You probably remember doing stretches before gym class when you were a kid.
You've also probably heard about the importance of stretching throughout the years since then.
But actually doing those stretches religiously is another story.
We've known a lot of people, including those who work in our newsroom, who suffer from back pain, neck pain or muscle tension.
In fact, some people have said it's become an epidemic in our country.
KHQA's Rajah Maples talked with a national expert about the importance of stretching, and what we can do now to prevent pain down the road.
Barbara Templeton: "When babies are born, if you watch a baby move, you see that they just automatically are stretching. And then as we go through life, we stop doing it."
Barbara Templeton is a yoga instructor and stretching expert from Connecticut. She recently co-authored a book called, "The Complete Idiot's Guide® to Stretching Illustrated."
Barbara Templeton: "As we go through life, our muscles and joints start to get tighter and stiffer. It's just the way life is. Because what happens is we move our bodies in repetitive ways -- walking/sitting/standing/driving and so on. And these are the same movements we do over and over again.
We all know how tight we get from sitting in front of a computer for hours. Barbara says stretching helps access muscles that aren't usually used during many of these typical, everyday activities.
Her book is filled with countless stretches. Since very few people have time to complete all of them everyday, we asked her what stretches are most important for you to do every day and how long. She says you should move your spine in 4 different says, every day. As for time, she says 10 minutes every morning is the minimum. But working your way up to 20 or even 30 minutes will be even better for your body.
The benefits of stretching are endless. They include elongating your muscles, which naturally become tighter with age; massaging your internal organs; releasing stress and increasing blood flow throughout your body.
