Stretch or Strengthen?

Years ago, maybe even 15+ years ago, I started doing heated yoga...  

It was around the time I was working on my prerequisites for Chiropractic school, so I thought it kind of fit into my new journey toward health and wellness.  Chiropractors should be flexible right? :)  

Then, someone super duper special to me decided to be a yoga instructor, and I thought, "Heck yeah!  I'll do it with you!!"  And I did more than think it.  We signed up and spent every weekend for what felt like years at the time at the studio training.

The process was long.

The process was challenging.

The process was immensely worth it.

I can't thank Sunstone enough for the opportunity, in fact, as it was such an amazing learning experience.  For me yoga was more than a stretch routine.  It was an active meditation demanding strength, balance and flexibility.  The pose I'm doing in the pic above is not something I was born with.  In fact, I was the kid that could barely reach past his knees with such tight hamstrings.  The focus it required to stay standing and endure the sometimes intense discomfort of some of the longer poses allowed me, or rather required me, to dig deep.  I also had a lot of time to think about life, to attempt to empty my mind and yes at times ask, "Why am I doing this again?" 

It was and continues to be a journey for sure.  If you ever get a chance to check out one of their locations, then I can't recommend them enough.  They offer a lot more than yoga now that I haven't ever tried, but of course you can Click Here for more information.

All that being said let me get to my point, not just how great Yoga is or whether all chiropractors should be flexible, but rather where does flexibility fit into the moving well and moving often I mentioned a few posts back?

Should we stretch more or should we focus more on strength?

This question is super important because we have maybe all heard that if your muscles are sore or hurt or you have some tightness in your low back, then you should try out some Yoga or Pilates.

This isn't a bad idea, but it may not be the right idea for your situation.

Often times some muscles may benefit from stretches, while other muscles may benefit more from strengthening.  The cool thing about the "Move Well" I mentioned the other day, is that it involves full range of motion movements, for example:  the squat (or as Gray Cook refers to it, the deep squat).  

From doing this movement, or at least attempting it, we can often determine whether we need more stretch or more strength (as well as whether we are lacking in BALANCE), and we can tell which muscles and/or joints need which.  This is just one of many movements we can look at to see what you might need to continue moving, learning to move better, and enjoying it so you'll do it often.

Pretty cool.  Super fun.