About 10 years ago, I injured my knee while snowboarding in extremely icy and packed snow conditions. After nursing black-blue knees for a month, I thought I was fine. However, I soon realized, after a couple of 10K races and just 2 days of snowboarding that I was in fact not fine; my knee pain came back and it was brutal. Usually, I am very aware of my body and watch for signs its throwing at me. But this one kinda baffled me, after much deliberation I finally decided to get an MRI to make sure everything was in place. $450 (yuuuup! Learn from my experience and invest in maintaining good health instead of spending money and time on fixing your health) later everything was still in place and as it turns out my left kneecap was a little loose. After being prescribed two months of Physical Therapy (PT) by the doc I walked out of there with a sigh of relief that nothing was broken. The first session was a detailed discussion with a senior therapist. She examined my knees, made me do certain movements and then assigned a therapist to work with me. I went in twice a week for two months. I was dedicated to improving my the mobility and strength in my legs and never missed a session. I loved the staff there, right from the front desk to the therapist, and the assistants. They gave me great advice, tips, and suggestions on what I needed to do in order to make the muscles supporting my knees stronger. This is where I understood the importance of stretching and strengthening. This is what I learned from my pain, my therapy, and my healing process ultimately leading to a healthier and happier me. My goal here is to share my experience and current stretching routine with you, feel free to use any or all of it at your discretion.
Sports player or not, worker-outer or not, IMO you should stretch regularly (if not daily) to —
Prevent injuries
Speed up recovery process post workout or sport activity
Keep the muscles and tissues in good working conditions
Ease the pressure on various joints/Reduce physical stress
Improve flexibility
Improve blood circulation
There are many different methods of stretching and there is no one right way. Everyone is built differently and has a different lifestyle and most likely different goals, you must figure out what’s the best option for you. Here is what I do:
I stretch at least three times a week!
Foam roller is my new best friend forever (BFF)! Before you start letting your imagination run wild, for those of you who don’t know what it is, this is what it looks like (img source: google image search) —
How do you decide what type of foam roller you should go for? Well, for me, I had plenty opportunities to try out different foam rollers at my PT’s practice and picked one that suits my needs the most. You can either consult your doctor or trainer or look up wikihow.
3. Foam roller is not the only way to stretch, I alternate between my new BFF and Yoga, which i usually refer to as my soulmate because for me Yoga is more than just exercising one’s body, it’s about getting in touch with your inner self… more on that in another post. I find certain postures such as
a. downward facing dog not only help stretch and release, but also strengthen. It's my second favorite pose after shoulder stand
In addition to downward facing dog (or Adho Mukha Svanasana) there are many more poses you could practice based on your needs and physical fitness levels. My mum is a yoga instructor and I learned yoga under her tutelage. It is very important that you know your body, your limits and the right technique to avoid injury. Remember, the right form may vary from body to body - there is no one universal right form because all our bodies are unique. If you are curious and want to learn more, I invite you to take a yoga class with me. 4. Establishing a practice of regular self massages (with oil) or getting regular massages  from your local wellness provider— again this totally depends on your health conditions. I try to get a massage once every three months, usually deep tissue or a Thai massage.
Between my new BFF (foam rolling) and soul mate (yoga), I try to get my daily stretching in. There are definitely times when I "think" I am too busy to stretch, those days I get my leg stretches in while waiting for the train or when I want to take a break from sitting at the computer. I also get my upper body/arm stretches in similarly. Don’t worry about what others may think, it doesn’t matter! You need to get your stretching in! You gotta stay healthy! That’s what matters!!!
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