Pandiculation…Part of Your Daily Routine?
Pandiculation.
It’s something most of us do at least once a day. Sometimes more. Our pets do it. Right in front of us and we don’t scold them for it. Animals in the wild do it too.
What the heck is pandiculation, you ask?
According to an article posted by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), it is
“the involuntary stretching of the soft tissues, which occurs in
most animal species and is associated with transitions between
cyclic biological behaviors, especially the sleep-wake rhythm.”
Huh?
What they mean is, it’s when you (or your pet, or wild animals) stretch when you’re waking up, or when you’re getting tired at night.
So, do you pandiculate? That’s a fun one to ask your family, friends and neighbors.
Think about that very particular feeling of stretching before you get out of bed. My memories of that feeling go all the way back to early childhood. The feeling on a Saturday morning or during summer vacation when I didn’t have to go to school, and the whole fun day was ahead of me.
But I’ll tell you something. I pandiculated just this morning. And it felt great! I even made that funny sound you make when you’re doing it. You know the sound, half stretch half yawn. In fact, yawning is another form of pandiculation.
Are you getting tired of hearing the word pandiculation yet?
Why Do We Pandiculate…er…yawn and stretch?
Is there an actual purpose for this stretching, and why does it feel so good?
New Scientist tell us it feels good because we go through an almost-whole body muscle contraction, then release the contraction and let our muscles soften and come to rest. The softening and coming to rest are what feels so great.
“Pandiculation on waking resets the tension and resting
length of the skeletal muscle, by activating the
spindles – sensory receptors located within the skeletal muscles.
Its purpose is to prime the muscles for movement.”
Getting our muscles ready for movement makes sense. It helps us make the transition from sleepiness to alertness. Stretching increases blood flow to our muscles and prepares us for what we need to do next, which is to get out of bed and start our day.
The increased blood flow may also be why we stretch after sitting still too long, like in school or at our desk at work. Or even after an evening lounging in front of the TV.
So go ahead and pandiculate. It’s good for you!