Time to Stretch

I constantly refer to this program as a journey because there is so much growing and stretching that happens along the way.  Stretching isn't always fun, and sometimes it's downright painful! 

Stiff muscles are always resistant to stretching, and I know that if I stop where it feels comfortable, my range of motion can be pretty limited sometimes.  Even now, when I first bend over to touch my toes, sometimes my fingers reach the toes and sometimes they don't.  What's really interesting, however, is that if I stretch as far as I can and hold it for a minute or so, even though it hurts a bit, the muscles relax and I can go down just a bit more.  If I hold that for another minute or so, I can stretch farther yet.  In fact, by stretching in increments I am able to touch my forehead to my knees and place my palms flat on the floor.  I can never do that the very first time I bend over in the morning, but continuing to stretch and warming up those stiff muscles gets me where I want to go.

For many of you (and formerly me!) on 5&1, you are stretching some muscles you haven't used in a while.  I used to say that every time I turned down a food temptation, I was strengthening my "no thank you" muscle :-).  Whenever we stretch those muscles, it's initially not comfortable and sometimes even a bit painful.  But if we hold the position for a moment or two, the pain leaves and we find we can make a little more progress.  We won't get there all at once, but if we're persistent and refuse to give ground, and if we're willing to keep stretching, we WILL get there!

In the past, if I bent over and couldn't touch my toes, I'd give up, figuring that I just couldn't do it.  I stopped where it was comfortable and wasn't willing to risk being a bit uncomfortable temporarily in order to get all the way down.  Now I can reach way past my toes - much farther than I would have thought possible.

If you're feeling some tight muscles today as this program stretches you, hold your position and don't back off, because you will soon be reaching further than you can imagine - all the way to your goal.  So decide to stretch today, then choose wisely :-)