Most times in life we fail to look at the bigger picture. If you want to become a better runner, weightlifter or competitive athlete, you need to be flexible and continually work at it. As a physical therapist, I am always tailoring exercises towards my clients goals of returning them to their specific sport. Consider that most athletes are missing an important aspect of their training; Flexibility. It is very important to include flexibility as a part of your regular fitness routine. What's the use of having huge muscle bulk if you can't use it functionally. You will be characterized as large, with increased muscle definition but also slow as a snail and rigid with movement. Flexibility is lost rather quickly during inactivity and has been proposed to increase an athletes susceptibility to serious injury. I see it a lot with clients with hamstring strains. In all, it must be worked on constantly.
Improved flexibility may enhance performance in aerobic training, muscular conditioning as well as in specific sports. You can go a long way towards reducing the risk for injury by doing some simple flexibility exercises prior to but particularly after a workout. Here are just a few that I recommend.
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