Simple Stretches are good for everyone

It’s simple, if you stress, you have to stretch

Simple stretching is good for everyone because it improves the “tensional integrity” of the body. Tensegrity is a physical therapy term that combines tension and integrity. It describes how the muscles in our body are interconnected and affect our posture and movement. When we are stressed, our muscles become tight and pull our bones out of alignment. This changes the structural integrity of the whole body disrupting free and proper functional movement. Dysfunction can cause pain in our joints and throuout the body.

Stretching makes your muscles healthy and loose, allowing you to enjoy pain-free functional mobility and an active lifestyle. It can also calm the mind and reduce anxiety. Conversley, if your muscles are unhealthy and tight, they are working together to pull your skeletal structure out of alignment which causes pain and can debilitate your life.

Yoga, Pilates, stretching, running, walking and many other forms of exercise counters the stress and anxiety we experience in our daily routines and learning the best movements for each of your body parts is critical. Proper stretching can relax the muscles of the body while also reducing the “white noise” in the mind.

Causes and Symptoms

Starting a new job, school or marriage, raising a family, being promoted or simply dealing with health issues as you age can cause fear, stress and worry, all of which can damage and diminish the proper functioning of your postural alignment, functional mobility and emotional state.

Symptoms include headaches and muscle aches, back pain, heartburn, upset stomach, shortness of breath, high blood pressure, difficulty sleeping, chronic fatigue and an unexpected weight loss or gain and a change in appetite and behavioral or emotional patterns.

Many of the health problems in our society today stem from overindulgent and hectic lifestyles where people are not addressing the stress in their lives but simply escaping through pills, drugs, alcohol and destructive behavioral patterns which have devastating consequences and perpetuates the problems even more!

Managing Stress

Physical and emotional flexibility enables you to handle stress better. Improving the flexibility of your joints, muscles, tendons, bones is one of the best ways to reduce the negative impact that stress has on your body.

The more emotionally relaxed, open and calm your mind is, makes you happier and more confident within yourself. Getting and keeping your mind in a happy state gives an emotional boost to your confidence.

Improving your emotional flexibility has been clinically proven beneficial to your overall health. If you start to incorporate of few of the actions listed below, you will improve the quality of your life immediately:

1. Exercise for at least 30 minutes at 3-5 times a week.
2. Stretch for 5-15 minutes daily.
3. Hydrate. Drink plenty of water, most of us aren’t drinking enough water.
4. Pamper yourself. Treating yourself to a really nice lunch or having a therapeutic massage will change your focus when you’re under a lot of stress.
5. Develop methods for relaxation; for example, talk with supportive people, take up a hobby, listen to music, watch movies, take walks.
6. Simplify your life. Don’t try to do too much. Set realistic goals you can achieve. Learn to say “no.”
7. Get adequate, regular amounts of rest and sleep (6 to 10 hours a night).
8. Try not to “self-medicate” with food, alcohol, or over-the-counter medicines. Covering up a problem can make the stress even worse.
9. Learn to use relaxation techniques, such as mental imaging, diaphragmatic breathing, and progressive muscle relaxation.
10. Recognize the things that upset you and try to develop a positive attitude toward those you cannot avoid.
11. Eat a healthy diet and drink less coffee and alcohol.
12. Use positive thoughts and humor to overcome negative thoughts. Watch a funny movie, and laugh your stressors away