Stretching is a very important part of fitness and bodybuilding. Follows these rules for stretching properly:
Warm up before you stretch.
Hold each stretch for at least 15 to 30 seconds. As you become more flexible gradually increase the time to 1 minute.
Don't stretch to the point of pain. You should feel tension, but not pain.
Don't bounce when stretching. This can cause muscle pulls, or worse yet, muscle tears.
Make sure you breathe. Breathe in through your nose and exhale through your mouth.
Stretch all of your muscles for best results. The muscle groups to stretch are: lower back, upper back, chest, shoulders, rear thighs, front thighs, hip flexors, calves, shins, neck, arms, and wrists.
This is a good book on stretching:
Sports Stetching by Michael J. Alter- (September 1997)
