Get In Top Shape

FLEXIBILITY

Stand erect with your feet shoulder-width apart, body straight up, and knees and hips loose (not locked).
Bring your right arm up above your head.
Without letting the hips shift to the side, reach with your outstretched arm up and to the left over your head.
Hold position.
Lower your right arm and repeat with your left.

Stand erect about 40 cm in front of a wall.
Place one foot about 30 cm back with both feet pointing forward.
Place your hands on the wall for balance.
Lean towards the wall while keeping your back heel in contact with the ground and the knee on the same leg straight.
Hold position.
Repeat with the other leg back.
Repeat with the first leg, but keep the back knee slightly bent.
Repeat with the second leg with the back knee slightly bent.

Stand in front of a doorway in the middle.
Position your arms so that your upper arms are parallel with the floor, your elbows are at 90 degrees and your forearms are perpendicular with the ground.
Rest your arms against the door frame on either side.
Lean forward with your body weight.
Hold position.

Stand erect, close to a wall or object that you can use for balance.
Bend your right knee and grasp your right ankle with your right hand.
Pull your right heel towards your right buttock.
Hold position.
Repeat with left leg and arm.
Don’t lean your body forward – stand erect.
Don’t let the leg being stretched move away from the midline of your body – keep the thigh perpendicular to the ground.
You can hold the leg with the opposite arm (right arm and left leg) – it is the same stretch, it just applies slightly different forces to the muscles being stretched.

Find an object that will support your body weight when you grasp it and lean away from it.
Stand in front of the object you will use.
Position your feet so that they are shoulder-width apart and just under an arm’s length from the stationary object.
Grasp the object in front of you with your right hand slightly above waist height.
Keeping your back straight, sit back on your hips away from the stationary object.
Support your weight with both your legs and your arm.
Hold position.
Repeat with left arm.

Lie on your stomach on the ground.
Support your body on your elbows.
While keeping your hips in contact with the ground, raise your body slowly and gently off the ground.
Hold position.

Frequency:
Minimum two to three times per week. It is preferable to perform stretching daily.

Intensity:
Slowly stretch the muscle to the point where you feel tension in the muscle, but not pain.

Time:
Hold each stretch for 20–30 seconds.

Type:
Static stretching, or stretching where you hold a constant position, is the safest type of stretching to use.

Try to perform a warm-up exercise before conducting a stretching session.
Any cardiovascular-type exercise will suffice.
Example: 5 minutes walking/cycling/jogging/skipping rope at a pace that increases your breathing but is not exhausting.
Hold each stretch for a total of 20-30 seconds.
When going into a stretch, go to a point where you feel tension, but not pain in the muscle(s) being stretched. As you first stretch, the muscle(s) being stretched will contract slightly at first (they will tense up a bit), and then will relax after approximately 5–10 seconds.
After 10 seconds of holding the stretch, you may be able to move a little farther into the stretch since the muscle(s) will have relaxed slightly. Don't perform ballistic stretching, i.e., don't bounce while holding the stretch. You will be more likely to push the muscle(s) past its/their limits and injure or tear something.
Stretching, unlike cardiovascular or muscular strength/endurance exercises, is passive and may be performed up to 7 days per week and several times per day.