I often see and hear of confusion in best practice pre and post exercise in terms of how to best prepare and restore the body. Good practice becomes increasingly important as we get older.

Pre-Exercise:
This is the time to prime your muscles in preparation for the work they will be undertaking, healthy muscle fibres contract and relax effectively in a cycle of movement – Stepping lunges, light squats and weight bearing postural support work are all good practice. In addition, mobilise your joints; the hips, shoulders and spine so you can move more freely and efficiently.

Post-Exercise:
This is when you benefit from static stretching, be it standing, sitting or otherwise. Most exercise involves repeated contraction of certain muscles which cause them to shorten. To stretch effectively the body appreciates acclimitisation, gentle introduction and familiarization to a movement. The best approach initially is short duration holds placing the stretch on and off. As the body becomes more familiar you can sustain the stretch for 30 seconds plus to restore a new resting length in the tissues. Forcing equals tension which means an absence of release, so watch the breath, relax as you exhale and this will enable a lengthening in the muscles as well as release at the level of the nervous system. Freeing and mobilisation of your joints is also highly beneficial at this stage.

Practice and enjoy!

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Go well. Will