How Does Stretching Help with Weight Loss?
Do you want to lose weight? You can stretch to get rid of some extra pounds. However, you can only lose a small amount of weight from stretching. Activities such as biking, high-intensity interval training (HIIT), and jogging [3] will help lose more weight.
Stretching can boost the number of calories you lose daily, especially when it is part of non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT). NEAT is known as the number of calories you lose performing your daily routines, such as cleaning, walking, putting your groceries in their normal storage, and cooking. Any activity that requires active movement helps to lose weight.
How Does Stretching Tone Your Body?
Several studies show that stretching and muscle hypertrophy [4] are linked. Experts suggest that stretching may result in increased development of muscle tissues. It mostly occurs when you stretch during workout breaks and when you use more muscle force during stretching.
Studies show that passive stretching does not affect muscle tone. For stretching to have effects on muscle development, it must be done with resistance training.
How and When to Stretch during Exercise
You can incorporate stretching into your exercise routine through different methods. Your fitness trainer will give you suggestions based on what goal you want to achieve.