We always hear people saying that exercise such as badminton can help you grow taller. Many people including myself wish to do that. I thought to myself if this was true. So, I went to the internet, did some research, and found the answer.
There is no scientific evidence showing that badminton or any exercise will make you grow taller. Your height has all to do with genetics which you have no control over.
What you do have control over is nutrition. That is the only thing that can help you reach your maximum height potential if you are still growing. Don’t get disappointed so quickly though. Badminton can, however, help you look taller in an appearance before and after your growth period. Let me explain…
Affect On Your Appearance
Even though badminton cannot help you actually grow taller, it can help you LOOK taller. Here are 3 ways it can help you do just that.
Elongating Your Spine
After a certain age, our bones just do not grow or elongate anymore. That is true but there is still one more thing to consider… your spine.
You see… your spine is not a single bone, it is made of 33 vertebrae being interlocked with one another. The good news is, these vertebrae actually have some space between each other and are expandable.
Playing badminton involves a lot of stretching and extension of torso when returning a shot. When you engage in these types of exercises, the space between your vertebrae will expand. This will then lead to your spine elongating, making you look taller.
Weight Loss
Appearance-wise, leaner people usually look taller compared to people with some extra weight on them. The good news is, badminton is a fantastic sport for weight loss! It is a highly intense sport that requires you to navigate around the court quickly and explosively.
This will make your heart pump hard and fast in no time. In fact, badminton burns, on average, about 480 calories per hour if you play badminton with any decent intensity.
The secret to losing weight is to be consistent and to be consistent, you have to enjoy the process. Luckily, badminton is really fun to play and it can help you with your ultimate goal which is to look taller.
Posture Improvement
Posture plays an important role in how tall you look. As people get older, they have a tendency to slouch more. Slouching will destroy your posture and making you look shorter than you are. Furthermore, more and more people are having desk jobs which worsens their slouching habits. This then becomes permanent making you short forever.
Playing badminton is very effective when correcting your posture and removing your slouch. Badminton forces your body to stretch in every position when catching shots. This will destroy the habit of slouching over time as you play more badminton.
In fact, playing badminton consistently will help you strengthen your spine, loosen your muscle from stretching, hence removing any tendency to slouch. As a result, you will stand and sit taller than before.
Nutrition To Maximize Growth
If you are still within your growth period, you can maximize your growth potential by eating the right meals and getting the right nutrition into your body. Most people reach their peak growth at 16 years old, after that your growth will slow down significantly if you are growing at all.
Eat Healthy Food
I know this might sound cliche but it has to be said. Eating healthy food will give you the nutrition you need for your body to grow. Avoid junk foods such as french fries, ice cream, fried chicken and etc.
Try to eat more fruits and vegetables as they are packed full of nutrients. Moreover, healthy foods also consist of lower calories compared to junk food (usually fried). This will help you maintain a healthy weight and prevent you from putting on unnecessary fats. This is a win-win since it can help you actually grow taller and combined with you being leaner, you naturally look taller.
On the other hand, if you are already past your growth period (over 16 years old), there is nothing much you can do about your height. All you can do at this point is to stay healthy, get yourself leaner, and improve your posture. This will give you the illusion of being taller than you actually are.
That being said, it is all about balance and moderation. I am not saying you cannot eat junk food, just do it in moderation.
Eat Enough Calories
Without eating enough calories, it will be harder for you to reach your maximum growth potential during your growth period. During your growth period, it is not recommended to start a caloric deficit if you want to grow tall and strong. During this period, your body is still growing and you need to supply it with enough food.
Think of your body like building a house and food being the materials (bricks, cement, etc) and your house if your size or height. Without enough “materials” your house cannot be fully built or with the speed you want. It is true that your body can use the excess fats and muscles for fuel but that is not ideal when you are still growing.
This might sound a little contradicting from eating healthy food with lower calories but you have to find a balance and eat enough to keep growing. It can hard to eat healthy food and have a high calories diet or even eating enough calories. You just have to force yourself to eat at least enough during your growing period if you want to maximize your growth in terms of size and height.
Like I’ve mentioned, you can eat some junk food, just do it in moderation and you will be fine. This will give you the extra boost of calories you need for your body to grow if you are a small eater.
Conclusion
How tall you become or will become is dependent on your genetics which is something you cannot control. Therefore, if you are over your growth period, there is no exercise or sport, including badminton, can help you grow taller. Anyone that tells you otherwise is plan lying to you. It is true that it can make you LOOK taller in appearance but it will not make you GROW taller.
If you are reading this and lucky enough to still be in your growth period, awesome! Make sure to eat lots of healthy food and consume enough calories if you want to maximize your growth potential. If you are out of your growth period, then I’m sorry to say, there is nothing you can do naturally to make your height any taller.
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