Stretching keeps your muscles flexible, while resistance exercises build strength. Both types of exercise are needed to keep your muscles in top physical condition.
Muscles also support our entire skeletal system.
To help us move freely and to support our bodies, muscles must be flexible and strong. Stiff, weak muscles can limit movement and lead to poor posture, back and joint pain, and increased risk of injury. Stretching For Flexibility Exercises such as touching your toes, where you gradually extend and release a muscle, are called stretching exercises. To understand how stretches work, think of a muscle as a rubber band. A too-tight rubber band is likely to snap or break when you extend it unless you gradually stretch and release it to make it more supple.