One day the stretch feels easy, and the next your legs feel like they’ve tightened overnight. It can feel like you’ve lost ground. You almost certainly haven’t. Day-to-day changes in how flexible you feel are normal, and they tell you more about your day than about your progress.

What can make a day feel tighter

Your flexibility responds to everything else going on in your life. Many people notice they feel tighter:

• After a long stretch of sitting, like a long drive or a day of back-to-back calls.
• After a poor night’s sleep.
• When they’re stressed or tense.
• In cold weather, or in a cool room.
• The day after a long walk, a run or a session in the garden.

None of these undo the work you’ve done. They just change how your body feels on that particular day.

What to do on a tight day

On a tighter day, there’s no need to chase yesterday’s reach. You could try:

• Choosing the easier option for each stretch.
• Taking a little longer to settle before you go any further.
• Doing your stretches after you’ve been up and about for a while, if you can.

A calm session on a tight day still counts towards your week. Often it’s the one that leaves you feeling looser afterwards.

What a good day tells you

The easy days are useful too. They show you the range your body is building towards. Over the weeks, many people find the tight days become less tight and the good days come more often.

What to take away

• How flexible you feel changes from day to day, and that’s normal.
• Sitting, sleep, stress and cold can all make a day feel tighter.
• On a tight day, choose the easier options and don’t push to match yesterday.
• A gentle session on a tight day still adds to your progress.

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