11 Benefits of Stretching

I think it goes without saying- I’m a huge advocate for stretching. But, what you may not know is very little of my appreciation comes from having an extremely large amount of flexibility.
Sure it helped me in my career as a dancer, but it’s been very little use to me since. I don’t need my body to do the spilts in order to train in the gym, run, swim, hike and live how I want to live. Yet, I still stretch regularly every week to maintain my flexibility and advocate for others to do the same… why? Because apart from the immediate and most obvious benefit of improving flexibility and range of motion there are quite a number of other benefits that regular, consistent stretching brings, including:

1. Reduces aches, pains in stiff, tight muscles and joints;

2. Improves sporting performance;

3. Reduces the susceptibility to soft

   tissue injuries like muscle and tendon strains;

4. Reduces fatigue and delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS);

5. Improves posture;

6. Improves ease of movement

7. Develops body awareness;

8. Improves co-ordination;

9. Promotes better circulation by decreasing arterial stiffness;

10. Increases rate of recovery; and

11. Improves relaxation and stress relief.

I’m going to add a 12th to the list because it’s the biggest benefit for me personally but not so scientifically proven and that is: the freedom to live the life I want to live without hesitation.

Is there a benefit you’ve experienced that’s not on the list?