How to Become Flexible

You can't become flexible overnight. You need to get in the habit of doing stretching exercises every day. But with patience and time, you'll become more flexible. And you will be amazed at how good you feel. Here are some basic steps in the process.

Method 1 Key aspects of flexibility

1. Take good care of your inner body. Good care of your body includes paying attention to what you eat and ensuring that you are getting adequate nutrition.

• Maintain a healthy diet. Eat more green leafy vegetables and increase your protein and calcium (drinking milk is one easy way to increase your intake of both of these).
• Every morning, eat a good, healthy breakfast.
• Drink plenty of water. Since your body is mostly water, you have to be hydrated.
• The most important thing is to balance everything. If you don't, you will not be completely flexible.

2. Keep your joints and muscles stretched and cared for. Start your workout with low-impact stretches and work up to a full stretch workout. Later, wind down your routine with low-impact exercising.

3. Make sure you have supervision when performing stretches. If you have no idea what you are doing you'll undoubtedly injure yourself. Most martial arts schools and gymnastics classes have extensive programs and teachers available. Check them out.

4. Remember to include both the positive and negative motions when you stretch. Keep it symmetrical. If you are stretching your left, stretch out your right too. If you are bending forward, bend backwards too.

• If you don't feel a little strain in your muscles, you're not doing it in a way that will prove beneficial. A little strain is normal.

5. Think positive when you're becoming flexible. It takes time but you will get there. Tell yourself motivating things, such as: "I know I can do this!"

6. Remember you must always be patient. The key to being flexible is waiting calmly.

7. Do stretches every day (for at least 10 to 15 minutes) and work at it progressively. This is important if you want to become flexible! Remember, you can't become flexible overnight. Work at the rate you are comfortable with, and then slowly increase the difficulty (length of time, length of reach or both).

• When you are doing stretches, wear comfortable gear, such as tank top and shorts, leotard, and so forth.
• Do warm ups before beginning stretches. One way to warm up would to be to do a decent amount of jumping jacks.
• Starting with difficult and advanced stretches is dangerous and ill-advised for anyone. Begin from the easier stretches, then move on to the harder ones.

The following sections provide a list of basic, good stretching exercises for your body. Be careful, take them slowly and become comfortable with them before pushing yourself.

Method 2 Shoulder stretches

1. Stretch each arm as far across your chest while holding it as you can without feeling pain for 5 or 10 minutes every day.

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Method 3 Back stretches

1. Always observe the great est care when doing back stretches. Take it slowly and easily and if you don't feel that you can do the stretch, don't push it.

2. Lie down on the floor.

• Sit up straight, leaving your legs out in front of you. They don't have to be flat.
• Turn your upper body slowly, and make absolutely sure that you stop turning when it starts to hurt. It is relatively easy to damage your spinal cord if you stretch improperly, so pay attention.
• When you stop turning, hold that position for 5 to 10 seconds. Turn the other direction, and repeat.

3. Try to do a backbend, or a bridge. Be very careful not to go too far! Once you are in the bridge, push through your shoulders, and try to put your legs together and straighten them. Don't go onto your toes!

• When you are doing the backbend, make sure your shoulders are over your hands or in line.

4. Try a gentle twist. Stand up with your arms hanging out to the side. Then very slowly twist from side to side.

5. Try a snake, or seal stretch. Lay flat on your tummy and then use your arms to put yourself in a snake or seal stretch.

Method 4 Leg stretches

1. Sit down as you did before for the back exercises, only this time, make your legs as flat on the ground as possible, right beside each other.

• Stretch down toward your knees. Do not bend your head to face your knees, face forward.
• This will also stretch your neck muscles; if it hurts your neck to do this exercise, face your knees and stretch.

2. You can also sit down with your legs straight out and take your right leg and swing it over your left leg a few times. Do the same with your left leg.

3. Try doing the splits as well as possible, but carefully for about 4 minutes per day. If you are advanced and flat on the ground, take a sofa pillow and put one of your legs on it to give more of a stretch.

4. Try a pike stretch.

• To get started, lay flat on the ground and then sit up.
• Reach for your toes.
• Look at your knees and hold for about 20 to 30 seconds.

5. Try a butterfly stretch. Keep the bottom of the feet pressed together, then pull them towards you.

6. Do some lunges. Kneel down, one leg front, one at the back; when your legs are at 90 degrees, push down. Then straighten your front leg.

7. Try a straddle. Open your legs as widely as possible while sitting. Lean left and right, very gently, while in this position.

Method 5 Upper thighs (butt) stretches

1. Squeeze both sides of your thighs together.

Hold for 5 minutes. (If this is too long, start with 2 minutes, and build it up.)

Method 6 Finger stretches

1. Hold one hand out in a fist.

• Slowly open up the fist.
• Stretch your fingers back as far as they can. Hold for a minute.
• Repeat with your other hand. This can help with carpal tunnel syndrome.

Method 7 Ankle stretches

1 Sit with your legs straight out in front of you in the same manner as the leg stretch above.

• You can also sit with one leg in front of you and take the other ankle and rest it on your knee then grab your foot and twist your ankle.

2. Twist your ankles in any shape or form (for example, the "ABC"s).



Method 8 Wrist stretches

1. Sit on your knees and then put your hands out like you are reading a book.

• Flip your hands onto the floor with fingers facing you, like "save the page."

2. You can also, after you do the stretch above, flip your hands in any way (fingers facing outward or inward to the side, whatever).

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