Muscle pulls, strains, joint injuries, pulled ligaments and other injuries are often caused by one thing, lack of flexibility and proper warm-up. Stretching and flexibility exercises should be part of every workout you have.

Have you ever watched high school, college, and professional athletes train? At the beginning of every training session their trainers and coaches insist they go through a complete series of stretching and flexibility routines. The players often hate this portion of the practice. They are excited about building strength, growing bigger muscles, and the actual time playing their sport. Coaches and trainers know without this critical time of warm-up and stretching they will be losing players left and right to injury.

Now, go to your local fitness gym and watch the average person come in for their exercise routine. They walk in the door already dressed to exercise. They walk up to the first machine, climb on it, and start their workout. That night they lay in be, get a cramp, want a massage, or complain about their latest annoying little injury. It might not be a severe injury, but they have an annoying pain in the arm, leg or back. These kinds of problematic training injuries can be avoided by taking a little extra time to prepare your body.

When you head into the gym to workout, take the first five minutes to do stretching and flexibility exercises. Make sure your hamstrings, calf muscles, and back muscles have been gently warmed up and stretched before you jump on the weight equipment, exercise bike, treadmills, or other gear. Not only do you help protect yourself from injury, you will make your workouts more effective. Your body will move more freely, with a little more range of motion. Your muscles are warmed up and ready for action and will be ready to start burning off the fat.

If you want the best overall effects, then add a five minute session of stretching and flexibility at the end of your workout, too. Your muscles will be warmed up, and you will discover you can stretch a little further. Working to have a great range of motion will help protect your body when you do those strange and unusual moves at home to pickup things off the floor, the quick twists to grab the running child, or trying to control the dog while you give them a bath.

The biggest benefit from using stretching and flexibility exercises will be noticed in the quiet of your bedroom at night. You are less likely to have the cramps, to notice tight painful muscles, and will discover less annoying aches and pains. Instead of taking extra time off from training all the time because of annoying injuries, you will never miss a session. Your body will be ready for action all the time. All those coaches and trainers are not making their players stretch for fun. They know it protects and prepares their bodies for the game ahead. It will work just as effectively even if your game is chasing kids. Take some time to prepare your body properly.