Stretching is a hot topic these days — just take a look when you attend any sporting event and you can see multitudes of athletes doing side bends or stretching out their calves or some other body part. Yes, stretching is good for your body, plus it helps prevent injuries and manage day-to-day stress!
But what is stretching? Well, it really is best described as any movement that increases your range of motion and tests your individual flexibility. So for example, stretching can be as easy as turning your head from side to side or just touching your toes. In fact, some people call stretching flexibility training because you do just that — train your muscles to be more flexible through the use of simple movements.
Just think of all the little ways in your daily life that flexibility comes in handy: backing your car out of the driveway or reaching for something on the top shelf or bending over to tie your shoe! For those reasons (and many more), stretching keeps your muscles long and pliable and enhances your life to keep your movements pain free forever (or as long as possible).