If you're going to be using a treadmill to burn fat and lose weight, then you'll want to make sure that you stretch your muscles before you begin. Stretching is important because it prevents injuries that could impede your performance.
It is best to fully stretch both before and after you begin walking on your treadmill. By stretching before your exercise you will help to warm your muscles allowing yourself extra flexibility, and by stretching afterwards you will help to prevent your muscles stiffening up.
Here are my top tips to help you avoid damaging your muscles while exercising:
1. The first mistake many people make is to try and stretch too far. If you are in pain then you have stretched too far! It is much better to stretch to a position that you find comfortable, and then hold this stance for between 15 - 20 seconds.
2. Breathe through your stretches. Some people hold their breath during their stretch routines, but when you practice deep breathing exercises, it helps you perform a deeper stretch for your muscles.
3. Many people see the stretching as a warm up, but it's really important that your muscles are actually warmed up before you stretch, so always walk or jog for a few minutes to get blood flowing to your muscles.
4. A warm bath or shower and a stretch are excellent ways to end an exercise session. The warm water of the bath or shower will help to relax your muscles and the stretching will help avoid injury and will feel great!
5. Don't bounce during your stretches. You may have seen many athletes on TV bouncing while they stretched their muscles. This can actually cause injury rather than prevent it.
A lot of people assume that a treadmill will only exercise the leg muscles when in fact it delivers a full body workout. While it is important to stretch your calf muscles, quadriceps, and hamstrings it is also extremely important to stretch muscles in other areas as well such as the shoulders, neck, back and abs.
Don't just bend over and hang, trying to touch your toes. Add some additional stretches, such as the splits, lunges, and calf stretches where you stand on the edge of a step or curb and drop your heels to the point right before it becomes uncomfortable.
Keeping your movements slow and precise will give you the best results, in fact by keeping some tension in your muscles you will be sure to get the most from your stretching exercises. It is really important that you remember to stop stretching before it becomes uncomfortable though. - 15438
It is best to fully stretch both before and after you begin walking on your treadmill. By stretching before your exercise you will help to warm your muscles allowing yourself extra flexibility, and by stretching afterwards you will help to prevent your muscles stiffening up.
Here are my top tips to help you avoid damaging your muscles while exercising:
1. The first mistake many people make is to try and stretch too far. If you are in pain then you have stretched too far! It is much better to stretch to a position that you find comfortable, and then hold this stance for between 15 - 20 seconds.
2. Breathe through your stretches. Some people hold their breath during their stretch routines, but when you practice deep breathing exercises, it helps you perform a deeper stretch for your muscles.
3. Many people see the stretching as a warm up, but it's really important that your muscles are actually warmed up before you stretch, so always walk or jog for a few minutes to get blood flowing to your muscles.
4. A warm bath or shower and a stretch are excellent ways to end an exercise session. The warm water of the bath or shower will help to relax your muscles and the stretching will help avoid injury and will feel great!
5. Don't bounce during your stretches. You may have seen many athletes on TV bouncing while they stretched their muscles. This can actually cause injury rather than prevent it.
A lot of people assume that a treadmill will only exercise the leg muscles when in fact it delivers a full body workout. While it is important to stretch your calf muscles, quadriceps, and hamstrings it is also extremely important to stretch muscles in other areas as well such as the shoulders, neck, back and abs.
Don't just bend over and hang, trying to touch your toes. Add some additional stretches, such as the splits, lunges, and calf stretches where you stand on the edge of a step or curb and drop your heels to the point right before it becomes uncomfortable.
Keeping your movements slow and precise will give you the best results, in fact by keeping some tension in your muscles you will be sure to get the most from your stretching exercises. It is really important that you remember to stop stretching before it becomes uncomfortable though. - 15438
About the Author:
Treadmill walking for weight loss is a terrific first step after you have those muscles stretched! Get treadmill workout strategies as well as indepth reviews of the best treadmills here.
