autostretching0011

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s i. good way to relieve muscular pain, and it

\ou for stretching.

pment

ecercises are for doing any where, any time. -h\ the equipment is so simple. There are tnrcs: for support and for protection.Whenever •c-rich. you need good support to make the rosition stable. Body parts that take pressure re protected by comfortable padding. ■ir lly the knees-don’t ever put weighl on them Mrcrr< :»_r protection. Rcmember that excrcises lwn~~~t hurt.

A. '‘Cjrtins Position

E3e^ -e and safe stretching depends on gelting the | cniĘ position right. It is always described in -och in words and in picturcs, so that you can „ control and relieve your muscles throughout | tac    Notę crosses and arrows in the photos

|mbc "o ^iT* the instructions exactly. Work long and ar gening this position right! Espccially nam are neck and pelvis. They must always be : correct lv.

-cretching

ription of each stretch is dividcd into four each w ith a specific purpose and always in the

order:

L F *iin° the particular muscle you want to This muscle or muscle group is called the ig :r:>t.) Check if the muscle feels tight. Look at rc — j>cle drawing to make surę the tightness is n Jae right place.

X - ating the muscle. Whcn you've found the ag riNt. tense it up and let it work without move-irer: risometrically) for aboul 5 seconds. This -ar—' the muscle and prepares it for stretching. V? great force is needed.

El The actual stretching mocement. Let your TiBscIe relax for a fcw seconds; then, do the srrzch that lengthens it. Now the beginning :rzg:n i of the muscle moves away from the end rsertion). This is the opposite of what the muscle zro in its normal work.

it -orne cases you use eye focus and breathing to -raike the exercise easier and morę effective.

1*. Stretching> to the limit, slowly and gradually.

' is parts 11 and III repcatcd. You should ccr-a_r'y feel the stretch - it may cvcn hurt, bul only r a 'good' way and only in the muscle you'rc ceiching at the moment (check muscle drawing).

feel 'nasty' pain, or pain in the wrong place, <:p the exerci.se immediately and read under 7

and 8 below. If the stretch feels good, stay with it - no waving or jerking! - forat least 15 seconds, and up to 1 minutę or morę if needed. Keep stretching until you notice real improcement (but not necessarily all the way to 'normal’ extreme position). Doing it slowly andgently is hetter than using morę force in a hurry.

6.    Stimulation

♦ *

The muscle you’ve been stretching - the agonist -has an opposite on the other side of the joint. This one is called the antagonist . If some of your muscles stay tightcned for a long time, their antagonists or opposites can’t work properly. They are hindered and may even get weak from Iack of work. So it's very important to stimulate these muscles back to normal function.

Do it by continuing your stretch movement as before, while at the same time tensing the antagonists. Now you’re making them work 'against' the movement. If antagonists show weakness when you try to stimulate them, start exercising them for strength.

7.    Common Errors

Here we point out dctails that often go unnoticed. Read this part carefully and check that you’re really doing the exerci.se right.

8.    Notes

Rcmarks, hints and maybe warnings concerning the exercise. The rule about pain under Stretching, point IV, abovc, is always valid!

9.    Normal Mobility

Nobody knows what 'normal mobility’ means. A slight, slcndcr woman may movc very differently from a big, hcavy man. But in generał, we can agrec that a movement should be painless and smooth throughout its course; it should stop naturally and not too early. Under this heading we describe movemcnts that morę or less cvcry healthy person should be able to perform. If you've got that far, the excrcise has done its work. You’ve achieved 'normal mobility’.

With the help of this book you can check the suppleness of muscles all over your body. If your joints work normally and you still can'l move as described under this heading, then you should start stretching. If the movements are no problem to you, stretch now and then, anyway, to stay supple.

* Morc aboul ihcsc on page 244.