Answer from Bonne Marano: The component of fitness most overlooked, and no less important than strength training and cardiovascular exercise is flexibility. Flexibility is related to the range of motion in a joint, as well as the length of muscle and tendons. The degree of flexibility in your body can always be improved by stretching. Flexibility training is important for good posture. Furthermore, muscle imbalances can lead to pulled muscles, injury and even poor posture. Stretching can help correct the imbalance and reduce the onset of post-workout muscle soreness. A regular stretching routine will also help improve your posture. Strength training and flexibility training should go hand in hand. It is a common misconception that there must always be a trade-off between flexibility and strength. Obviously, if you neglect flexibility training altogether in order to train for strength then you are certainly sacrificing flexibility (and vice versa). To be more specific, after you have used weights (or other means) to overload and fatigue your muscles, your muscles retain a "pump" and are shortened somewhat. This "shortening" is due mostly to the repetition of intense muscle activity that often only takes the muscle through part of its full range of motion. This "pump" makes the muscle appear bigger. The "pumped" muscle is also full of lactic acid and other by-products from exhaustive exercise. If the muscle is not stretched afterward, it will retain this decreased range of motion (it sort of "forgets" how to make itself as long as it could) and the buildup of lactic acid will cause post-exercise soreness. Stretching is the key to developing and maintaining flexibility. As you stretch, your range of motion increases, allowing you to perform easy tasks like bending down to tie your shoes or the more challenging task of the doing the limbo. Guidelines to stretching: Never stretch a cold muscle. Always warm up before you stretch. Stretch at the end of every workout. Stretch all of your muscles, not just the ones you’ve used in your workout. Hold stretched between 15-30 seconds. As you become more flexible, gradual increase to one minute. Never bounce. Ballistic stretching causes the muscle to contract and tighten. Ease into the stretch and hold it for the entire time. Stretch the muscle to the point of slight tension. You should feel a slight discomfort during the stretch. You should never stretch to the point where it feels like the muscle is tearing. Don’t forget to breathe. Use your breath to maximize your stretch in the following manner: When in the stretch position, take a deep breath in, relax, then slowly breathe out and slightly increase your stretch.

Answer from Donna Flagg: I also think of stretching as an important way to maintain the health, stability and overall structural balance of the body even if it runs independent of weights and cardio. I’ve had runners and basketball players come to me just to stretch out, not unlike the way they’d go for a massage to “treat” their muscles. Aside from being part of an integrated workout, flexibility training also helps offset the effects of aging (since we get tighter with time) and the likelihood of injury (since muscles need to give to perform at their best). So often the focus in fitness is on muscle mass, tone, firmness, appearance, etc, and as a result we tend to do things that “tighten” our muscles to create or maintain the “shape.” So in addition to balancing out your fitness regime, relieving stress or increasing agility, stretching can help you feel, perform and move better in general whether you’re working out or not.