Stretching to Stay Young

In January as I proceeded to step up my daily exercise routine, a problem developed with tightness in my back, which quickly caused me to re-evaluate my fitness objective. Consulting with a friend who is a personal trainer, she advised me to revise my warm-up routine to lengthen my stretches and add a few new ones to my routine. It worked. My tightness relaxed; I am back to my new workout strategy; and I went looking for a book to learn more about stretches. My search led me to Jessica Matthews’ book: Stretching to Stay Young. Matthews writes about having a similar experience as a fitness instructor, but observed: “Once I was stretching regularly, however, I began to move more easily—not just while exercising but in my everyday life as well. I increased my range of motion and fain immense flexibility, reducing the aches and pain I had become accustomed to.” (8-9) In my case, stretching not only helped me reduce tightness, it helped me workout harder and I ended up overdoing it a bit, which caused a different set of issues. Matthews cites studies showing these benefits: decreased stiffness, improved function, reduced pain, enhanced performance, improved range of motion, improved balance, and decreased anxiety and depression (17). Medical benefits include reduced: stress, blood pressure and heart rate, breathing rate, and chronic back pain. (18) For me, these benefits have been real. My basic warm up routine began in the summer of 2008 when I experienced several episodes of extreme, lower-back pain that left me unable to work—I had to lie on my back on the floor all day at one for three days running. On advice of my doctors, I began doing core exercises, which included stretching and Pilates, about seven days a week. After beginning this new warm up routine before swimming laps, I never again experienced that kind of pain and, with minor tweaks, I have continued this warm up routine since then. Matthews is located in San Diego, California and cites her background as: Kinesiology Professor (Point Loma Nazarene University), Yoga Studies Professor (MiraCosta College), President & CEO of Integrative Wellness Education, Senior Advisor for Health & Fitness Education at American Council on Exercise (ACE), and a contributing editor at Shape Magazine. She writes her book in three parts—the science, the stretches, and the workouts—which are proceeded by an introduction and followed by lists of resource and references, and by a subject index. The book is printed on high-quality, rather stiff paper that might help the book survive a few trips to the gym. The illustrations are also large enough that you might be able to make out the routines without your glasses. Jessica Matthew’s book, Stretching to Stay Young, is an interesting read. I loved to find that some of my stretches have catchy names like “Standing Crescent Moon” (74-75), “Bird Dog” (82-83) and “Figure 4” (92-93) and that I need to adjust my routine to do them correctly. The Standing Crescent Moon, for example, is best done as a static stretch, not a dynamic stretch (bobbing), while the Bird Dog is just the opposite, contrary in both cases to my current practice. I was also pleased to learn what people down at the gym are doing with foam rollers—exercising muscle attachments called fascia. If you are new to the proper way to do stretches, as I am, then this is a book that you want to check out.

Very user friendly and clear, highly recommended.

This book covers all areas of the body with a variety of stretches for the different areas

I absolutely love this book! The stretches included are everything from arm circles we did in elementary school to the exact ones I was given during my expensive myofascial release therapy a couple of years ago. I love having them all in one book, organized by section of the body, and including modified versions in case I can’t do the original one. There are also routines towards the back of the book but I haven’t gotten that far, I’ve mostly looked up what I needed.

When my chiropractor recommended stretching and strengthening exercises for me I didn’t know where to start so I ordered several books. This one is my favorite. It’s the most clearly broken down by body area with illustrations and simple instructions. It’s laid out in an easy to use way and the author knows it’s unreasonable to expect busy people to start stretching with a 30minute plus timeline. He recommends beginning with 5-10 minutes per day. Makes it more attainable. I recommend this book for people who want to begin a reasonable stretching routine.

Fitness is personal, but all of us age. Flexibility can improve our mood, our mobility, and our quality of life. I’m reviewing several books on my shelf that relate to stretching, prevention, anti-aging, and home treatments. During the covid lockdown, I got interested in how my family would proceed if any of us were injured/had sore muscles/wanted to begin a fitness regimen/needed medical attention for acute pain when medical attention was not available. This book offers well-planned routines that require a minimum of accessories: a sturdy chair, the floor, a wall or doorway, a towel or strap, perhaps a foam roller. Matthews also includes isometric stretching combinations and myofascial release. Careful descriptions and large illustrations of each stretch; routines specific to particular activities (shoveling snow, gardening, golf, cycling); resistance training; helpful tips and pointers throughout. This is a well-executed book. Recommend.

A colleague suffering neck (and nerve) pain recommended this for therapeutic recovery. After going through each page, to me the book is only okay. Because this book has many yoga themes and included prop requirements, I reduced stars. Even though I still purchased this, I was also never really thrilled by its title. My goal: I just want to stretch (without props and for a larger variety of activities and everyday reasons). That said, I prefer the “Stretching” book by Bob Anderson instead.

This book is an awesome resource for those of us who want to start working out (or just moving more!) but are in poor shape and can't even do the "beginner" exercises most books/videos provide. I also think it would be good for people who do strength training but are looking for more flexibility or warm-up/cool-down options. Each stretch is clearly illustrated, with multiple steps shown if needed, and well explained. It's divided into sections by area of the body, as well as curated sets to do for particular situations (morning, before bed, after long periods at the computer or office, etc.). The book is very easy to use and understand, and the exercises work my body but don't leave me in pain or overextended afterwards. I definitely recommend it.