Thoughts on Stretching
- At June 23, 2011
- By Michelle Struckholz
- In Articles, News
- 0
As a dancer, stretching has always been an important part of my daily routine. However, I admit that I sometimes find it difficult to spend (what I consider to be) an adequate amount of time working on my flexibility. Thankfully I work along side Rob Daly (pictured above in a hip flexor stretch), who probably spends more time stretching than anyone I know. He is a “stretchaholic”. Rob has been a positive influence on my stretching habits, but I still have room for improvement.
At the gym, I generally do a few gentle stretches on the major muscle groups in my legs before I do my cardio workout. When I’m finished, I spend a longer period of time going into deeper stretches while my body is still warm. If I’m lifting weights, I typically stretch the muscles I’m working, in between sets. When warming up for a dance class, rehearsal, or performance I probably spend 30-60 minutes stretching and rolling around on the floor, before I feel anywhere close to ready to dance “full out”. For me, different activities require different and specific stretching habits.
This article in The New York Times has some interesting current information about stretching. Click on the link below to read the article.
Brains and Brawn
January 19, 2011, 12:01 AM
Phys Ed: Brains and Brawn
By GRETCHEN REYNOLDS in the NY Times
It has long been a cliché that muscle bulk doesn’t equate to intelligence. In fact, most of the science to date about activity and brain health has focused on the role of endurance exercise in improving our brain functioning. Aerobic exercise causes a steep spike in blood movement to the brain, an action that some researchers have speculated might be necessary for the creation of new brain cells, or neurogenesis. Running and other forms of aerobic exercise have been shown, in mice and men, to lead to neurogenesis in those portions of the brain associated with memory and thinking, providing another compelling reason to get out at lunchtime and run.
Read More»How to Shovel Snow Safely
Here’s a video and a little advice on how to make it through the winter snow and not get hurt. Read the entire article written by Deborah Kotz from Boston.com below.
It’s blizzard time in the Boston area this weekend, with a severe winter storm expected to dump 15 to 20 inches of snow on the Eastern Massachusetts region. Besides the usual aggravations of clogged, slippery Monday morning commutes, you need to prepare yourself for the big dig out.
National Weather Service meteorologist Alan Dunham told Globe reporters Scott Allen and Emma R. Stickgold, “It’s going to be heavy snow. Sometimes you refer to this kind of snow as ‘heart attack snow’, because it is so heavy for people to shovel.”
Read More»