Stretching

Apr 07 2015

Stretching

Summary: Stretching helps the body to maintain its elasticity and pull the skin closer to the body. Stretching offer benefits that are not limited to weight training. They include; relieving stress, help in maintaining the right posture, deals with body pain from cramps etc.

Considering their benefits to the body, here are six different stretches that you can do to feel fit and good about yourself.

Stretch your shoulders: Put one arm on your chest and grab the forearm with the other arm. When you feel a stretch return to rest position and repeat. Do 10 reps.

Stretch your neck: do not roll your head from side to side as this could cause injuries but gently turn your neck to one side first, returning to rest position before attempting the same direction or another.

Stretch your wrists: typing and carrying heavy things could easily get our wrist muscles cramped. Stretch them out by extending your arm, then pulling on the hand with the other hand in the opposite direction.

Stretch your calves: Put your arms up against the wall and bring one leg in towards it while keeping the other leg straight. That is one rep. you could interchange the legs for greater effect or just do 10 reps of one leg before going to the other leg.

Fully stretch your legs: Lying flat on your back, extend your leg out and grab the back of your thighs. Now, pull your leg up and towards your face. Jerking the leg may cause serious injury.

Finally, stretch your lower back: Lie on your back and draw one leg up to you chest, release after a few seconds and do the same motions with the other leg. Then, pull both legs towards you.

There are countless other types of stretching exercises that one could engage in and still feel good but we will just consider these six.

Stretching as a form of exercise is cheap and requires no extra tools. However, you can incorporate small weight into your stretching routines; while holding two 2.5 kilograms dumb bells for example, you can stretch forwards, backwards and to the side. The added weight will offer more resistance to your body and help you feel fitter and lighter over a specific period of time.

Incorporate stretching and weight training into your routines and you will be glad you did.

Author Info

Dr Nagi Safa

Dr Nagi Safa is a Metabolic and Bariatric Surgeon (Weight-Loss Surgeon) at the Advanced BMI in Lebanon and at the Sacred Heart Hospital of Montreal, and holds an academic appointment at the University of Montreal. Furthermore, he is involved in the training of residents and surgical fellows on how to perform advanced laparoscopic obesity surgery. In 2010, he launched the Advanced Bariatric and Metabolic Institute (Advanced BMI) in Lebanon, and has been helping hundreds of patients from all over the Middle-East through his expertise in obesity surgery. Education: Dr Safa completed his residency training at the University of Montreal General Surgery Program. He then performed a fellowship in Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, and Minimal Invasive Surgery (Laparoscopic and Robotic Surgery), at the Sacred Heart Hospital of Montreal, which is the largest Weight Loss Surgery center in the Montreal area, and one of the busiest in Canada. Experience: During his training, and throughout his practice, Dr Safa performed more than one thousand laparoscopic procedures, including Roux en Y gastric bypass, sleeve gastrectomy, gastric banding, gastric plication and many other abdominal surgery procedures. He has a particular interest in LaparoscopicRevisional Surgery including banding, bypass and sleeve. With a keen interest in the advancement of obesity surgery and newer minimally invasive surgical techniques, Dr Safa gained experience in the single incision laparoscopic surgery (SILS), and offers Single Incision gastric banding and Sleeve Gastrectomy Surgery. Research: His current research interests include clinical outcomes from various bariatric surgery procedures and investigations on the impact of bariatric surgery on Type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome X. Memberships: Dr Safa holds professional memberships with the American Society of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery, Canadian Association of Bariatric Physicians and Surgeons, Canadian Association of General Surgeons, Canadian Medical Association, Canadian Association for Surgical Oncology, Quebec Medical Association, Trauma Association of Canada, Association Quebecoise de Chirurgie, International College of Surgeon, and the College des Medecins du Quebec.