Have you ever pulled a muscle? If you answered yes, then you're probably familiar with the discomfort this can cause for extended periods of time. The best way to avoid pulling or straining your muscles is to make sure that you're adequately warming up before exercises and using stretching techniques recommended by our chiropractors in Little Rock, AR during your free time.

Stretching is important because it keeps our muscles long and flexible. By not stretching, our muscles become tight and weak , which can result in pulls, sprains, and damage when exerting too much force on them during exercise.

For example, if you spend most of your time at work sitting at a desk, you'd be much less likely to injure yourself during your next workout if you were to stretch regularly. This would ensure that your muscles are capable of bearing any kind of rigor without injury.

Another important aspect to remember about stretching is that muscles should be slightly warmed up prior to any kind of stretch activity. Five to ten minutes of light movement will adequately prepare you for stretching. This allows blood flow to different areas of the body, resulting in pliable ready-to-stretch muscle tissue.

As you being formulating a daily plan to stretch your muscles, remember that practice makes perfect. You won't become expertly flexible overnight - that's something you have to work toward. By practicing stretching for 20-30 minutes every day, you'll slowly feel your body's flexibility improve, which will allow for greater muscle movement as you exercise and move around throughout your day.

Once you've formed a plan for when and how often you'll stretch, it's important to consider some stretching basics. For instance, you should hold stretch positions for about 30 seconds each. While you might be slightly uncomfortable, you should never feel pain. If, however, you do experience pain, cease stretching and contact a doctor to avoid damaging anything. Another important tip to remember is that when stretching, while you may feel tension, you should avoid bouncing. This can cause more pain and potentially injure the muscle.

In conclusion, stretching helps keep the muscles flexible and strong and we need that flexibility to maintain a healthy range of motion in our joints! For more information on how we can help you get back to your flexibility with chiropractic care and physical therapy, contact Pain Care Associates of Little Rock.