Flexibility can be the most stubborn of physical characteristics to train as part of your exercise and fitness program. Many people find that when they start off with a flexibility training program they make improvements over the first few months or so (depending on how much training you are actually doing) and then they hit a 'plateau' which they just can't get past, and no matter what they do from then on they make either very small and slow improvements, or no improvement at all. The best tool that you can get to help push you past this and to make real gains in your flexibility program is to use a stretching machine, and this is particularly true for developing flexibilty in the legs, which can be one of the most important and one of the most stubborn areas of the body. There are a wide variety of different machines out there, from the very basic and pretty cheap, to the souped up high-tech and high price tag end of the market. So I have written this hubpages to pick out some of the best models from each differentprice range and type of machine and written a little bit about them to help you to decide whether a stretching machine is right for you, and if so which one.

At the cheapest end of the market there are a number of simple devices available based on a system of cables or elastic cords. In addition to the obvious benefit of being cheap they are also usually very portable, which is ideal for athletes who regularly travel around the country (or the world!) to take part in competitons for their chosen sport, as they can be easily packed away into a bag and carried around from place to place. Also, they can generally be used for quite a wide variety of exercises. Probably the best one available is the 'Stretch Loop', which fits easily on to most door frames, can be used for 8 different stretching exercises, and uses body weight to increase the depth of the stretch. Because most of the exericises are done standing up it can take a bit of time to get used to doing them without falling over, but then I guess it does have the added benefit of helping you to improve your balance as well as your flexibility.

 At the next level up on the scale we have the basic steel machines. Theses are especially good if you are trying to train yourself to be able to do the splits, and can actually be pretty cheap as well costing little more on average than the pulley systems uses cord and elastic and so on. They can be a little bit uncomfortable to use, and they are not as effective as the more advanced machines (as you would expect) but they are very good value for money.

 Other than the leg stretchers the main products on the market which focus on training a specific part of the body are lumbar stretchers. The basic principle is very simple, just giving you a mound to lie over whic bends the back, so the main difference between models is in the number of setting which you have and the comfort that they provide to you when using them. The back is very hard to train properly without any equipment at all, so these are quite handy.

 The basic prinicple behind these is exactly the same as with the basic steel ones highlighted above. But instead of having to manually go from one level to the next, with a substantial difference betweent the levels which can be hard to cross, you get a turning wheel which you can use to increase the depth of the stretch gradually in tiny increments with the machine taking all the weight of pushing you further into the stretch. You also get support along your whole leg instead of just at the ankles, and they are comfortably padded making the whole thing a more pleasant experience. This really does make it a hell of a lot easier, and if you are trying to develop flexibility in your legs these are far and away the best thing to use, but of course that does come with a substantially higher price tag.

Other than the lumbar stretchers the vast majority of products on the market focus pretty much exclusively on the lower body, but if you are looking for something that will give you a full body workout, and if you have the money for it, then I would recommed the LifeSpan Fitness SP1000 Stretch Partner which is the most comprehensive and effective full body stretching machine that you can get. It can be used for 18 different exercises, and comes with a guide book and DVD that will tell you everything you need to know about using this system to improve not only your general flexibility but also your posture.