I hate stretching.

[Anonymous]

Can't stand it. Hate it. Get so bored, and I never want to do it. But I'm almost 43, and my lower body is just getting tighter and angrier. Some days... very angry.

I run a few days a week, strength train, do cross training, and generally like the stuff that gets my heart pumping. Slowing is just so slow and boring and I never want to do it. An HOUR of yoga? That's my idea of hell. I can "slow down" and relax in other ways, but concentrating on stretching is such a chore.

Is anyone else like this? Has anyone changed and learn to enjoy stretching? Found stretching exercises or programs that are fun and go by fast?

[Anonymous]

No, I love stretching. I hate feeling tight before and after workouts.

I hate when half the class gets up and starts putting things away when we still have stretching to do. So disruptive.

Stretching is so good for you, you should do it every morning in addition to before/after workouts.

[Anonymous]

I stretch while I watch tv, otherwise I won't do it.

[Anonymous]

I don't enjoy it but always feel great afterwards. My husband swears by using a foam roller and does it every night in addition to stretching to relieve tightness and aches. I prefer to do Yoga classes which have the added benefit of improving balance and strengthening as well.

[Anonymous]

I agree, it's annoying. I stretch for a few minutes before and after working out, that's it

[Anonymous]

I ran and lifted for years and didn’t stretch. While a little younger than you, my iliacus muscle was so tight it was tearing away from my bone. The pain was excruciating while running but all I had to do were simple side stretches. From that time on, I stretch daily or do yoga and I injure myself much less now at 47.

[Anonymous]

I'm your polar opposite, OP! I hate having to warm up so I can stretch! I do dance and contortion and yoga and things and detest running.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't enjoy it but always feel great afterwards. My husband swears by using a foam roller and does it every night in addition to stretching to relieve tightness and aches. I prefer to do Yoga classes which have the added benefit of improving balance and strengthening as well.

Foam rollers are miracle workers. It speeds up recovery like no other method. Much faster than just resting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can't stand it. Hate it. Get so bored, and I never want to do it. But I'm almost 43, and my lower body is just getting tighter and angrier. Some days... very angry.

I run a few days a week, strength train, do cross training, and generally like the stuff that gets my heart pumping. Slowing is just so slow and boring and I never want to do it. An HOUR of yoga? That's my idea of hell. I can "slow down" and relax in other ways, but concentrating on stretching is such a chore.

Is anyone else like this? Has anyone changed and learn to enjoy stretching? Found stretching exercises or programs that are fun and go by fast?

That's due partly to you not stretching enough. I stretch after each workout for about 5-7 mins but I have to give that credit to the class that I take which incorporates stretching. Without it I know I wouldn't be taking the time to stretch.

[Anonymous]

I think that the evidence on stretching is mixed. Don’t do it if you don’t want to.

[Anonymous]

I have never liked it but I changed my tune on it after a back injury last year at 42 that wound up requiring a bunch of PT and medication to resolve. The biggest thing I learned in PT was that I have natural tendencies toward tightness and overcompensation in my hips, and that's what is causing the problems with my lower back. They taught me a series of stretches for opening my hips, stretching my quads and glutes, and lengthening and relaxing my hamstrings, IT band, calves, and feet, and it's like magic. I still have medication I can take for my back when I have a flare up but I rarely do because I've discovered that 15-20 minutes of gentle stretching is equally effective. Sometimes I take the meds to help make the stretching easier, but that's it.

I still don't enjoy stretching and the hamstring stuff is actively unpleasant because I have incredibly tight hamstrings and always have. But now that I understand that my tight hamstrings is what is causing my back pain, I view stretching as simply a means to an end for keeping my body in order and it's not so annoying.

I also started doing one 30 or 60 minute yoga class a week. I can't commit to more than that because, again, I hate stretching. But I have to admit I feel great afterwards, in mind and body. It's worth it.

But I hear you OP. It's always been the aspect of exercising I dislike the most.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think that the evidence on stretching is mixed. Don’t do it if you don’t want to.

I've never read anything but positive stories about the importance of stretching. Nothing to suggest it isn't helpful and necessary.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think that the evidence on stretching is mixed. Don’t do it if you don’t want to.

I'm sorry what?? Oh such a controversial concept - stretching!! The newest, craziest fad to hit the market!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think that the evidence on stretching is mixed. Don’t do it if you don’t want to.

I'm sorry what?? Oh such a controversial concept - stretching!! The newest, craziest fad to hit the market!

PP is right that there have been mixed evidence on stretching over the years. But that's largely because people stretch incorrectly. For years people were encouraged to stretch before exercising, before their bodies were warm. That's definitely wrong. Now people are more appropriately told to at a minimum warm their bodies first, but if you are older you may have gotten other direction as a kid.

Also, people have often viewed stretching as a way to increase flexibility -- literally how far your body can bend in a given direction. But proper stretching should be done to improve mobility, which is a much more complex metric. If you are highly mobile and have some baseline flexibility, it doesn't really matter how bendy you are (unless you are an athlete or dancer or something). And people with hyper mobility often have the opposite problem, where they are too bendy and it can make them injury-prone.

Also also, people tend to overemphasize static stretching -- the classic stretches where you move into a pose and hold it, maybe breathing into the position to try and lengthen the muscle. This part of stretching, but people with limited mobility often get more rewards out of dynamic stretching, where you move through a series of positions slowly. I am the PP above who mentioned how I learned a series of stretches that greatly reduce stress on my lower back. Only two of them are static stretches. Most are dynamic. Which also makes them less painful and easier to do.

[Anonymous]

I was the same as you and hated stretching and yoga. However, I got the Peloton app and I now stretch and do yoga more regularly. Mind you, after runs or HIIT workouts, I'll do a 5 to 10 min stretch so not doing it for too long. Yoga, I still can't pass 20 minute sessions. It helps a lot though. Often times, I'll yoga 5 or 10 mins in exchange of stretches.

It definitely helps though and I don't regret doing them and as a previous poster mentioned, you have to do it sometimes to get better. I had plantar fasciitis which I was able to fix by regular stretches (that I no longer have to do). I will go weeks without stretching properly and I always feel stiffer and achier eventually.