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Japan’s Royal Family Makes Instagram Debut

Japan's Princess Aiko, the daughter of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako, poses for the media at the Japanese Red Cross Society as she begins to work on April 1, 2024. (AFP)
Japan's Princess Aiko, the daughter of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako, poses for the media at the Japanese Red Cross Society as she begins to work on April 1, 2024. (AFP)
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Japan’s Royal Family Makes Instagram Debut

Japan's Princess Aiko, the daughter of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako, poses for the media at the Japanese Red Cross Society as she begins to work on April 1, 2024. (AFP)
Japan's Princess Aiko, the daughter of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako, poses for the media at the Japanese Red Cross Society as she begins to work on April 1, 2024. (AFP)

Japan's royal family is now on Instagram -- but don't expect any candid selfies from its official account, which went live Monday in a cautious social media debut for the ancient monarchy.

The first 19 posts are formally staged photos and videos of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako carrying out royal duties at recent public appearances.

Nonetheless, more than 160,000 users have followed the Imperial Household Agency (IHA) account, which was announced a week ago but set to private until Monday.

The Japanese monarchy has mythological origins stretching back more than two millennia, and any public criticism of the emperor remains taboo in the country.

By joining social media, the institution hopes to spark interest among younger generations about what the imperial family does, an IHA spokesperson confirmed to AFP.

But, perhaps predictably, the posts under the Instagram handle kunaicho_jp contain no behind-the-scenes juice.

Strictly factual captions explain what the emperor did on what day, from meeting foreign dignitaries to admiring bonsai trees, with comments moderated.

The account does not follow any other users, and has so far not ventured into Instagram Stories.

"The IHA is on Instagram! I thought it was an April Fools' prank!" one X user wrote in reaction to the launch.

"When I heard the IHA created an Instagram account, I quickly checked it out. But of course the emperor wouldn't post 'today's lunch (heart emoji)' or anything like that," wrote another.

Some users joked it was good the royals had chosen the more "civilized" Instagram over X, formerly Twitter.

Naruhito ascended the Chrysanthemum throne in 2019 in a tradition-laden ceremony after his highly popular father became the first emperor to abdicate in over two centuries.

Other monarchies have created social media accounts, including Britain's royals, who have recently been at the center of a storm of rumors and conspiracy theories.

The manipulation of a family photograph the palace released to the media fueled online speculation over the whereabouts of Catherine, Princess of Wales, who later revealed she had been diagnosed with cancer.

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Should You Stretch before Exercise? After? Never? Here’s What to Know

Philadelphia Eagles stretch as they get ready during practice at NFL football training camp, Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP)
Philadelphia Eagles stretch as they get ready during practice at NFL football training camp, Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP)
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Should You Stretch before Exercise? After? Never? Here’s What to Know

Philadelphia Eagles stretch as they get ready during practice at NFL football training camp, Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP)
Philadelphia Eagles stretch as they get ready during practice at NFL football training camp, Thursday, July 25, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP)

For many people of a certain age, high school gym class began with reaching for their toes. Then, over the years, we were told it was better to stretch after exercise.

It turns out, both those things can be true, but the differing advice has created some confusion.

Stretching can help make you more flexible, improve range of motion in your joints — and feel good. David Behm, who researches human kinetics at Memorial University of Newfoundland in St. John’s, Canada, offers this advice on when to stretch and how to do it safely:

Warm up first

It’s almost always good to stretch, but it’s better if you warm up first, said Behm, author of "The Science and Physiology of Flexibility and Stretching." He recommends a light aerobic activity such as jogging, walking or cycling for five or 10 minutes.

Follow that with some static stretching, the traditional way of reaching and holding a position (think back to that gym class). You can then do activity-specific dynamic stretching, in which you warm up the muscles with repetitive movements like leg lifts.

Behm says one minute is "the magic number" for how long to do static stretching per muscle group without fatigue.

Expand your definition of 'stretching'

Should you always stretch before exercising? If it's traditional stretching, not necessarily.

The better question, Behm says, is, "Should people increase their range of motion? Should people have better flexibility? And that is yes, because it helps prevent injuries. It helps with health. But you don’t have to stretch to achieve that."

Resistance training, for instance, can be an effective form of stretching, he said. Doing a chest press increases range of motion in your deltoids and pecs, whether with barbells, dumbbells or machines, so there is no need to stretch beforehand. Just make sure to start with a small amount of weight to warm up and then add more to train.

"You probably don’t have to do extra stretching unless you’re a gymnast, a figure skater, or even a golfer who needs a great range of motion through that swing," Behm said.

Nor do you need to stretch first if you’re going for a leisurely run. Simply start with a slow jog to warm up and then increase the pace.

Don't do it if it hurts

After exercise, "light stretching is OK, as long as you don't reach a point where you're feeling pain," Behm said. Since your muscles will be warm by that point, overdoing it makes you more likely to injure yourself.

Foam rollers can help with muscle recovery and have been shown to increase range of motion as well as stretching.

Do some static stretching before sports

If you’re playing a sport, Behm said, static stretching beforehand helps reduce muscle and tendon injury.

"If you’re going to do an explosive movement, change of direction, agility, sprint, any of these explosive activities that involve your muscles and tendons," he said, "you’re going to be stronger if you do static stretching."

People can especially get in trouble when they go back to a sport they used to play, whether it's tennis, surfing or any sort of team activity.

Also, stretch both sides equally. Lacking flexibility on one side also can lead to injury.

Sounds simple. Why all the confusion? Different studies over the years have either encouraged or discouraged stretching before exercise. Behm says that partly because some studies didn't reflect real-life conditions, or were designed with elite athletes in mind, not regular people.

"If you’re Usain Bolt, it makes a difference," said Behm. Not so much for the rest of us.