Breathing and Stretching
Imagine a day in time where living a healthy lifestyle has never been more important. Many of us don’t know exactly what that looks like. Things that affect you physically, mentally, and emotionally all play a role in your healthy living. Breathing and stretching are two integral pieces of influence over a more healthier you.
Most times we like to highlight stretching and its ability to lengthen muscle tissue. The integral piece most commonly forgotten is the relaxation that has to occur in order for you to get the most out of your stretch. It is difficult to relax if you are breathing too fast. The faster you breathe, the faster you also start to unnecessarily use other muscles of respiration. This lessens our muscles ability to respond to lengthening and strengthening.
The Importace of Breathing
Breathing plays an important role in cueing you as to whether you’re forcing a stretch. If a full inhale feels restricted and/or you’re taking short, choppy breaths from the chest, then you are too deep into the stretch and risk causing an injury. Think about it: if you cannot breathe where you are, you won’t be there for very long! Make sure you can take a full inhale through the nose that may intensify the stretch slightly but not to the point of pain.
After a few cycles of deep breathing where the belly fills up first followed by filling into the chest then exhaling through the mouth in the opposite order, you should be able to relax into the stretch more easily.
Asking the Pros
Q: What are three benefits of stretching?
A: Stretching can improve overall daily performance, decrease joint pain, and improve your flexibility — which makes everyday tasks easier, thus improving your quality of life. Common benefits can include an increase in range of motion, quicker recovery time, and alleviating muscle tension.
Q: Is stretching better than a massage?
A: Massages are complementary activities to stretching and can help make your stretching routine even more effective. At Pro Recovery Zone, we start every stretch session with a full body percussion massage using a hypervolt to help loosen and target any problem areas, similar to other massage techniques.
Q: How does breathing affect stretching?
A: Utilizing your breath while stretching allows you to get the most out of your stretch routine. Breathing gives you the ability to relax into the stretch which provides you with a more in depth stretch experience.
For more information call us at (602) 341-6963 or visit prorecoveryzone.com to book your appointment today!
