repeat on the other leg.

Seated Hamstring and Ankle Traction

1. Sit on your buttocks and straighten your legs in front of you.
2. Bend one leg and bring the foot to the pelvis, rest the foot on the inner thigh.
3. With your spine as straight as possible, bend forward with your belly toward your thigh.
4. Grab the toe and gently pull the foot "toward you" without bending the knee. Alternate the position of the foot: pull on the toe, then lift again, stretching the muscles of the lower leg.
5. Hold for a few seconds, then repeat on the other leg.

Standing bends

1. Place your feet wide and your feet parallel to each other.
2. Smoothly lower your torso down as close to the floor as possible.
3. With both hands, grasp the shin of one leg and pull the torso as close to the thigh as possible.
4. Change the traction to the other side after a while.
5. Return to the center and gently rise to the starting position.

Traction of the adductor surface of the thigh

1. Place your feet wide with your toes spread apart.
2. Lower your pelvis to knee level, forming a sumo pose.
3. Tilt your torso forward, keeping the spine straight, with your elbows resting on the inner sides of the thigh closer to the knee joints.
4. With the effort of your hands, push your knees to the sides, increasing the traction of the adductor muscles.
5. To complicate things, you can climb on toes, additionally affecting the ankle.
6. At the end of the exercise, return to the starting position.

"Cat"

1. To stretch the spine, you can perform the exercise in dynamics.
2. Get on all fours: your knees should be the width of the pelvis, clearly under the hip joint, and your palms should be under the shoulder joints.
3. As you exhale, round your back as much as possible, pulling the abdominal muscles to the spine, freely lower your head down.
4. As you inhale, bend your back as much as possible, lowering your stomach to the floor, raising the crown to the ceiling.
5. Perform the exercise smoothly and without holding your breath, inhale and exhale in the usual rhythm.
6. Do the exercise for about a minute.

Stretching the pectoral muscles in the slope

1. Place a chair with a back in front of you or stand in front of a table.
2. Place your palms shoulder-width apart on the back of a chair or at the edge of a tabletop.
3. Take a few steps back until your torso is completely bent over with your arms outstretched - parallel to the floor. Place your feet along the width of the pelvis. Keep your knees straight.
4. With the effort of the shoulder blades, press on the torso, increasing the deflection in the thoracic region, pushing the chest down. Don't bend your elbows.
5. When the traction is complete, go back, walking towards the support.

Traction of the chest and spine in the arch

1. Get on all fours with your knees under your hip joint and your hands upright under your shoulders.
2. Begin to gradually move your palms forward, lowering your ribcage to the floor until your chest is completely flat on the floor. In this case, the depth of the deflection will depend on the flexibility of the spine. The higher the flexibility, the closer the belly is to the hips.
3. Keep your hands straight in front of you and rest your chin on the floor.
4. Maintain the position for up to one minute, then slowly return back with the help of your palms.

Stretching on straight arms

1. Lie on your stomach, place your palms on the floor under your shoulder joints, pressing your elbows to your torso.
2. With an exhalation, fully straighten your arms, lifting your torso and pelvis off the floor.
3. Do not sag in the shoulders, move your shoulders as far (below) as possible from the head, and pull the crown up.
4. If there is discomfort in the lower back, the deflection can be reduced by bending the elbows.

Standing deflection

1. Stand straight with your feet hip-width apart.
2. Place the base of the palms on the sacrum and bend back in the thoracic region, feeling a gentle pull on the muscles of the front of the body.
3. Breathe calmly without holding your breath.
4. Do the exercise for up to 30 seconds, then smoothly return to the starting position.

Recommendations: how to do stretching correctly

• Warm-up well, spend at least 7 minutes warm-up.
• Do not strive to perform exercises with maximum amplitude, start stretching the muscles smoothly, without pushing to the limit right away. The sensations should be pleasant, only by relaxing the muscles you can gradually increase the extension.
• Never perform sudden movements, it is better to perform the exercises statically, without additional swinging and pressure with the help of a partner.

Also Read: Rope climbing - what develops and how to do the exercise correctly?

How often can you stretch

The optimal amount of workouts is 2-3 times a week. Do not exercise every day; after stretching, the muscles should also recover. You can train both on separate days from strength training, and after their completion as a cool down.

Conclusion

Exercises from the presented complex do not act in isolation on certain zones, but connect several muscle groups and joints at once, with the help of one technique, legs, and shoulders, and back, and abdominal muscles can be turned on at once. Therefore, do all of the above exercises in one workout. Exercise will help not only stretch the muscles and ligaments but also make the joints more mobile and the muscles tightened.