Quite a stretch

Reaching out may be just what the doctor ordered right now to keep our wellbeing intact, writes Vicki Bramley.

- Vicki Bramley

Stretching is one simple, positive thing we can do for our bodies, and it becomes even more critical when we’re confined. In a purely physical sense, it increases our range of motion and reduces muscle-tendon stiffness, thereby keeping us limber.

Some say it stretches the mind, too. Turning our attention to tight muscles gives respite from mental stress and, when we tease out the physical tension, that stress melts away with it.

“Stretching introduces people to the interconnectedness of mind and body,” says rehabilitation trainer and yoga teacher Sofija Vracar. “When you breathe deeper and you’re not contracting your muscles, you’re allowing yourself more mental space.”

Cherie Seeto, who has taught stretch for 21 years since founding Sydney Stretch Therapy, says lengthening our limbs also softens our thoughts. “Clients become kinder to themselves, more aware of their bodies, more flexible in their thinking. Nothing is separate – the mind, body, spirit – you are just one being with all of those experiences,” she says. “People start to like themselves more. They never walk in and say, ‘I’ve got great legs; I’ve got a strong back’. Then they realise this is the one vehicle they’ve got and start to nourish it.”