by Janette Peel

Created on: June 27, 2008

As with any form of physical exercise, warming up is an essential way of staying supple and preventing injury.

It is important to perform simple warm-up exercises to prepare the body for the more strenuous activity that is to follow, and literally warm up' the muscles and tendons.

Warm-up exercises help to improve circulation, raising your body temperature and pulse rate, and facilitate the delivery of oxygen-rich blood to your awaiting muscles.

As you perform these exercises, it is important to breathe correctly as this will relax your body, increase blood flow, and help to remove the lactic acid created by the muscles during exercise. Breathe in a slow and relaxed way using your abdomen. Inhale through your nose, holding your breath for a few seconds in an unforced way, and then exhale through the nose.

You can actually improve your health just by stretching. By stretching a little every day you will increase the length and elasticity of your muscles, providing you with greater flexibility and strength. By being more flexible, it also becomes more difficult to injure yourself when performing your exercise routine.

It is important that you learn how to stretch correctly, as otherwise you can seriously injure yourself. When stretching, you should feel tension in the muscle you are working and even a light sensation of pins and needles, but absolutely no sharp or uncomfortable pain. Be careful not to over stretch to avoid resulting stiffness or injury. Concentrate on stretching one or only a few muscles at a time. The fewer muscles stretched, the more attention you can pay to the intensity of the individual stretch, and the less resistance you will experience from your body.

Use these simple warm-up stretches to work all the muscle groups in your body and prevent injury or strain when practicing any exercises.

Arm stretch:

From a standing position, place both arms behind your head. With your right hand take your left elbow and draw the elbow closer to your head until you feel a stretch up your left side. Next, switch arms and repeat the same movement on the right side of your body. When finished place the left hand behind your head and the right hand on the lower back. Bring the hands as close together as possible and hold them still for 20 seconds. Switch arms and repeat, and then relax your arms.

Neck stretch:

Push the top of the head to the ceiling, straightening the spine and neck, shoulders relaxed and down. Slowly bring the head to the right side, feeling a stretch on the left side of your neck. Return to center. Repeat, lowering the head back, then to the left, and then to the front.

Waist twist:

Place your hands on your hips. Beginning from the waist, twist the upper body to the right and then the left. Repeat five times. Raise your elbows to shoulder height, put your hands up and twist to the right and left. Repeat five times.

Thigh stretch:

Take your right foot in your right hand and slowly raise the foot as high as possible, keeping the back and body straight. Repeat exactly the same maneuver on the left side. When finished, place your hands on the upper thighs with your knees slightly bent, and the back straight. Slowly bend the knees, feeling a stretch in the thighs and buttocks, and then return to the initial position. Repeat this exercise three times.

Rolling stretch:

Lie on your back with your arms and legs extended and pointing up, knees slightly bent. With arms fully extended at all times, roll backwards onto the upper back, and then forwards onto the buttocks. Repeat five to ten times. The rolling stretch is a useful warm-up exercise because it works several muscle groups.

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