We know that staying active is important. It extends longevity and makes us feel better both mentally and physically. But did you know that staying loose and limber is also important to your long-term health?
Research has shown that patients with greater flexibility tend to live longer, healthier lives, says Andrew J. Harb, a specialist in rehabilitation and pain medicine at NYU Langone.
In a study published last year in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports, researchers measured the flexibility of individuals, both middle-aged and elderly, in areas including the shoulders, hips, and back and found that patients with more flexibility tended to live longer and healthier lives.
Another indication of the benefits of staying active and nimble comes from research among the world’s Blue Zones, in places like Okinawa, Japan; Sardinia, Italy; Ikaria, Greece; and the Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rica, parts of the world where people live exceptionally long lives.
Their daily lives don’t include much sitting; rather, they stay vibrant and active doing tasks like gardening, walking, dancing, and shepherding the local herds. “They focus on moving naturally throughout the day, doing normal activities that require movement and flexibility,” says Harb.
Read More: How Can You Stretch at Your Desk? A Quick Guide to Staying Active at Work
How Flexibility Plays a Key Role in Our Lives
Everyday stretching can reduce levels of cortisol in the brain, which has been associated with our fight or flight response. Over time, high levels of cortisol in the body have been linked to a laundry list of health problems, including heart problems, bone loss, weight gain, and mood disorders.
“When you spike your cortisol levels, it opens up an inflammatory pathway from the adrenal glands to the brain that perpetuates inflammation throughout your body, impacting your joints, muscles, heart function, liver, and so on,” says Harb.
Flexibility also plays a key role in our sleep. If we’re tight and achy, it can make sleep more difficult, and sleep is so important because it’s the time of day when the body and mind are restored and repaired at the cellular level.
Sleep can also improve blood circulation, which is key as we age and our blood vessels become stiffer. The body, in general, stiffens and dehydrates as we age, and stretching plays a role in pushing back against this perpetual drying out of sorts.
Stretching Can Improve Muscle Strength and Size
Recent research has shown that simple stretching can improve muscular strength as well as flexibility, according to David Behm, an exercise science researcher at the Memorial University of Newfoundland School of Human Kinetics.
Your muscles get larger as they stretch because tension sends a signal to your muscles to grow, says Behm. Stretching sends a message down into the nucleus of the cell, causing an increase in protein synthesis and instructing the muscles to grow, he adds. And building muscle is one of the most important tools for staving off aging.
How to Add Stretching Into Your Daily Routine
“If you stretch five days a week for a minimum of 15 minutes for six weeks, you’ll get bigger and stronger,” says Behm. But even less than that can have an impact. Waking up most days of the week, getting out of bed, and starting your day with some simple stretches is all you need.
Consider folding forward and hanging like a rag doll with your hands holding onto opposite elbows and the weight of your head pulling you downward. Separate your legs into a standing split and fold forward in the same manner. Stretch your neck to the right and left, and then try to do a full circle, rolling your head all the way around. Stretch your shoulders by bringing one arm across your body and holding it with your other arm. Or consider a gentle yoga class to start or end your day.
No matter how you go about adding stretching to your day, the most important thing is to get started because new research is showing us that it may be as important for keeping you young and vibrant as cardio and weight lifting.
Read More: Why Are Some People More Flexible than Others?
Article Sources:
Our writers at Discovermagazine.com use peer-reviewed studies and high-quality sources for our articles, and our editors review for scientific accuracy and editorial standards. Review the sources used below for this article:
Andrew J. Harb a specialist in physical medicine and rehabilitation, and pain medicine at NYU Langone.
Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports. Reduced Body Flexibility Is Associated With Poor Survival in Middle-Aged Men and Women: A Prospective Cohort Study
Mayo Clinic. Chronic stress puts your health at risk.
David Behm, an exercise science researcher at the Memorial University of Newfoundland School of Human Kinetics and Recreation
Sara Novak is a science journalist based in South Carolina. In addition to writing for Discover, her work appears in Scientific American, Popular Science, New Scientist, Sierra Magazine, Astronomy Magazine, and many more. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Journalism from the Grady School of Journalism at the University of Georgia. She's also a candidate for a master’s degree in science writing from Johns Hopkins University, (expected graduation 2023).
