How to Become Flexible

Being flexible can increase your performance in sports. It can also improve your quality of life, making daily tasks like gardening, shopping and playing with your kids easier and more fun. Unless you're naturally flexible, getting your stiff muscles and joints to limber up isn't easy, though. However, with time and patience you can improve your flexibility and see genuine benefits.

Instructions

1. Warm up before stretching. Spending five to 10 minutes on light aerobic exercise gets your blood pumping through your muscles and loosens them up.

2. Establish a stretching routine. Beginners will see benefits from stretching three days a week, while more advanced exercisers can safely stretch more often than that, even every day.

3. Perform dynamic stretches before exercising. Use dynamic stretching to actively move your limbs through their range of motion. This prevents injury during exercise and increases your body awareness.

4. Do static or PNF stretching after your workouts to increase your range of motion permanently. Both methods lengthen your muscles and improve their ability to deal with stress.

5. Eat a balanced diet and drink plenty of water. This keeps your body in shape and helps your muscles and joints stay flexible.

6. Keep your stretching balanced. For example, if you stretch your hamstrings, stretch your hip flexors, as well. This is critical to maintaining muscle elasticity and preventing injury.

Tips & Warnings

• Don't perform static stretches before working out. Many studies have linked them to decreased athletic performance. Instead, save them for your post-workout cool down.

• Don't bounce at the bottom of your stretches.