Contraindications

Increase of mobility of the body, stretching and stretching – synonyms of the American word Stretching, which literally translates – stretch (pull, stretch – stretch), has rejuvenating, restorative, health-improving effect on the body with the right approach to the load. And so I can tell you with confidence, the development of body flexibility (stretching, stretching, stretching) – are not harmful, but necessary and very useful if you do it correctly rationed load and recovery time.

But I recommend consulting a doctor before attending my workouts, if you have body issues.

In my practice since 2009, I have coached people of all ages, from 5 to 85. And frankly, the latter are much easier to train.

Your subconscious mind is often looking for a reason not to do development, no matter the development of body flexibility or intellectual development often we are looking for an excuse without noticing it. Oh, this gym is very far from home, not on the way to work, these English courses are not near the subway, etc. I’ve coached 70 year old students with fire and passion for training and 40 year olds with blacked out eyes and no understanding of “what I need it for”.

I will not write much on that subject, I will only say one thing – the older you are, the more you need to train to develop flexibility, or at least to keep it at the same level. For as we age, we lose flexibility – and because of that, most of all age-related problems.

I have 50% of my students between the ages of 30 and 45, 15% of my students between the ages of 16 and 29, and 35% of my students between the ages of 45 and above. My oldest student is 78 years old and my student is 67 years old.

Remember – the limitations are only in your head.

Stretching serves as a good recovery and injury prevention tool. Do I need to do stretching exercises before starting a running workout? Beginners are better off limiting themselves to joint exercises, and do not perform complicated stretches on “cold” muscles, as this can cause injury.

I have a record of sorts: One regular student (who had been training for over 2 years) with no doctor’s contraindications, did her last workout three days before her baby was born.

Stretching classes during pregnancy help:

• reduce symptoms of fatigue from the first trimester of pregnancy;
• to shorten the labor and delivery time. Trained muscles respond better to the increased strain a woman has to face during childbirth. The woman should be prepared to move around in labor, changing positions to ease the pain;
• reduce pain and discomfort during pregnancy;
• to maintain a normal weight during pregnancy;
• reduce the likelihood of a Caesarean section;
• increase the chances of a natural childbirth;
• reduce the risk of lacerations and other complications during childbirth;
• to lose weight faster after childbirth.

Rules for sports during pregnancy

Doctors advise pregnant women to exercise at least three times a week for 30-60 minutes at low intensity. It is advisable to keep your heart rate no higher than 140 beats per minute. The most important rule when exercising during pregnancy is to listen to your body. If you feel heavy, tired or unwell, pause or stop the exercise. Every pregnant woman should work at her own comfort level.

Everyone starts out on their own at some point! I started out as a very inflexible 28 year old guy. We have 90% of our students coming in with a level of flexibility roughly I used to have!

Some tips for beginners:
No matter what type of stretching you choose, the key is to proceed with caution. Avoid jerky movements. Much less pain. Warm up! No matter how intensive your warm-up is, it’s not enough to deeply “warm up” the ligaments.

“Cold” ligaments are always stiff and inelastic. Stretching those ligaments is going straight to injury. Imagine a butterscotch: If you just took it out of the refrigerator, it will break if you try to bend or stretch it. But warm it up, and the butterscotch becomes like plasticine.

Don’t save time. Stay in the maximum “stretched” pose for at least 10 seconds. Otherwise, stretching doesn’t make sense. Ideally, you should bring this “pause” to a full 60 seconds.

Don’t hold your breath! Breathe deeply. Deep breathing promotes muscle relaxation, and this helps stretching.

No pain, please! Stretching does not have to be painful. You should certainly feel some discomfort, but pain is a sign that you’ve overdone it. A little bit more and you’ll get hurt. To each his own. Each of us has a different degree of flexibility and different condition of ligaments, so it makes no sense to chase yogis.

Well, in conclusion I would like to say that I regularly conduct trainings both in Ukraine and outside our country to prepare new trainers and advanced training of existing coaches of yoga, dance, martial arts, etc.

Without exception, all coaches of other sports where there is a need for stretching – were satisfied with the workload and information they received at my training sessions.