Bob Doto - The Power of Stretching

THE POWER OF

SIMPLE PRACTICES TO PROMOTE WELLBEING

BOB DOTO

Watch any animal for little more than a few minutes and you will see the ways in which they twist and turn their bodies into what seem to be effortless stretches. Considering how common stretching is within the animal kingdom, its not hard to understand why one of the questions I hear most often from my massage therapy clients is: What can I do to stretch out my tight muscles?

Although I played baseball throughout high school, stretching was something I rarely did with any intention. If I did stretch, I honestly had very little knowledge about what to do or how to do it correctly and effectively. Like many people I knew, I would simply take a limb and extend it in one direction or another until I felt something that seemed like a stretch. It wasnt until I began practicing yoga many years ago that I began to understand what this whole stretching thing was about.

With this book I wanted to give you a simple and approachable way to intentionally and effectively stretch every region of your body. There are a number of stretching books on the market, and as a bodyworker I have read most of them. The difference between this book and the others is that this one is for my clients. This is the book I often wish I had so clients could take their treatments home with them and build on what we achieve during bodywork sessions.

However, this is also a book for everyone currently existing in a body. A book I hope will help empower you to take back your ability to increase your sense of wellbeing.

Contraindications

While there are only a few common contraindications for stretching, as with any new physical practice, you may want to consult with your doctor before performing the stretches in this book. And, if you have any pain or known injuries or pathologies that might prevent you from performing these stretches safely, then you definitely want to get the OK from your doctor.

Beautiful illustrations, clear text, and an easy-to-access organization within the following pages ensure that you can quickly gain benefits from the power of stretching.

Chapter 1

THE WHYS AND HOWS OF STRETCHING

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This chapter discusses what intentional stretching is and how it benefits the body and our overall wellbeing. It also features general guidelines on how to perform stretches properly and safely.

Chapter 2

THE STRETCHES

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Working from the head down, over 60 stretches are detailed in this chapter, with instructions and illustrations to make sure you can replicate and get the most from each exercise.

Each stretch is described using an image, written instructions, and extra notes or tips.

Chapter 3

WHICH STRETCHES TO USE

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The final chapter deals with some of the most common activities modern humans engage in (occupational and sports-related), as well as injuries and repetitive stress conditions, and suggests a number of stretches to perform that can be helpful for each condition or activity. Feel free to do more or less of whats suggested. As there are a number of stretches that affect regions of the body in slightly different ways, you may find that replacing some with others, or adding additional stretches, works for you.

Information is given on how the activity/injury relates to the body.

CHAPTER 1

THE WHYS AND HOWS OF STRETCHING

In this chapter, you will learn the basics of soft-tissue anatomy and the benefits of stretching. There are also guidelines on how best to perform the stretches, working in conjunction with the breath.

What are Muscles?

The primary functions of muscles are to move our limbs and help us lift heavy objects. However, there are other, in some ways more important, functions associated with healthy muscles.

What Dont They Do?

Muscles help keep all of our internal organs organized and in their place, so that they function properly. Muscles stabilize the body when performing activities. They allow us to breathe, help to circulate the blood, and facilitate digestion. In short, without muscles we would not be able to live.

What is a Stretch?

Whether you are an athlete, a truck driver, a nurse, or a cave-dwelling yogi (or an apartment-dwelling yogi), you stretch. When you take a step and press your foot down onto the ground, the plantar fascia on the bottom of the foot stretches. When you stand up from sitting, the movement stretches your hamstrings. Without the ability to stretch muscles you would be virtually immobile, and each one of these unintentional stretches has the effect of taking a muscle from a shortened state to a lengthened one.

Intentional Stretching

If you were to exist solely within the limits of these forms of basic movements, your body would, over time, begin to feel very stuck. This is because limited and habitual movement patterns cannot make up for the many ways in which we perpetually hold our bodies in contraction.

When your muscles stretch from everyday activities, you elongate their fibersthe individual strands that make up the muscle itself. When you intentionally and slowly stretch a muscle past its maximal resting length, with synchronized breathing, as you might in a yoga class, misaligned muscle fibers get the chance to reorganize themselves along the line of the stretch.

The Benefits of Stretching

Creating and maintaining healthy, oxygenated, well-vasculated (blood-enriched) muscle tissue through regular muscle stretching will lead not only to a healthier life, but also a far more enhanced experience of life itself.

Stretching has been shown to be far more than simply a way to feel good. Stretching also:

Increases blood flow to muscles, therefore increasing the rate of rehabilitation after working out or injury.

Relieves stress.

Increases flexibility and range of motion.

Relaxes the nervous system and calms the mind.

Helps prevent injury by conditioning the muscles to be more alert and responsive to stimuli.

Helps increase athletic performance ability.

Soft Tissue

There are three forms of soft tissue that move the body and limbs, stabilize the joints, and help the organs perform their functions.