How to Stretch (for kids)

If you have a dream of becoming a successful gymnast, dancer or athlete, you need to work out to be as healthy and flexible as possible. Before doing stretching exercises, you need to know some basic terms. Static stretching is when you will keep your body in a comfortable stretch position. Dynamic stretching is when you repeat movements of the same amplitude and active stretching is when you actively squeeze the muscle opposite the muscle being stretched. Once you have mastered the above terms, let’s start to warm up the body.

Table of Contents

Learn basic stretching poses

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Practice sitting legged. You will sit with your butt on the floor, straightening and opening your legs as wide as you can. Point your toes forward and place your hands in front of you to keep your balance. You should feel the stretch in your hips and inner thighs. ^{[1] X Research Source}

Hold the pose for about 15 seconds.
Each time you do this pose, try to open your legs a little more. The ultimate goal is to be able to cross.
When practicing any stretch pose, you need to be patient and not overdo it.

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Practice sitting forward bend. You will sit with your butt on the floor, legs extended forward and arms raised overhead, arms extended. Bend forward and try to touch your toes. ^{[2] X Research Source}

Hold the pose for about 15 seconds.
Your hands may not be able to reach your toes. Keep practicing, the more flexible you are, the closer you will get to your toes.

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Practice squatting position. In a standing position, you will step left foot forward, right foot behind. Bend your left knee to a 90-degree angle and lower your right foot to the floor to balance your body. Place both hands on the left leg and press gently to deepen the stretch of the left leg. ^{[3] X Research Sources}

Hold the pose for about 15 seconds.
After 15 seconds, you will switch legs and do the same with the right leg.

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Practice crossing your arms in front of your chest. You will stand with your feet apart (slightly wider than shoulder width). Cross your right hand in front of your chest, hold and stretch your left hand. ^{[4] X Research Sources}

Squeeze your hands until you feel a stretch in your shoulders.
Hold the position for about 10 seconds, then switch hands and do the same.

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Stretch your arms behind your back. You will stand up straight, crossing your right arm behind your back. Reach your left hand behind, grab and stretch your right hand. Hold the pose for about 15 seconds and then repeat. This time, you will use your right hand to grasp and stretch your left hand.

While doing this pose, try to stretch your neck muscles. Tilt your head toward the arm you’re holding and stretch the other arm. If you are using your left hand to grasp and stretch your right hand, tilt your head to the left.

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Practice leaning. You will stand with your feet wide (slightly wider than your hips) and extend your arms to your sides. Lean over to the right until right arm is facing the floor, left arm is straight out. ^{[5] X Research Sources}

Stretch your left arm until you feel a stretch in your left shoulder and left flank.
Hold this position for about 10 seconds and then switch sides. As you lean to the left, you’ll drop your left hand toward the floor, reaching your right arm straight out.

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Practice Superman Pose. You will lie face down on the floor, arms stretched forward (the whole body will be in a straight line). Lift your arms and legs off the floor; arms as high as ears and feet slightly higher than hips. ^{[6] X Research Source}

Hold this position for about 15 seconds.
As your body becomes more flexible, try to lift your legs even higher.

Stretching exercises with gentle movements

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Start with jumping. You will stand up straight, feet together and hands close to the sides of your body. Jump with your legs apart, and at the same time bring your arms above your head. Then jump with your feet together, and at the same time bring your arms back to the starting position. ^{[7] X Research Sources}

Do this movement 15 times in a row to promote blood circulation.
As you get older and stronger, you can do this move more times.

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Practice arm rotation. You will stand with your feet slightly wider than your hips. Raise your arms above your head, then move them in a circular motion down to your hips and then back up to your head. ^{[8] X Research Sources}

Always keep your arms straight.
Rotate your arms 10 times forward and then 10 times backwards.

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Rope skipping. You will stand on your right foot, bend your left leg. Lower your left foot and bring your right foot up. Accelerate the movement until you feel like you are jumping rope.

When you are used to jumping in place, you can jump up and down for about 1 minute each time.
As you get stronger and more flexible, increase your jump rope time each day.

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Practice squats. You will stand with your feet shoulder width apart, toes facing forward. Put your body weight on your heels, slowly bend your knees, lower your body to the floor as if you are about to sit down in a chair. ^{[9] X Research Source}

Pause when your buttocks are almost touching the floor, then slowly get up to the starting position and repeat the movement.
Bring your arms forward for balance.
Make sure your knees don’t exceed your toes. If you can see the toe of your shoe, you’re doing it right, otherwise your knee is leaning forward too much.

Increase flexibility with active stretching movements

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Back leg stretch. You will bend the left leg back, the left hand holding the left foot. The right hand should face the ceiling as far as possible. After reaching your arms, you will tiptoe on your right foot, stand on your toes and balance here. ^{[10] X Research Source}

After stretching the left leg, you will switch sides and do the same with the right leg.
Practice alternating legs, each leg 10 times.

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Practice downward facing dog. From a standing position, you will bend over, touching your hands to the floor. Walk or arms forward until the body looks like an inverted V. ^{[11] X Research Source}

Hands shoulder width apart.
Stretch all your fingers.
Feet hip-width apart.
Try to touch your heels to the floor.

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Practice tree pose. You will stand up straight with your legs closed. Lift right leg up and tuck right foot into left thigh (above knee). Clasp your hands in front of your chest. ^{[12] X Research Source}

Stand in this position for about 10 seconds and then switch sides.
When standing with your feet closed, you should let your big toes touch and slightly separate your heels.
Make sure your body is balanced.
Do not put your foot on the knee to avoid injuring the knee joint.

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Practice bow pose. You will lie on your back with your arms stretched out at your sides – palms facing up. Bend your knees and grab your ankles with both hands. ^{[13] X Research Source}

As you inhale, try to lift your knees and thighs higher.
Hold this position for about 5 seconds. Rest for a while and then repeat the movement two more times.

Advice

Do not hold tense positions for more than 30 seconds.
If you’re stretching for martial arts or karate, you’ll need to do more intense exercises. Remember that the exercises above are just warm-up exercises, so don’t mind those who say you have to feel pain to call them stretching. Stay focused and listen to your body. If you feel pain, your body is telling you to stop or at least not to push yourself too hard, do so.
If you’re preparing for a big competition, don’t over-extend your muscles, you’ll get injured and affect your results.
Remember that practice takes time, so be patient.
When you stretch, you can listen to your favorite songs.
When you’re doing stretching exercises like the sitting forward bend, you can keep an interesting book or a video game in front of you to try to reach them. However, be careful not to overdo it.
Keep practicing — you’ll definitely do it one day.
If you stretch to practice dancing, you should not do too much. Exercising too much can cause cramps and lack of strength in your legs.
Don’t be in a hurry to do perfect stretches.
Some stretching poses are more difficult than others. Be patient and slowly practice every day to become more flexible.

Warning

If you experience pain while stretching, you should stop exercising immediately.

Steps

Learn basic stretching poses

Stretching exercises with gentle movements

Increase flexibility with active stretching movements

Advice

Warning

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