Evaluating your Flexibility

Depending on genetic makeup and your choice of activities, you may be very flexible in certain areas and very tight in others. The only way to evaluate your overall flexibility accurately is to have a trainer checks the range of motion in each joint. This checkup will give you a clear idea of which stretching exercises to concentrate on.

The "sit and reach" self-test will give a estimation of the flexibility of your hamstring muscles.

• Place a yardstick on the floor with the zero mark close to you, and tape the yardstick in the 15-inch mark.
• Ask someone to help you keep your legs straight during this test.
• Warm up by walking or cycling for several minutes, until you are perspiring lightly.
• Sit on the floor with your feet on either side of the yardstick. Your heels should be about 12 inches apart, and even with the 15-inch mark on the yardstick.
• Place one hand directly on top of the other so the middle fingers line up, and slowly stretch forward without bouncing. Slide your fingers along the yardstick as far as possible. Stop immediately if you feel any discomfort. The highest the number you reach on the yardstick, the greater your hamstring flexibility.