Spring
brings to mind the actions of bounding, running, leaping and
frolicking. Spring also means a new beginning, a fresh start as the
season shifts from winter to summer.
People
all over the globe are in the midst of their annual “spring”
housecleaning. Did you move heavy furniture? Did you lift boxes that
were filled with lots of paper and books? How does your back react to
sudden bouts of physical exertion? What other muscles did you feel?
If
you end up with aches and pains because you aren’t in condition for
extended sessions of hard work, then you could be considered a weekend
warrior. Weekend warriors are those individuals who don’t do
anything active during the week yet go out on weekends to hike, ski,
play sports, shovel snow, move furniture, and more. Because most
weekend warriors haven’t trained their bodies for such sudden bursts
of activities, they end up injured.
A
few years ago I worked with a women’s soccer team to warm them up
before the game and stretch them out before they went into battle. I
preached to them the importance of warming up the muscles: getting the
blood flowing and getting the body ready for activity. We discussed
this at each practice. One girl wasn’t buying into my lectures and
so only haphazardly joined in with the warm-ups and stretches. When
she showed up late to one game, she did no warm up at all, but simply
ran onto the field and started playing. As you might guess, she got
injured—and not just a tiny sprain or twisted ankle, but a torn
Achilles tendon. Ouch! If only she’d taken just a few minutes (as
little as five!) to run in place, do some jumping jacks or squats, she
could have saved herself some major pain and suffering.
The
reason I am sharing this story is to caution you that as summer
arrives and you are tempted to go out and “play”, be sure to take
care of your body by warming up your muscles! Warming up is so
important and it’s done so simply and easily: all you need to do is
a slower version of whatever you are planning to do. That is, if
walking is your plan, then start out slowly and gradually increase
your speed. It’s the same idea with running:
start out slow and increase your speed as your muscles get
warm. Don’t take off on your bike at full speed: start slowly and
develop more speed as you go along.
But
what about stretching? The importance of warming up and then
stretching warm muscles has only been taught during the past 20 years.
Before that time, most coaches insisted that stretching be done before
any physical activity. And because of that insistence, there were lots
of injuries. Some people still mistakenly believe that you should
stretch before warming up or starting an activity.
Let’s
think about this: why would you NOT want to stretch cold muscles?
Imagine a rubber band that has been lying on the ground in winter.
If you picked it up and tried to stretch it, it would more than
likely break because the elasticity simply isn’t there. However, if
you held it in your hand until it was warm and stretched it slowly,
the elasticity would comply. Our muscles are much like that rubber
band—they also shorten and lengthen. And, just like that rubber
band, our muscles need to be warmed before we stretch them. So, if you
warm up before stretching, your muscles will respond and you will have
an injury-free workout!
Strengthening
and conditioning your body prior to exertion is not only
important—it’s just smart. It enables you to move fluidly, without
worry of incapacitation or injury.
After
you’ve warmed up sufficiently (usually 7 to 10 minutes), you have
two options: 1. Stretch the muscles that you will be using prior to
your walk, run, bike ride, etc.; or, 2. simply continue with your
walking, running, biking, etc., and stretch when you are finished. If
you choose option number one, however, you will still need to stretch
after your exercise.
So,
when you decide to spring into summer, I hope that you’ll remember
to warm up first and stretch second. Staying injury free is so
important because it allows us to continue with the activities that
help us to grow stronger and more flexible. As you continue with a
healthy, balanced, active lifestyle, you may even find that it becomes
fun and you’ll choose to adopt it for life. And this can only add
quality to your years.
Bonnie
Murphy
owns a Personalized Fitness Training Studio where she transforms
mature bodies through exercise and food coaching. She’s located in
Anchorage at 15th & C. Phone: 907.229.7652; Web site: www.bfitandwell.com;
Email: bonnie@bfitandwell.com
