By : Rob Ryan
You don't want to start stretching until you have been loosened up with some low intensity activity, such as light aerobics or some brisk walking.
As we get older we will naturally start to lose our flexibility and increase the chances of injury, whether it is exercise or normal physical activity. Stretching will increase your flexibility and help prevent injury, so it's a good idea to make it part of your lifestyle, especially if you have been inactive.
Be sure to always begin slowly and find how far you can gently stretch your muscles and tendons without any kind of discomfort or pain. When done properly, it will actually feel good. Completely stretch the muscles by holding at the end of the stretch for about ten to twenty seconds.
* Begin by slowly rolling your shoulders and neck. Now swing both arms separately and gently in a windmill type motion which will bring your arm past your hip each time to make the full large circle. Do it both forward and backwards. Then put your arms straight out from your sides and rotate your arms in a tight softball size circular motion.
* With both hands on your hips while standing straight, slowly bend to the left and right without bending forward, keeping your shoulderblades even with your buttocks while your leaning. Hold each bend for 5 to 15 seconds.
* You perform this one the same as the last with hands on hips, only you are now going to rotate your upper body in a full rounding type motion including a downward motion toward your knees. Slow and easy works best.
* Stand with a straight posture and lift your arms above your head. Raise yourself up onto the tips of your toes and stretch it. Try to hold it in the up position for a period then lower yourself down and repeat.
* While standing erect and hands on hips, slowly go down and touch your toes. Hold, or make a small up and down like pumping motion toward your toes. Then go back up, touch your hips and raise arms over your head, then bring them back down to hips and toes in a fluid type manner and always hold or pump gently.
* Find a solid hard surface where you can comfortably place one of your palms on surface at waist level. With one of your hips facing the surface, place a straight arm palm down on top. Now take your other arm and lift up and over your head while raising up onto your toes leaning towards the other arm and surface top. While doing this you should be in a balarina like stance or C shape. Do enough of these and you can reduce love handles and build your calves. Do both sides and repeat.
When you are finished stretching out your tight muscles and tendons you are ready to begin your fat reducing exercises or muscle building program safely. Be patient but persistent and you will reap great benefits, so don't try and do to much at once.
Apply these stretching routines before all your activities, including normal physical activity. You should be feeling more nimble and healthy especially if you've finally made the decision to include exercise or physical activity routines into your daily life. Quality exercise combined with a quality diet program will give you the best chance possible to get to the proper weight and fit look you've been seeking.
About The Author-- Get more tips and facts on diet and fitness programs and at home exercises for weight control and muscle building
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Stretching Will Prevent Injury Before Exercise
How To Gain Weight And Build Muscle Mass Fast
By : Jeff Foster
Millions of people struggle to gain weight and build muscle. Underweight issues are a real concern for a large part of the population. Everybody wants the perfect body and muscle tone although some have an extremely difficult time gaining or even maintaining body weight. The challenge of adding muscle can be overwhelming and confusing. There are any number of fitness magazines claiming to have found the quickest, easiest way to pack on muscle. Don't fall for it! If it were this easy, millions of people would have already reached their goal and there would be bodybuilders on every street corner.
If you are serious about weight training and building muscle, the best way to gain weight fast is to: 1) Learn the proper diet and exercise methods needed to force your body to add muscle.
2) Formulate a plan that fits in with your lifestyle and goals 3) Follow your plan consistently until you reach your goal. Whether you have an extremely fast metabolism or are simply unable to eat enough calories to gain weight, determination and persistence will lead you down the path to new muscle tissue and an increase in body weight. Even if you have always been skinny, gaining weight is not impossible if you follow your weight gain plan to the letter and have a little patience. EAT MORE If you want to gain weight, you must consume substantially more calories than your body burns. You will need to eat large amounts of protein and increase your food intake each and every day. If you are too skinny, start by eating several meals each day consisting of protein, carbohydrates, and fats in larger quantities than you normally eat. This is very difficult for some people, so dividing your food intake into 6 meals per day instead of 3 very large ones may make it easier for you to consume the necessary calories.
START LIFTING WEIGHTS Exercise is crucial if you want to add muscle as well as body weight. The body needs stimulation in order to build muscle. A weight training routine done several times per week will stimulate your body to respond by adding new muscle tissue. You sholud also be sure to get plenty of rest. Adequate rest after a workout will give your body time to recuperate and build new muscle. If you train too often, or do not get enough rest between workouts, you can actually hinder results due to over-training. Over training and improper food consumption are the major reasons most people never reach their goals. Motivation and the right information can help you succeed in gaining weight and building muscle.
Of course, these are general suggestions and will need to be adapted to meet your personal goals. If you are more advanced in your weight training you can tweak and change your workout routine to get the optimal results for your body type.
About The Author-- Michael is a former "skinny guy" who managed to pack on over 20 lbs of muscle. He attributes most of his success to the information about how to gain weight he learned from fastmusclegain
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