If you are doing general fitness exercises, it's not necessary to stretch for flexibility following your initial warm up.

However, there are some benefits to checking out your body for any tightness, injuries or feelings of being 'below par'. Give the muscle a slight feeling of being stretched, see how it feels, and then ease off.

Serious athletes do stretch heavily before an event, but they also need to spend lots of time (more than an hour in some sports) just getting ready to stretch. They always run the risk of a muscle tear, as their main aim in stretching is to increase power output, not increase flexibility or prevent injury.

Easy stretches

Easy stretches should be undertaken slowly and carefully, and should follow your warm up routine:

• extend (stretch) the muscle until a slight tension is felt in the bulk of the muscle, not in the ligaments, tendons or around a joint
• hold that position of slight stretch for five to 10 seconds, and the feeling of stretch should go away - if the stretched feeling doesn't go, then ease off until the stretch disappears, and hold the new position
• never hold yourself in a position where you keep feeling the stretch or you will activate a protective mechanism that will cause your muscles to contract - this is where the muscles start shaking in a stretch and leads to a loss of flexibility
• after each stretch, let your body relax; areas that feel tight, tired or uncomfortable need extra warming up before you start exercising
• start the easy stretching routine by standing in the starting position with feet comfortably apart, knees slightly bent and abdominal muscles firm to keep the pelvis in position.

Calf stretch

• The first easy stretch is for the muscles at the back of the lower legs, the calf muscles. Step back far enough with the foot so the heel is just off the floor. Put your weight on this back foot to push the heel back down to the floor. Remember, hold the position of slight stretch, and the feeling of stretch should go away after five or 10 seconds. If the stretched feeling doesn't go, then ease off until the stretch disappears and hold the new position. Try the other leg.

Hamstring stretch

• To 'feel out' the hamstrings, tap your heel on the floor in front. Bend the knee of the back leg, and put your hands on the thigh of this bent leg. Push your bottom out behind you and you should get a feeling of tension at the back of the thigh of the front leg, about 15 cm above the back of the knee.

Thigh muscle stretch

• The easy stretch for the quadriceps (thigh muscles) can put some pressure on the knee joint, so be careful with this one. Stand on one leg and lift the heel of the other leg up behind. Grab that ankle with the opposite hand and then lift the heel away from your buttocks until you get a stretch in the front of the thigh. If you don't get a stretch, contract your abdominals (stomach muscles). Relax in this position. Try the other leg.

Upper body stretch

• You will need a partner for this stretch. Stand upright and raise your arms out to the side, palms toward the front. Your partner stands behind you and supports your arms in this position. If you don't feel a stretch, ask your partner to gently pull your arms back until you get a stretch across the front of your arm, the front of your shoulders or across the front of your chest. Different people will stretch in different places depending on where they lack flexibility. Relax until the feeling of stretch disappears.

Rotate your shoulders

• Rotate your shoulders. Rotate your neck slowly by looking over one shoulder, then the other.
• Finish off this easy stretching routine by stretching up tall to try and touch the sky.

Warm up

If you have taken the time to stretch, your body will have started to cool down and lose flexibility, warmth and mobility. You need to go back and complete five to 10 repetitions of your warm up routine before you start the harder exercise segment of your exercise routine. As an alternative, three minutes of brisk walking or on an exercise bike will get you warmed up again.

Original material supplied by Monty Dortkamp, Chief Executive Officer, Fitness Australia, and Managing Director of the Australian Institute of Recreation. Edited by everybody, March 2005.