All ·Jun 14, 2025

What Happened When I Stretched Every Day for a Month

Recently I set myself a 1-month challenge to stretch every day with the goal of releasing my right leg (and entire body) to help fix some annoying foot pain I've had on and off for a few years.

A podiatrist labelled it sesamoiditis – inflammation at the big toe joint. Over the years I've tried plenty of things to fix it: a moon boot, arch support, different shoes, regular osteo appointments. Let's just say there have been times where I thought, "Damn, should've listened to the foot fetish fans and sold some feet pics." These high arches might be some people's kryptonite, but god they're expensive.

Time went on and I booked a remedial massage with a myotherapist. Despite my calves being visually non-existent, he said my right calf was one of the tightest he'd worked on – he spent an entire hour on it.

Calves are weird. You can waltz around blissfully unaware of them, until someone presses into one and suddenly you want to vomit and/or cry.

I walked in with a right calf made of concrete. I walked out with it feeling like a plate of jelly... and lo and behold, it helped release the extremely tight arch in my foot and took the pressure off my big toe joint.

After that session, rather than viewing it as a pesky injury or chronic inflammation that wouldn't go away, I decided to view the foot pain as my body saying: "Hey could you please keep addressing things further up the chain pls and thnx."

The Hypothesis

If...
Tight arch + tight calf + tight hamstrings + tight glute = inflamed big toe joint

Then maybe...
Releasing tight glute → hamstring → calf → arch = happy big toe joint!?

Only one way to find out – and annoyingly, the only person who can stretch for me... is me. So this experiment meant: less outsourcing and more quality time with Get Bendy.

The Test

10 minutes of stretching each night for a month, to see if tightness could be behind the pesky pain.

Plot Twist

This started as a foot fixing mission... but turned into something with so many welcome surprises. Which is exactly why I want to share it with you.

1. Accountability (^ this guy)

I thought I’d need a decent amount of discipline to kick off the first month, but Sunny (our Golden Retriever) quickly and lovingly hijacked the challenge with ‘omg, Mum suddenly wants to join post-dinner zoomies’.

Every night he’d grab his toy and eagerly wait for me to roll out the mat on our lounge room rug so we could have our nightly stretch and play.

Moral of the story: Get a dog. Or make it quality time with someone else.
Real moral of the story: When stretching becomes part of something you're already doing or something enjoyable, it’s far easier than trying to carve out time for it.

2. Uncomfortableness

I didn't expect my right glute to trigger so much physical and emotional uncomfortableness. Fortunately, that only lasted about a week – but I feel it's worth mentioning in case you find yourself in a similar predicament.

Visualise:

A tangled ball of Christmas lights
A necklace chain with 100 microscopic knots
Trying to untangle both... while stuck in a traffic jam

That’s what my right glute felt like.

If your nervous system wants to throw a tantrum and storm out, remind yourself: the flighty feeling passes. It's often your stretch reflex saying, "whoa, we haven't been here in a while, you're gonna need to take this slow." The more you relax, the more your body realises it’s safe to let go.

I liked to imagine a thousand tiny elves meticulously working to untangle a big knot. Every time they yelled "AND BREATHEEEE", I relaxed and they could get on with their job.

It didn't take long for my right glute to start mirroring my left – the side that was doing what it was meant to. It was proof that a little patience goes a long way.

3. Just 10 minutes

I was surprised by how often 10 minutes easily turned into far longer. Some nights I ended up stretching for 2 hours with no structure, just rolling around the lounge room until my body felt like a puddle.

On the flip side, 10 minutes was plenty on the days I could have made 100 excuses.

Choosing before bed was perfect. Nowhere else to be, and the best way to wind down and set myself up for a great sleep.

Secret sauce: If you can push through and promise yourself 10 minutes on the days you really can't be bothered, the new habit sticks like glue. Reminding myself it was just 10 minutes kept me from slipping back into default sloth mode.

4. Songs and snacks

I started listening to music again. Full albums. I even rediscovered my dormant Apple Music account, got catapulted back to 2014, and may have had a nostalgic cry on the floor.

Sunny loves a dance party. Each night felt like a class in educating him on a catalogue of music with so many time stamps from my life.

I find it hilarious that he has no choice in what we listen to. He hears my favourite artists as much as I do, whether he likes it or not.

Chocolate. Hot chocolate. Sometimes both. These actually helped a lot in that first week. If breathing wasn’t cutting it, chocolate certainly did. Definitely one of the perks of Getting Bendy at home.

5. Little reminders

A reminder that my body felt different every day. Some days my muscles felt like melted butter. Other days I felt like tin man.

A workout, a day at the desk, a day in the car, a stressful day, a fun day — they all shaped how my body felt.

I realised how often stretching and flexibility can carry an annoying undertone of "I should be more flexible" or "I should be improving"... instead of just giving yourself a break and doing something because it's a nice chance to chill the hell out.

I'm guilty of being a serial goal setter, but this time I scrapped that and wrapped this little routine in cotton wool. Sacred relax-and-unwind time.

Groundbreaking, hey? Doing something without needing to achieve anything.

6. Le foot update

Stretching has absolutely helped release things, which has revealed my main character's next request. Now that my muscles aren't as tight, it's clear my right side needs some work in the stability department. I've sprained my right ankle numerous times, and it's the side my scoliosis loves to throw out of whack.

When I stand on my left leg, I feel solid. When I stand on my right, it feels like someone is trying to push me over from every angle.

I'm starting to think the recurrent tightness is my body's way of gripping for balance and overcompensating where it shouldn't.

7. The best bit

30 days was more than enough to realise this wasn't just a one-off challenge.

It's how I want to end my day now. A chance to unwind, have quality time with Sunny, and do something nice for my body and mind.

I have a unique relationship with Get Bendy. Over the past 11 years, it's played different roles in different chapters – something I've desperately needed, a base for challenging myself, and at times a reminder of work and a reason to avoid it.

But this particular month helped me reconnect with it in the simplest, most enjoyable way. No pressure or expectations, just a chance to do something kind for my body. And I'm loving this new relationship with it.

TL;DR — aka you skipped the good bits, but here's the summary:

Combining stretch time and Sunny play time has made it super easy to stick to and more enjoyable.
The initial uncomfortableness passed within the first week.
10 minutes was the perfect time frame – achievable on the days I didn't feel like it, and plenty to start and see where it led.
Committing on the days I didn't want to (especially in the first month) is what solidified the new routine.
Stretching has helped the foot, and also revealed stability is the next focus.
Blasting music + stretching = the best.
Snacks + stretching = delicious.
Every day felt different.
I scrapped expectations and started enjoying this time for myself.
I've been doing this for well over 30 days now and I'm loving it.