FITNESS | Stretch Your Stretch

Cats do it, dogs do it, even birds in the trees do it. Yes, they stretch. And there are a million reasons why we should too. First of all, it feels amazing. It's also relaxing and provides more rejuvenation in the middle of the day than a nap (alright, jury is out on this one). It is said to relieve stress, optimize your workout and develops body awareness.

It can also relieve our aches and pains. For example, Jennifer had a horrible upper shoulder ache that got so bad she'd have shooting pains going down her arm. Yeah, kind of scary. So she went to her chiropractor who gave Jennifer stretching exercises that would not only ease the pain but alleviate it all together. The strategy: to stretch the muscle in her underarm. Skeptical, Jennifer tried it, thinking that it would be odd to stretch a muscle that doesn't seem remotely connected to the pain. But alas, it worked. And Jennifer has never had that shoulder pain again.

If you don't believe us or you're not thoroughly bought into the benefits of stretching, here's an extensive list.

And...according to Miranda Esmonde-White, host of PBS’s Classical Stretch, in this interview with Life Reimagined, she explains that it can also slow down the aging process.

Enough said? Let's go to the next step. Web MD tells when is the right time to stretch and how to do it right in this simple article.

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