Stretches after lifting: a 5-minute cool-down that's worth it

Most lifters rack the bar and head for the door. A few minutes of stretching on the way out won't make or break your progress, but it's the easiest time of day to work on flexibility: your muscles are warm, you're already in the gym, and the routine can target exactly what you just trained.

What a cool-down does (and doesn't) do

• It does improve flexibility over time. Regular static stretching increases how far you can comfortably move, and warm muscles stretch more easily.
• It does help you wind down. Slow breathing in a long hold brings your heart rate down and marks the end of the session.
• It doesn't prevent soreness. Reviews of the research (Herbert and colleagues, Cochrane, 2011) found stretching after exercise makes almost no difference to next-day soreness. See should you train when sore.

How to stretch after a workout

1. Pick the muscles you trained. Three to five stretches is plenty.
2. Hold each one for 30 to 45 seconds, each side for one-sided stretches.
3. Go to a mild pull, not pain. Breathe out slowly and let the stretch deepen on its own.
4. Keep it to about five minutes. That's enough to do it every time.

A cool-down for each kind of day

• Push day (chest, shoulders, triceps): doorway chest stretch, cross-body shoulder stretch, overhead triceps stretch, child's pose.
• Pull day (back, biceps): kneeling lat stretch, thread the needle, child's pose, hands-behind-back stretch.
• Leg day: standing quad stretch, half-kneeling hip flexor stretch, lying hamstring stretch, figure-four, wall calf stretch.
• Full body: downward dog, pigeon, doorway chest stretch, lying twist.

A cool-down made from your workout

When you finish a workout in Liftsmith, the Done screen offers a Cool down for the muscles you just trained: about five minutes of holds, each with a line saying why it's there. A player times every stretch, tells you when to switch sides and shows each one on the same 3D figure as the exercise demos. You can drop any stretch, skip the whole thing, or turn the offer off in Settings.