The key to becoming more flexible is to get your body moving and gently encourage your muscles to step out of their current comfort zone.
Patience and time are also vital elements of achieving your ideal degree of flexibility, because over-exerting your muscles will damage them, rather than stretch them. Improving your flexibility will inspire you to try more physical challenges. You can start your journey to flexibility with these simple suggestions.
Before you commence a set of stretching exercises, take a brisk but gentle walk to get your blood flowing and your muscles warmed up. If you are stretching in a group, set your own ‘stretching limits’ and don’t feel pressured to match other people’s flexibility. Gently contract and relax your muscles for a set amount of time (you could start with six seconds of contracting, and then build up to 15 seconds). Enrol in a yoga or Body Balance class, and inform your instructor that your goal is to become more flexible. The key is to push yourself little by little so that you gradually build up to your desired flexibility.
My trainer tells me stretching is also important for pumping blood and other fluids around your body, helping refresh your inner organs, and helping to avoid illness, so where I used to skip it, now I do it!