At the Start of Any Physical Activity, Make Time For December 2020’s Resolution!

Ever woke up late and sprinted to school or work, making it just on time? Or saw a little kid fall into the deep end of a pool and dove quickly to save them? While the adrenaline pumping through your veins allows you to act in the moment, we bet you’ll be suffering from some soreness the next day! That’s why it’s important to devote some time to this month’s resolution, which will help you ease into your exercises and reduce discomfort.

As we announced in our January Resolutions blog, we will be launching monthly Capture Streak Badges centered on a year of being active. Each month’s badge will be dedicated to practicing a different exercise. Similar to how our Super Streak badges operate, you will be awarded a badge if you capture at least one munzee* each day for the entire month. This month’s badge may be tricky to get, but we believe in you!

Each month’s badge will be themed around the particular resolution goal. For December, we’re putting the focus on Dynamic Stretching! You may be thinking — the opposite of “dynamic” is “static”, so is there also “static stretching”? If so, what’s the difference? The answer is, yes, there is both “dynamic” and “static” stretching, and the difference is pretty intuitive. Keep reading to find out!

So what is dynamic stretching and what is static stretching?

Dynamic stretching is the kind of stretching you should be doing as a warm-up at the start of a workout or other physical activity. According to Healthline.com, “Dynamic stretches can be functional and mimic the movement of the activity or sport you’re about to perform. For example, a swimmer may circle their arms before getting into the water.” Similarly, in the badge art above, the runners are making sure to carefully bend and stretch their arms and legs in a way similar to how they would be while running. To reiterate, dynamic stretching is preparing your body for a lot of movement by “pre-moving” it and giving it time to adjust.

As for static stretching, the goal is not preparing your body for movement — quite the opposite, as you’ve probably guessed. You are stretching, and then holding that stretch. This might sound great for those who are lazy exercisers, but don’t think you can get away with doing static stretching alone. Static stretching is actually only recommended AFTER warming up your body. This is because the increased circulation reduces tension in your muscles, allowing you to stretch more easily and lessening the risk of pulling a muscle or otherwise straining yourself. Once you’ve warmed up though, static stretching is a great way to increase your flexibility and cool down.

Before you attempt any exercise, it’s always a good idea to consult your doctor**. Good luck and Munzee on!

* In order to encourage active gameplay we will not count Social Munzees for these capture streaks. If you know you’ll be in an area without munzees, plan ahead! 

** MUNZEE IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY EXERCISE-RELATED INJURIES