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Thank you both for your unconditional love and support that keeps me grounded and flexible in my approach to life. CONTENTS Introduction PART ONE: THE SCIENCE CHAPTER 1: Why Stretching Works CHAPTER 2: Proper Stretching CHAPTER 3: Your Stretching Experience PART TWO: THE STRETCHES CHAPTER 4: Neck, Chest, and Shoulders Thread the Needle Floor Angels Open-Heart Stretch Seated Neck Stretch Arm Circles Hinge and Reach Reverse Tabletop CHAPTER 5: Arms, Hands, and Wrists Biceps Stretch Overhead Triceps Stretch Wrist-Extensor Stretch Wrist-Flexor Stretch CHAPTER 6: Back and Torso Self-Myofascial Release for Mid and Upper Back Low Cobra Cat-Cow Supine Spinal Twist Standing Crescent Moon Bear Hug Kneeling Lat Stretch Head-to-Toe Stretch Bird-Dog Quadruped Rotations CHAPTER 7: Hips and Glutes Half Lord of the Fishes Bound Angle Figure 4 Self-Myofascial Release for Glutes Leg Swings Figure 8 Side-to-Side Standing Diagonals CHAPTER 8: Knees and Thighs Assisted Supine Hamstring Stretch Supported Standing Quadriceps Stretch Wide-Legged Forward Fold with Chest Expansion Assisted Low Lunge CHAPTER 9: Lower Legs, Ankles, and Feet Ankle Circles Standing Calf Stretch Tibialis Anterior Stretch Self-Myofascial Release for Calves Downward-Facing Dog PART THREE: THE WORKOUTS CHAPTER 10: Everyday Activities Workday Stretches Traveling Stretches Morning Routine Bedtime Routine While Watching TV After a Long Phone Call Gardening Shoveling Snow Heavy Lifting CHAPTER 11: Active Living Walking Running Swimming Cycling Golf Dancing Tennis Hiking Baseball/Softball Cross-Country Skiing Upper-Body Resistance Training Lower-Body Resistance Training CHAPTER 12: Easing Aches and Pains Stiff Neck Sore Wrists and Elbows Frozen Shoulder Tight Hips Sore Knees and Ankles Arthritis Diabetes CHAPTER 13: Specialized Routines General Warm-Up General Cool-Down Yoga-Inspired Roll and Stretch Props and Support CHAPTER 14: Customize Your Workout Resources References Introduction or more than 16 years, I’ve been in the business of helping F people move better, feel better, and enjoy life to its fullest. I became interested in health and fitness after I witnessed firsthand the devastating effects of chronic diseases, such as diabetes, on the health of my family. I wanted to help myself and my loved ones have a better quality of life, so I set out to learn how healthy lifestyles—including regular physical activity—can improve our well-being. It quickly became clear to me that a career in fitness was my calling. So, at a young age, I made the decision to focus my academic pursuits and professional work on educating and inspiring others to live healthier, more active lives. As a physical education major, group fitness instructor, and personal trainer, I spent most of the early part of my career deepening my understanding of the physical body. I taught an assortment of group cardio classes, including step aerobics and cardio kickboxing, and developed customized resistance-training programs for clients. Meanwhile I was studying technical topics, such as exercise physiology and biomechanics, as part of my undergraduate work. Although I had learned about flexibility training from books and understood how stretching worked, it wasn’t until I attended my first yoga class that I truly realized just how important flexibility is to overall health and wellness. At the time I did mostly cardio and strength-based workouts, as many people do,