Welcome to our new Urban Family series by Lauren Hogan, General Manager at F45 Training in Shanghai. She will deliver fitness tips to the Urban Family Community. Using her nutrition challenges and high-intensity interval and resistance circuit-based training, Lauren enjoys pushing the Shanghai community to achieve their health and fitness goals.
Whether you're getting in extra training now that the summer holidays are over, or lifestyle changes (such as having a child) are giving you sore spots, taking the time to regularly include a small stretching routine can work wonders. Setting aside 10 minutes each day will not only make you feel better, but also reduce your risk of injury. In addition, if you are increasing your amount of regular exercise, stretching will support the regiment and help you avoid setbacks and frustration down the road.
5 Steps to Regular Stretching
1. Bookend each day with a two-minute stretch
Each morning, before attending to anything else, give yourself some attention. Lie down and do a full body stretch. With your legs out and arms overhead, move your neck from side to side. After that, hug your knees into your chest and twist them from side to side. Check yourself and see where you feel other aches and pains and give those areas some attention too. Then, before you call it a night, perform the same routine.
Image by Natalie Foxwell/Urban Family
Image by Natalie Foxwell/Urban Family
2. Breathe more
Try to take full breaths to get into a deeper stretch, reduce tension and relax your mind and body. Rolling the shoulders back and rotating the wrists can relieve the stress from carrying the weight of children or anything else you may cart around during the day.
3. Incorporate stretching before and after exercise
If you have problem areas, ask your trainers for suggestions. Many studios provide foam rollers, lacrosse balls or resistance bands, which are excellent tools to release tension.
Image by Natalie Foxwell/Urban Family
Image by Natalie Foxwell/Urban Family
4. Add flexibility to your routine
When you're in the kitchen, keep a wide-legged stance to stretch the thighs. While in the shower, loosen tight muscles under the warm water. If you sit often, this can make your hamstrings, the lower back and even shoulders stiff. So, set a timer to ensure you stand, straighten and stretch regularly. Muscles and tendons contract and shorten under tension and activity, therefore, doing stretches to open up the hip flexors, or working tight ankles and calves, can help relieve pain in other parts of the body.
Image by Natalie Foxwell/Urban Family
5. Be wary of overtraining
Sometimes it's better to give your body a day off and consider stretching, foam rolling or even a massage (go and treat yourself) as your training for the day. The muscles still work when resting, and taking a break won't keep you from seeing results; it helps get your gains. If you need to be active, plan a 'catch up' walk with a friend or during a phone call to someone abroad. You can even make this two-fold and turn it into a social activity during your power-walk chat.
F45 Training has studios in Xuhui and Jing'an. Refer to their official WeChat account 'Functional45' for more details.
[Cover image by Natalie Foxwell/Urban Family ]